gap73 vs my new 5 dollar preamp

[LewisFTW]

Voted B for the GAP, sliiightly clearer to my ears! But for $5, I could care less which is the GAP, the difference is far too subtle!

So are you going to explain your magic box?

[Amun Ra]

I like B better. I like the cleaner/rounder texture. I suspect that A is GAP, since it sounds a little wooly/cloudy on the low mids and slightly crunchy in the high mids, like some transformer based preamps do when driven hard.

I'm also curious about your DIY-preamp. Any more info?

[WB1984]

Originally Posted by Amun Ra

I like B better. I like the cleaner/rounder texture. I suspect that A is GAP, since it sounds a little wooly/cloudy on the low mids and slightly crunchy in the high mids, like some transformer based preamps do when driven hard.

I'm also curious about your DIY-preamp. Any more info?

I like B better too.

...big difference between those 2 tracks. I'm not going to guess which is which as I've never heard the GAP, but I hope it's B...

[Sq1ne]

on my cheap headphones, i prefer B as well

now let us in on the $5 preamp

[Chrisc_o]

I won't vote as I have no idea which is the GAP73, but I agree with the comments so far: they are quite similar but B is a little brighter and cleaner.

[lostinmusic]

It's funny how we all hear these thing differently. I'd definitely choose A if I had to. It just sounds 'normal' to me whereas B has a slightly phasey quality. But that can caused by moving an inch across the mic.. what was the mic?

[dr_Jezz]

I think there is quite a clear difference; seems to me that B is less woolly in the low end and is brighter, with better capture of transients, but I have no idea which is the GAP and given the last time I saw this kind of comparison (which was duly royally winged about ) it could be either!

[Sim]

Originally Posted by lostinmusic

It's funny how we all hear these thing differently. I'd definitely choose A if I had to. It just sounds 'normal' to me whereas B has a slightly phasey quality. But that can caused by moving an inch across the mic.. what was the mic?

I'd use A to seems more usable to me.

The bass notes in A have a bit more clarity picks up transients better maybe B almost distorts. A seems to pick up more of the really hi end bits sounds like the other strings resonating B doesn't. I've used alot of cheap pres bad transiet response on low end and low mid seem to be popular.

I'd say B's the 5$ pre, I don't like either to be honest but it's not just the pre.
Please prove me wrong!

[doulos30]

I'd use A to seems more usable to me.

The bass notes in A have a bit more clarity picks up transients better maybe B almost distorts. A seems to pick up more of the really hi end bits sounds like the other strings resonating B doesn't. I've used alot of cheap pres bad transiet response on low end and low mid seem to be popular.

I'd say B's the 5$ pre, I don't like either to be honest but it's not just the pre.
Please prove me wrong!

no I agree I didn't really like the mic choice it was just 4 am

[Fergies Watch]

A is the gap, it's fuller, more rounded. B is brighter but harsh,thin. listening through laptop speakers with one speaker knackered. Still listening with piss poor converters the Gap is a giveaway !

curious to know what mic was used and ADC cos the recording is def sounds low end to me.

regards

Stu.

[doulos30]

it's fuller, more rounded

it may be those things but is it the gap?

[NEWTON IN ORBIT]

Sorry, I can't even tell what is going on. Both are woofy (too much bass) as hell, with little to no focus. Very grainy on top too. Why?

Can you do it again and maybe place the mic better?

Both sound like there is a towel over the mic, and a low shelf @100hz boosted 6 db! Maybe hpf filter both?
It sounds like untreated room + bad mic placement.

Maybe too close to the soundhole?

Sorry to be negative. It's just like showing me 2 two pictures you took in the dark, and asking me which was done with the Nikon, and which with the Leica? Or worse, two pictures with your finger over the lens...

Apologies, I don't mean to be derrogatory, however honesty is the best policy.

Thanks for doing this though, and cool that you built your own preamp!
John

[Bristol_Jonesey]

Sounds to me like 'a' has a slightly classier sound, though there's not much in it, and both would need a lot of work to sit in a mix properly.

[Insain]

Well, both of them sound great! A definitely sounds clearer and a little more brighter while B hits the low's significantly harder then A.

I know nothing about the Gap73, so I wont take competition in that part.

[RonT]

I wouldn't give a rat's ass which one the Gap was! If you only paid $5 to build anything that is that close,....

I will be your first costumer for an 8 channel box for...

8X$5=$40

So I would like to offer you $400.

I am dead serious PM me for payment.

[fzit0]

I like A better. It's more defined. B sounds like it has no mid-hi.

I hope A is the gap hahaha

[Insain]

Originally Posted by doulos30

new 5 dollar mic preamp I built over the weekend

Now, tell me how to build this.
I feel an instructable coming on.

