My Chameleon Labs 7602 review

[dasoundjunkie]

Attention Slutz!!!
HOLY SHIT! I had to get that out of the way, now on to the review. First , this will be part of an ongoing review since I just got it and immediately put it to work on a mix as an eq on the kick. One small detail , the kick up to that moment was being eq'd by my Manley Massive Passive and to make a long story short this 600 buck eq SMOKED the Massive without working up a sweat!(In this application) No I'm not deaf, I haven't done any drugs today and I'm not getting rid of the Manley! Imagine my surprise when I put this thing up against the bully and he got his ass handed to him ( I swear I was laughing and then I wanted to cry!).I also tried it on snare with equally impressive results, hell I ended up taking everything I had on the snare out(it needed a lot of TLC) and leaving just the 7602 and my Transient Designer, instant gratification! I've read on other threads the ongoing debate regarding how Neve like this thing sounds blah, blah, blah who gives a shit! This thing sounds fenomenal and it costs penuts (relatively speaking). I shit you not, the eq alone is more than worth the price of admition and I haven't tried the pre or the DI yet so now that I've gotten this of my chest( my wife had no idea why this was such a big deal to me so I had to tell it to you guys, who do!) I'm gonna go back and finish the mix .
Sound Junkie out!

[TonyBelmont]

I would agree it's a very impressive box for the money... But, I will say that it doesn't sound like a Neve 1073. That said, it does have a nice tone and a good EQ.

I will be doing some ongoing work with them as well, so I'll chime in every once in a while to give some feedback if this threads keeps going.

[Blindside]

I just got one the other day too, and it is pretty sweet. I haven't used it much, but I can say that on vocals and snare, it is real nice. I plugged mt A/E mandolin into the DI and it sounds awesome. The eq is sick. I, like Tony, will give further review as I use it more.

[cap217]

To me it sounds great on guitars. I used it with the GR and I chose the CL most of the time.... but for vocals I was not impressed! It sounded to tinny or thin.... I used it with a Peluso 2247LE and was just not happy. I went with the Vintech over it for vox!

[Sergievsky]

Originally Posted by cap217

.... but for vocals I was not impressed! It sounded to tinny or thin.... I used it with a Peluso 2247LE and was just not happy.,

Maybe you should try it with a real mic first...

just kidding!

[Makinithappen]

I have a demo one right now and I think I'm going to buy it. Not as nice as my Vintech Dual72, but still a really nice pre.

[LaLaFaV]

My band bought 2 when we started our last project, which is the 4 song E.P. on our MySpace page. I used them to record kick & snare, but with different preamps on all the other drums, OH's & room mics. Every other single track recorded, including bass, guitars, vocals, etc., were all done with the CL 7602. Each song had around 24 to 30 tracks piled up and I thought that the 7602 worked pretty damn good without creating a muddy mix. It was my first experience with this preamp and I think it's a great deal, so I'm keeping it. It's great for someone like me who isn't a pro engineer but who needs a nice, inexpensive pre/eq around when I need to track something.

[dasoundjunkie]

Update , Just tried it on bass, I needed more control on the snare so I put a QURE eq on it and then put the bass thru the 7602 (who again was residing on the Massive Passive at the time ) and damn if the same thing didn't happen again and thus I see a pattern emerging, this thing loves bass and I mean in a big way! Guys the only thing I can say is that so far it's one of the best things I've ever bought( and I've got a couple of nice toys) I'll keep you posted! (really stupid for the money)
Sound Junkie out

[TonyBelmont]

Originally Posted by Sergievsky

Maybe you should try it with a real mic first...

just kidding!

Wow, I can't think of many mics better than the 22 47 LE at any price point... It's a superb mic and really excels on male rock & hip hop vocals.

[Faderjockey]

I just used it for a few things on a rock session. It was my room mic pre/EQ with a U48 for drums.. Sounds great for that. I haven't tried it on snare...I had TG on snare and I did try it for a second on kick. But went with my standard setup TG inside LTD-1 on outside kick.

