Biggest dissapointment/waste of money

[scottrod]

My Ford F-150 pickup truck.

I can't begin to rant about all the reasons it sucks. I leave it open at night hoping someone will steal it.

Seriously.

2 X Acoustics of Finland AF2's - initially. The mid-highs were tremendously overpronounced. Also the mids weren't great. Thankfully they teamed well with my existing speakers
m@.

[OzarkRoots]

Cascade Fathead II.................dark as the night

[vierge99]

If I didn't post it previously, my Blue enCORE 200 active dynamic mic. It sounds great but is plagued as being the noisiest piece of equipment in my chain.

Lots of fuzz, lots of handling noise, lots of RFI.

Never have these problems with my other mics. Even condensers.

[hereticskeptic]

Originally Posted by deeper

For me, that would be health insurance. The healthcare industry just ripped me off for over $3000 AFTER insurance claims were paid, and the tests revealed that THERE WASN'T A DAMN THING WRONG WITH ME. But each test was inconclusive, requiring additional tests, each more expensive than the previous.

From now on, if I'm going to throw money away, instead of throwing it away on insurance, I vow to throw it away on gear.

Word up!

[hereticskeptic]

Originally Posted by weemies

Great River ME-1NV

Don't get me wrong, I'm not knocking GR specifically - it's as competent as any other pre, and the build quality is excellent. I just find spending that much on one channel pre to be way, WAY excessive. I've heard other high end pres too and I would say the same thing about all of them. I was suckered into buying it because of boards just like this one, promising it would make my mics come to life and other nonsense like that, and was sorely disappointed to notice it didn't make my recordings any better.

Oh, btw, I'd love to see more responses to my shootout which includes the GR:
Mic Pre shootout aiming for scientific accuracy (Great River, FF400 and Tube MP pres)

If you don't mind me asking, what is a fairly-priced preamp and/or channel strip you'd recommend? I was leaning toward the Great River, but the numerous shootouts I've heard cannot be ignored: I just don't see much (if any) difference between many expensive pre's and less-expensive pre's to warrant breaking the bank. I'd rather have a strip with a great compressor and EQ. If you can't recommend a fairly-priced channel strip, how about a pre, separate EQ, and compressor?

I'm asking you specifically, because very few seem to think there is little difference between high-end and low-end pre's. Appreciate any assistance you are willing to offer. I've been reading threads for months now, and was close to pulling the trigger on the GR ME-1NV, but just can't see this being a smart move, especially at such an early stage. Your shootout in the link provided here was the last straw. I can't deny reality, when presented to me. I know many will not agree with my thinking, but it is my thinking and it has done me fairly well over the years.

[hereticskeptic]

Then again, I keep forgetting that the Great River is supposedly much better on vocals than guitar, etc. Still, shootouts I've heard didn't make vocals sound that much better to warrant the price difference. I do have an SM7B, so maybe what I'm hearing about that combo is at least genuine. Would be nice to hear shootouts for the specific setups we have, haha. I can dream, right?

I wonder what pre one would recommend for a U67/U87, but not high end? Would the Great River fair well here also (standout from others, as it supposedly does for the SM7B)? If so, it may be worth it for me in the long run. Still, I'd rather find a good channel strip with all needs, that works great for those three mics (SM7B, U67, U87). Damn...my needs may be too specific to make an informed preamp purchase. Trial and error sucks when you're short on cash.

[hereticskeptic]

Originally Posted by mattg082

My Ex girlfriend. The money I spent on a rosetta and a lunchbox was well worth it and i got nagged for it but guess what's still around that brings me happiness every day.

Haha! I love this one

[enisanci]

line 6 POD ( i sold it in a week)
AKG K240 (where is the low end man, i am glad i have dt770 now)

i am very suprised that some people hate grace pres and royer r-121.I really love them. they sound great together to me.

[memphisindie]

After years of reading reviews (working with some of this stuff), once you get into the over $400 range of gear that actually works well enough to bother with, the differences are very subtle, most of them have to do with the phase relationship of the material on the output with Trannies, hysterisis effects, headroom, and slewing. Stuff that's good fits within a nearly imperceptably narrow range, upon tracking, and the differences affected tape quite a bit, down the line. Now you don't have that kind of loss and smearing to deal with the worthy gear never sounds ridiculously different.

These difference can be the difference between sitting happily behind the desk working till something is finished and sitting there ready to pull your ears off after a bit of time before you finish because the subtle shortcoming rears it's head and grates your brain.
Sometimes a deficiency in high end can cause problems in a dense mix that wouldn't be obvious in a sparse one. The only way I can figure to find out before you buy is to try before. Saves a lot of bitter feelings energy for something else.

[robstercraw]

anyone else own the adat m20? It was huge! Big black face with a bunch of red buttons. Cosst like 5k. Came out early 2000ish if i remember right. Then disappeared almost immediately. What a crapper that was. Sold it to some other poor sod for just about what i paid for it a month later. Got a teisco del ray out of the deal thoough. Awesome gtr. Weighedd about 40lbs but i loved it! Sad its gone now.

