Upgrade interface or purchase preamp?

[indie folk guy]

first off is it even possible to bypass the built in preamps in your mobile pre?
if no considering a preamp is a silly idea at best

second if you want to upgrade to a better preamp on a budget much better options would be Warm Audio WA12 and Golden Age Projects Pre73, these will offer a much more noticable improvement in tone, the preamp on the Presonus is pretty much on par with the average audio interface (imho I don't like them) and the EQ/comp sections are just kinda mediocre as well.

So I guess I'd say improve the audio interface if you can't bypass the built in preamps, and if you can bypass them look at a better dedicated preamp. My outlook is why pay for an EQ and compressor when you can add those ITB and have more control later?
Chances are depending on the interface you go with you may upgrade both the preamp and the overall quality/reliability of the interface.

[dipsi]

There is a button on the mobile pre to turn off phantom power, which I assume is bypassing the built in amp?

[Sir Chris]

Originally Posted by dipsi

There is a button on the mobile pre to turn off phantom power, which I assume is bypassing the built in amp?

No, that won't bypass your pre's. You need to see if your interface has any "Line In" inputs. Those would bypass the pre's on your interface. Maybe it'll help if you could tell us excatly what interface you have so it can be looked up.

But what they're saying is true. If you can't bypass the pre's then there is no point in buying a preamp. Better off upgrading your interface. If you can bypass your pre's the the preamps suggested would be a better choice then the PreSonus.

[dipsi]

This is my interface

M-Audio MobilePre USB Audio interface

[indie folk guy]

Originally Posted by dipsi

There is a button on the mobile pre to turn off phantom power, which I assume is bypassing the built in amp?

phantom power is just turning on/off the phantom power (which is voltage required for certain types of mics to operate usually condensers require phantom power but their are some ribbon/dynamic mics that also require it now).

I don't think you have a line input that bypasses the built in preamp on that interface.

How much money are you looking to spend?

If you have money to spend I'd suggest RME, if you don't want to break the bank the Scarlett 8i6 or 18i6 would provide you with an overall upgrade and offer you the ability down the road to use external preamps (they both have line in's that would bypass built in preamps).

Either way look for something other than that Presonus I don't think it's what you are looking for in an upgrade.

[dipsi]

It seems like the consensus is to invest in a new interface. Will I really hear that much of a difference? Also my budget is not great. I'm a broke college student with a couple hundred to invest. Thanks for your help so far!

[Sir Chris]

Yeah you're going to need a new interface that will let you bypass the pre's. Your NT1-A mic is a very good sounding mic so if you're goal is to improve vocal quality I would say do the following.

*Get a top notch mic cable like a Mogami Gold quad cable.

*Upgrade to new interface like the one suggested (Focusrite 8i6) Cause the Line-Inputs allow you to bypass pre's. The interface alone will be a step up from the one you have now.

*Then after you have both things look into a Warm Audio WA12 or Golden Age Projects Pre73 instead of the Presonus strip you were looking at.

[dipsi]

Sounds good, I will look into those products.

What kind of sound difference should I expect from an upgraded interface?

Thank you for all your help!

[Sir Chris]

Between the one you have and the one suggested I would say it should sound clearer As if someone took the sheets off your speakers. Now, a $1000 interface would be more like someone took the comforters off your speakers lol.

[Maverick87]

I used to have that same MobilePre and didn't realize till later that it only does 16 bit. Save up for a good interface and you'll definitely notice a difference. If you save and get one with bypassable pres, you can always add an external pre later.

[MattLyonsMusic]

Originally Posted by Sir Chris

*Get a top notch mic cable like a Mogami Gold quad cable.

LOL!! That's f-ing hilarious! Yeah, spend all your money on a mic cable...

[MattLyonsMusic]

The first question is 'what is your bottleneck?' Most of the time, for beginners, it's the room. Are you just recording in a bedroom with zero acoustic treatment? If that's the case, $10,000 of gear is still gonna sound like complete ass. Spend your money on a DIY vocal booth and your recordings will increase 50 fold vs maybe 10% for upgrading your gear - or even less considering your budget. If you already have a decent vocal booth, aside from good recording knowledge, yes, gear upgrade is the next step. If you have a car crash on the freeway so no cars can move, you don't go and fix the road 2 miles after the crash to try and improve traffic, you fix the f-ing crash - fix the bottleneck!!!

[indie folk guy]

Originally Posted by MattLyonsMusic

LOL!! That's f-ing hilarious! Yeah, spend all your money on a mic cable...

pickup a soldering iron and go to redco.com build the same quad cable for a fraction of the cost, ime and imho a cable isn't going to be the difference maker the OP is searching for.

And if you have a tight budget and do want to look at premade cables I suggest Blue cables (I've used their Kiwi Quad cables for years without issues alongside Canare and Mogami)

I personally use the Focusrite Scarlett 18i6 and the converters, headphone amp, hardware/software, and built in preamps are great especially at that price point.

I think you will be happy not only with the short term improvements in quality and reliablity but the long term flexibility it will offer you.

[mattseidel]

Originally Posted by dipsi

My goal is to improve the quality of recorded vocals.

A bit late to this thread but I was working on vocals last night and thought I'd chime in.

90% of vocal quality, as the listener hears it, is going to come from the quality of the vocal performance and your mic technique, not from "pro gear." Listen to the album "Children of Desire" by Merchandise, it sounds like ass but the vocals are so confident that you don't notice after 5 seconds.

Your Rode is a totally acceptable mic, if you can I would recommend getting ahold of an above-average mic pre but definitely focus your time and effort on getting the right angle/distance from the mic, the right room placement, and singing like you mean it.