I used the EQ on it when doing bass.. I used it on the D/I side and I think LTD-1 on the bass cab. I didn't try it on any gtr's I don't think...I think maybe a clean gtr don't remember.

But I did use it for some harmonies.. Lead vocals for this band was SM7 into TG-LTD eq.. But some harmonies and and other parts were U48 into 7602 and sounded great...

I like the unit next to anything I have including my Dual72...I would say the Vintech is better. They all work well in what they do... But yeah for the price this thing sounds awesome... I'd like to have a few just for toms...

[warhead]

***Update, I am now at ZENPROAUDIO.com***

We're probably Chameleon's oldest dealer and I have to say that the trend you're seeing here on this thread is spot on concerning this unit in actual use.

It slays as a bass DI. It has a richness and harmonic content in the midrange that works IN THE MIX. Nevermind demo'ing it next to your favorite big fat ass sounding tube DI (that you have to carve all that boom off of in many mixes) because there are DI's that sound BIGGER. I'm saying it has more useable content in the mix which is where it matters.

The preamp is great on drums, guitars etc.

The preamp is "ok" on vocals. I have found it to have a little bump in the upper mids that doesn't always suit a vocal track well. On instruments etc all is well and I've never found it to be an issue and in fact seems to compliment most sources EXCEPT certain vocals.

Now onto the EQ...that's where you simultaneously wet your pants, drop your jaw and drool. The 7602 is simply one of the finest EQ's around that I've used, you can thicken things up so nicely it's just silly good. In many cases a little dab'll do ya but it's still pure magic. Magic on guitars, drums, bass, and on acoustic guitar the high shelf will open up nicer than you could ever want without getting spitty or harsh...just smooth.

War

[dasoundjunkie]

Originally Posted by warhead

We're probably Chameleon's oldest dealer and I have to say that the trend you're seeing here on this thread is spot on concerning this unit in actual use.

It slays as a bass DI. It has a richness and harmonic content in the midrange that works IN THE MIX. Nevermind demo'ing it next to your favorite big fat ass sounding tube DI (that you have to carve all that boom off of in many mixes) because there are DI's that sound BIGGER. I'm saying it has more useable content in the mix which is where it matters.

The preamp is great on drums, guitars etc.

The preamp is "ok" on vocals. I have found it to have a little bump in the upper mids that doesn't always suit a vocal track well. On instruments etc all is well and I've never found it to be an issue and in fact seems to compliment most sources EXCEPT certain vocals.

Now onto the EQ...that's where you simultaneously wet your pants, drop your jaw and drool. The 7602 is simply one of the finest EQ's around that I've used, you can thicken things up so nicely it's just silly good. In many cases a little dab'll do ya but it's still pure magic. Magic on guitars, drums, bass, and on acoustic guitar the high shelf will open up nicer than you could ever want without getting spitty or harsh...just smooth.

War

It trully kills on anything that requires low end, definetly not for surgery but I haven't seen much out there that can compete as far as general tone shaping. Truly insane ,I'm getting 4 more!

[warhead]

No, not surgical at all. The mid band is quite wide in fact, but even small amounts can be dramatically sweet.

Those shelves are to die for.

War

[mrbowes]

All this talk is making me want another one. Little Labs IBP -> 7602 has been my goto for bass DI.

Have they always been $699? I thought I remember paying $599 for the unit...did the price go up?

[Harsh]

This piece deffinately rocks. I've owned Vintechs, and Api's and for the money the chameleon is probably the best bang.

[MadGuitrst]

I've been raving about this since I got mine.

When I first tried it on vocals, I was slightly dissapointed.
It was a bit too agressive for some mics.
But, at that time, I was doing preamp only comparisons......and one of the mics I used has a lot of high end content (Peluso 22 251....may be better suited to a Sebatron, etc).

The thing is though, between the EQ and the variable gain structure, you can make the unit cover quite a lot of sonic territory.

Cutting the highs just a tad, adding a little bottom girth, tweaking the midrange just a hair to dial nail some sweetness and suddenly the unit was working on vocals too with even a bright mic.