[Riversider]

Originally Posted by mbvoxx

EZ Drummer

Amen, brother. Big waste of $$$$. Nothing about it is easy or makes sense. Customer support was horrible. I will never use it - because I still don't know how after 2 years.fuuck

[Riversider]

[QUOTE=enisanci;6180621]line 6 POD ( i sold it in a week)

Love my POD XT! Hated it at first, then started to like it. After that I sat down and really learned how to use it. You have to woodshed with it - not very good out of the box. But once I learned how to really sculpt my sounds and got a footboard this piece of gear made a lot more sense. No studio should be without one. It's all in the detrails!stike

[chevega]

Agreed! Most "real" musicians and engineers hate these things because all the stock sounds are Cheese Central. I got one a few years back because I was in a recording situation where I couldn't mic any amps, so I forced myself to learn to use it. Now, with the help of some high end pre's, it goes on every single session. When clients show up with amps they want to mic, I get a little pissed and try to figure out how I can convince them to try the POD!

[QUOTE=Riversider;6195423]

Originally Posted by enisanci

line 6 POD ( i sold it in a week)

Love my POD XT! Hated it at first, then started to like it. After that I sat down and really learned how to use it. You have to woodshed with it - not very good out of the box. But once I learned how to really sculpt my sounds and got a footboard this piece of gear made a lot more sense. No studio should be without one. It's all in the detrails!stike

[DavidChampoux]

+10! (especially on Taylor gtrs)

Originally Posted by markthomas

Avalon 737: Overpriced. Simply doesn't to stand up to other pres in its price range.

Taylor guitars: Crappy sound, crappy pickup, crappy electronics, crappy neck, crappy finish... Mine and every other one I've played has had me sprinting back to my Martin.

[Unique]

Originally Posted by Jim Williams

Probably my first Jeep Wrangler TJ 2004. I got it with manual transmission. It crawled great but my bum left knee was killing me with that stuff clutch.

2 months later in pain I traded it in for another one with auto. Cost me 4 g's for that mistake.

Now I'm on my 3rd one, a 4 door Sahara all lifted with 35" mud terrain tires. Auto for sure! It's my go anywhere passport.

I also had a 2005 Hummer H3 all loaded with mud tires and extra off road stuff. That was a big mistake as it was a piece of crap. The 5 cylinder engine blew up 3 times over 6 months. I got all my money back on it via the California Lemon law. That's when I bought the 3rd Jeep. Me happy.

Jim Williams
Audio Upgrades

How about trying an X5 or X3? Not sure about the mud though ...

[Unique]

Originally Posted by Bretster

I agree.

I have to admit that I am quite conservative about my gear, I usually wait years to buy something I want just to be sure that it stands the test of time.

I can honestly say I got nothing to complain about.

Not a disappointment but an expectation to obtain poor sonic results:

- NS-10M (www.soundonsound.com/sos/sep08/articles/yamahans10.htm)
- SM-57 (fake vs real sm57 frequency response graph picture by fxtrider - Photobucket)
- SPX reverbs sound in between 90 and 1000

Maybe bias from recurring magazines pictures and "me too" sound engineer talk on these units? Especially on proximity monitors, there is so much choice today for flatter, low distortion, low hearing fatigue, extended lows, active monitors or passive Hi-Fi speakers.



Interesting read: Bob Katz FAQs: Nearfield not useful for mixing

[Mistor]

Pioneer EFX-1000
Was a decent DJ tool for a while... been collecting dust for 2 years and i'll be happy if i can get 1/3 of what I payed for it NEW. Nobody's even bidding on any of them on ebay these days.

[windmillsound]

Originally Posted by dkelley

grace pre, rnp, behringer pre, focusrite pre, quest guitar (it was cheap, it was the 80s, it seemed good for 45 minutes in the store), cheap headphones (name yer brand), apex condensor mics, every single "studio" spring reverb I've ever bought in my entire life, dunlop crybaby, boss stereo chorus(ssssssss), squire bass (could make it sound good but what an effort), behringer di-20 or whatever their little portable active di box is called (compared to the bdi21 which is insanely amazing for the price), apex 180 mics (mxl 603... I just hate 'em, sorry guys but I do), yorkville ysm-1 passive monitors, I don't like ns10s and I don't like ysms for the same reason... treble from hell...great monitors, just not for me at all.

I'm sure there's more but that'll do.

cheers,
Don

There are quite a lot of threads where people think top end gear is not worth the hike in price. It is really interesting that its the low-end gear that you resent paying money for. I tend to agree that it doesn't matter how cheap something is, if you are not happy with the sound then it is expensive.

Upgrading is very innefficient so I've always gone with fewer pieces of better gear. Generally only spending on somthing that won't need to be upgraded.