[tibor]

A sounds more "even" and "natural" to me. I've never used a GAP73 but I would have to guess, based on the rave reviews, that it has to be A.

[doulos30]

Now, tell me how to build this.
I feel an instructable coming on.

ina217 datasheet that1512 datasheet split power supply schematic to figure out filtering caps an diode protection, jensens website and talking to some great minds like Les Tiny an a few others Elliott Sound Products web page for ideas and good old experementing

[Ken Balbari]

B sounded better to me on first listen, just on headphones, because A seemed to be lacking some of the low end. Then I decided to adjust my own, see which worked better after tweaking a bit...

And A seems to handle that much better. There's more clarity there, I can bring out the bass with a little EQ, and overall A seems to handle more processing better. I'm just able to do more with A, and it's going to end up sitting better in a mix.

I guess it still wouldn't shock me though if A was the $5 job. I imagine the GAP is supposed to have some coloration, at times, depending on how you set it up. B may not have been recorded optimally for that particular setup.

[Jimsi]

use both a while, see which one you migrate too...i have the rnp and dont like it as good as the gap73...

[s12512]

pm me your paypal info. i give you $100. you give me 4+ of your pre's!!

lemme know if thats enuff!! Seriously!

[walth]

i like the idea of a $5 preamp

[changeng]

"b" is a little more euphonic on top and has a cleaner bottom. i'd say that's the one you built.

[lejon]

Can't be sure if mic placement or touch/something else has changed between the takes, but A has so much better top end detail and clarity. B sounds dull and lacks detail. It would be so cool if A was your 5 dollar pre.. I haven't read other posts yet so now that I'm writing this I don't know if you revealed it already. EDIT: now that I read other posts I also have to state that IMO both tracks sound like crap, but the problem is poor mic placement/bad guitar/bad mic/untreated room.

[Grimace]

I think it's funny that people are commenting on the bad room acoustics. I hear that too, but I wonder if that's just a dodge for self-proclaimed audio geeks too afraid to stick their neck out. Even if the room sucks, you should still be able to decide if you prefer a $300 preamp or a $5 one. Don't you think? I mean, seriously, shut your yap and pick a favorite! Come on! Jump in! It's ok to be wrong. Nobody here thinks you're the audio god that you think you are anyway.



See here? I'm not afraid to stick my neck out (and get it chopped off)... In fact, I'll be THRILLED if I'm wrong.

I think "A" is the GAP73. I think I can hear the transformers working their magic. At first, I preferred B because it sounded cleaner (which is also indicative of an IC design), but then the details of A won me over. Neither one is bad at all, just different.

A has a less defined, but more pleasing, bass, sounds more lively with some nice harmonic "swells", possibly related to the transformer of the GAP73? I equate it to an old hi-fi my parents had when I was a kid and the sound strikes a chord with me.

B sounds cleaner and more neutral with a bit of nice "conveyor belt steady sustain", but lacks that incredible swell that comes in powerfully, then rounds off the notes as they disappear. B reminds me of my first SS fender amp. There was some nice harsh clanging metal sounds going on there, the sustain was superior, but the initial strike of the instrument didn't hit me in the gut (followed by the smooth and surprisingly rapid decay) like music from the old hi-fi did.

"A" has more of a classic swelling hi-fi sound that I find pleasing. I think it's providing a little bit of compression or something with a slow release. And so I suspect it is transformer-based. A isn't as clean, but it really does have that rounded swelling/diminishing sound. I want/need that in my recordings. I suspect A is the GAP73, but if I'm wrong, I will need to borrow your circuit design. My "guess" is based on a good long listen, though I've never heard the GAP73 personally.

They both sound excellent, to be honest. Either way, great job! While I wouldn't replace A with B, I could easily be happy having many channels of both and I wouldn't quit recording if I had to choose one over the other.

How much clean gain can you get out of your homebrewed circuit though? If you can show low noise at high gain, then I'm extremely interested in B, slight differences be damned! And... if you're circuit is A... then I doubly want!

[Washington]

Yep, less mud on B. Interesting.

[automatom]

I don't get what you're trying to prove?

You can get hundreds of different sound out of a gap 73 thanks to the variable gain and impedance. WHich one did you select to compare yours with?

Daft.

[doulos30]

Originally Posted by automatom

I don't get what you're trying to prove?

You can get hundreds of different sound out of a gap 73 thanks to the variable gain and impedance. WHich one did you select to compare yours with?

Daft.

owning this thing for a while now I'd have to say no you can't there is to much gain for 90% of mics to really push the transformers unless you like distortion wooly sound or the sound of mic pads which I don't. There is a impediance switch that will change the tone slightly, but pretty much the tone of this amp stays the same