I understand why people want to view only its seperate components...especially when it comes to the preamp. But why? Why not take it as the whole?

Simply put, there's nothing that touches it in it's price range for all the sonics it can produce. Regardless of price or implied heritage, it sounds very good and is very flexible in it's gain structuring and EQ section.

For a home studio it's a no brainer.

[dasoundjunkie]

Fukk fukk fukk I was so hoping you guys were wrong but the damn mic pre really let me down on vocals ! SHIT! I stand by my opinion of the EQ but the first outing on the mic pre just pissed me off!dfegad Ok who likes it on what ,don't spare any gory details 'cause I wanna know what to attack this with in the next few sessions! What the hell, can't win 'em all
to be continued
I'm out

[dasoundjunkie]

Originally Posted by MadGuitrst

I've been raving about this since I got mine.

When I first tried it on vocals, I was slightly dissapointed.
It was a bit too agressive for some mics.
But, at that time, I was doing preamp only comparisons......and one of the mics I used has a lot of high end content (Peluso 22 251....may be better suited to a Sebatron, etc).

The thing is though, between the EQ and the variable gain structure, you can make the unit cover quite a lot of sonic territory.

Cutting the highs just a tad, adding a little bottom girth, tweaking the midrange just a hair to dial nail some sweetness and suddenly the unit was working on vocals too with even a bright mic.

I understand why people want to view only its seperate components...especially when it comes to the preamp. But why? Why not take it as the whole?

Simply put, there's nothing that touches it in it's price range for all the sonics it can produce. Regardless of price or implied heritage, it sounds very good and is very flexible in it's gain structuring and EQ section.

For a home studio it's a no brainer.

My problem is that I cut vocals in the control room ( I get better performances out of the singers when they're in the control room ) and can't make eq decisions thru head-phones, which is cool for the talent but a pain in the ass for me, still to me performance is all! I'm sure what you say is true 'cause the fukkin' eq just kills but for this application the mic pre just let me down

[MadGuitrst]

So the question is what components are most responsible?

But before putting the cart before the horse:
What mics did you try with it?
Did you work with the gain staging, ie: increasing the gain and reducing the output?
Have you tried other Neve clones on vox? If so, your thoughts?

[dasoundjunkie]

Originally Posted by MadGuitrst

So the question is what components are most responsible?

But before putting the cart before the horse:
What mics did you try with it?
Did you work with the gain staging, ie: increasing the gain and reducing the output?
Have you tried other Neve clones on vox? If so, your thoughts?

Yeah I tried several settings and at least this combination for this singer SUCKED!, I've used 1073s before(tho never owned one unfortunately) and know the sound( on a TLM 103/1073 combo I found that the vocals had more body and a tad more air) that was what blew my mind about the eq , I've never heard a 1073s eq sound so thick in the low end!(never used any other Neve clone besides this one) As far as mics I used a groove tubes am-62 (that on all my other pres sounds very smooth) and a really old tlm 103 that I've had since they first came out (the new ones sound different, don't really know why). I'm very curious as to what mics this would work well for vocals,any sugestions? Anyway,I haven't given up, I will be trying it on my own vocals soon. I'll
let you know how it goes.
I'm out

[monsterz]

Cant seem to find one of these over here. Does anyone know if the voltage is switchable to 240v?

Also I will be in NYC at the end of the month and would like to check one out.
Anyone know any dealers in the city that are carrying these?

Thanks.

[andredb]

Originally Posted by monsterz

Cant seem to find one of these over here. Does anyone know if the voltage is switchable to 240v?

Also I will be in NYC at the end of the month and would like to check one out.
Anyone know any dealers in the city that are carrying these?

Thanks.

Guitar center at 14th street used to have one in the rack...

[beechstudio]

Anyone have any audio samples of this thing in action? (Besides the ones on Chameleons site.)

Thanks!

[warhead]

***I am now the owner of ZenProAudio.com***

War

[Wayne]

Originally Posted by dasoundjunkie

Ok who likes it on what ,don't spare any gory details 'cause I wanna know what to attack this with in the next few sessions! What the hell, can't win 'em all
to be continued

This is my first venture into a pre with useable saturation and soft clipping/leveling aspects for tracking so forgive the noobishness'.
Case in point was on a simple wood block where the clean route came up too thin. I was thinking at the time 'more hair, and more consistent. This thing did both. I'm pleasantly surprised by not just more 'wood body in the mix (if that make sense) but the degree of leveling.
Initially, it's been a joy on guitar cab, bass d/i and rock/pop vocals. Now that there's two of them here maybe one can slide over to use this trick on snare next time.

[Blindside]

Well, my home studio is quite "Low End" and actually the 7602 is my first mic pre. That being said I'm using it with a c3000 for vocals(not exactly ideal) and it sounds way better with the 7602, but I guess anything would, right. Oh well. It's great for a bass DI and sounds sick on drums. Too bad I only have one. I don't know if it's better on snare or kick.

[dasoundjunkie]

Originally Posted by Wayne

This is my first venture into a pre with useable saturation and soft clipping/leveling aspects for tracking so forgive the noobishness'.
Case in point was on a simple wood block where the clean route came up too thin. I was thinking at the time 'more hair, and more consistent. This thing did both. I'm pleasantly surprised by not just more 'wood body in the mix (if that make sense) but the degree of leveling.
Initially, it's been a joy on guitar cab, bass d/i and rock/pop vocals. Now that there's two of them here maybe one can slide over to use this trick on snare next time.

Dude the eq kills on just about anything(unless you are doing surgery)
I've spent the better part of 2 days putting this thing on anything and everything and it I'm simply floored!I WANT MORE!!!!!!!!!!!!

[asagaai]

Monsterez, the power supply is swichable between USA and UK/Australia-I think 220 to 230.

I think this pre amp depending on the mike used and gain settings could sound a little harsh on vocals-but I have found by using eq and trying different input and output settings you can get a real thick creamy vocal- and can tame that harshness in the uppers-but I have said before-it is not a simple unit of turning 1 gain dial for vocals-you need to play with the settings on vocals.

Now I may be totally off beam here, but I have the feeling that with cheaper/overly thin and bright mikes vocals in the chameleon may be a tad harsh/edgy and honky.

I initially used with Rode NT 2000 with RNC, and on initially firing up - it sounded honky harsh on vocals. However, within an hour of playing with gain and output and eq-I got a really nice smooth creamy sound. I have found it more dark than the clean pre amps-but that may be because I eq the upper down a tad.

However, hook the unit up to a good mike with good low end and control over the upper, and it shines on vocals. I have been recording using a pearlman tm1 with neve portico 5043- and on vocals it aint harsh or honky-thats for sure.

On acoustic guitar with this chain it has been simply stunning-before (NT2000 and RNC) my acoustic guitar was always slightly thin and on the plucks a bit severe in the uppers, now I am getting a sound which is so deep and rich and rounded it sounds almost electrified in a sublime acoustic way.


Is there any consensus as to what the chameleon is like on snare and kick-?

Cheers

Gavin Jensen
Newcastle/OZ
-

[dasoundjunkie]

Is there any consensus as to what the chameleon is like on snare and kick-?

Cheers

Gavin Jensen
Newcastle/OZ
-[/QUOTE]Fukkin' amazing
Most slamming kick sounds I've gotten!!
(and that's just the EQ on pre recorded tracks)
Trully great stuff . I'll let you know when I record some drums.!

[pixelhead]

I just finished a rough mix of music for a project I am working on and I tracked the bass and all the guitars with the 7602. I really like the EQ on this thing. I tried it on vocals i was not to impressed and was going to sell it but I tried on bass and guitars and I am now keeping and buying a second one (Warren I will be calling tomorrow). The guitars in this mix are dry. nothing was added in the mix. The lay pretty well and needed nothing.

http://www.electrowerksrecording.com...nother Day.mp3