[taturana]

Originally Posted by chevega

Agreed! Most "real" musicians and engineers hate these things because all the stock sounds are Cheese Central. I got one a few years back because I was in a recording situation where I couldn't mic any amps, so I forced myself to learn to use it. Now, with the help of some high end pre's, it goes on every single session. When clients show up with amps they want to mic, I get a little pissed and try to figure out how I can convince them to try the POD!

i love my pod xt, fully expanded and with the footboard....
but when i record, for real, i always mic my amps, much better results...
i guess you are still in phase 1 of "pod love"...

[Delphino]

Antares vox fx bundle. Price 600$-.. Worth about 60-90$. Felt like an album with one good song the rest are fillers.. Very dissapointed.

[Arthur Stone]

My ex...and cheap audio cables

...also Yamaha 01X (obviously).

[Sweep1]

What seems to come out of all of this, to my mind, is that some stuff is simply horses for courses - one person's crap may be another person's perfect instrument. On the other hand there's some stuff that's just all out crap because it doesn't work at all.

Originally Posted by Tommy-boy

Lexicon MPX 550 - Nice effects, but the routing was limited and the noise floor was very high. Ditched for a TC Electronics M-1 which has better routing and a much lower noise floor.

It just goes to show. I love the MPX550 and I've got three of them. People email me to ask what reverb I use because they like the sound so much, or just because they wonder how I did the things they're hearing.

It's all down to what you put through a reverb, I suppose. What I put through the MPX550 must be right for it. If I put my music through your favourite reverb it may not work at all. And, evidently, the same the oter way round.

Originally Posted by Captain Proton

Auturia soft synths, laugh I nearly sh*t myself how bad they were.

Again, maybe it depends what you do with them - although it also depends what version. They `improved' them a couple of years ago and they're not as good now. I get a lot of praise for music I've made with Arturia synths. `Intervening Shoreline' on my website certainly gets positive responses, and that's entirely the Arturia 2600V. (My sounds are nothing like the presets that came with it, though. I had to dig a bit.) And I did a demo with a long unaccompanied section of Arturia CS80V. The producer it went to was amazed a computer had any part in it.

But the real mistakes are things that just don't work. Extra points if they also have no resale value. NI's Bosendorfer piano is a case in point. When I bought it, it installed ok, but I wasn't as impressed as I'd hoped. I did record one piece with it, though. But then NI moved over to their laughably titled `Service Center' software, so when I changed computers I had to use that to authorise the Bosendorfer. It failed to work properly, and I couldn't contact NI because you have to do that via the `Service Center' as well. I found a way round that, which took weeks before I eventually reinstalled the thing. I fully expect more problems next time I change PCs. So I decided to sell it, but I'm not allowed to because NI don't own the piano samples so they won't give the new buyer authorisation to use it. So it's completely and utterly worthless.

Apart from stuff that just doesn't work, or wastes more time than it's worth, I'm inclined to think virtually anything has its uses, so long as the price justifies it, and sometimes the challenge of a cheap/crappy instrument can be its own reward. I've had a lot of positive comments on `Dragon Hill' which was done with an ancient Yamaha organ I got cheap off the net, plus some ebow guitar. The cheap organ went through a wah pedal (a cheap one) and - a Lexicon MPX550.

I was never really happy with my MS20, though I did some good things with it, but for the price I paid it was great. If I'd paid today's prices I'd have been a bit disappointed. Didn't do much with the Casio CZ1000, but sampled it and sold it, and I can play the samples back with a touch-sensitive keyboard, tweakable filters and so on, so no complaints there.

[Claude G.]

Agree on the Great River m1nv.....I have a cheaper ADK AP-1 and it is SO MUCH BETTER it isn't funny.......and my new ISA One is also much better than the GR......go figure.....

[fatcatmusic]

Originally Posted by garnish

Korg Oasys card back in the day - I bought it instead of a Pro Tools rig when I signed my publishing deal. IT went back in a few days because it was useless!

I have a PC specially installed with Windows Me just for using that Korg OASYS OCI card. It works pretty good and I love it's sound, way better than most soft synth IMHO! But then again, I got it for $250 on eBay so it was a bargain.

[eatlife]

SSL mixpander pci card hands down , biggest POS, badly designed drivers, poorly implemented = total rip off .

[jeremyglover]

Black Lion AGB Compressor.

[CheneysGun]

School.

I interned for two years before I got into school (and before the DOL came down on the studios.) I learned more during that time period from the awesome people that I worked with than I did in school. School filled in the blanks, but not worth the money. Biggest waste EVER.

The best engineers in the world had class in the studios.

EDIT: Let me re-phrase that. Audio engineering school. I went to major universities and greatly enjoyed the education.

[Fishmed]

Originally Posted by jeremyglover

Black Lion AGB Compressor.

I have not used one, but what did you not like about it?

[dubmunkey]

BFD Eco... Like the sound but its midi response is dire... A single bass drum hit at the same velocity produced a difference of about 2db between hits...driving me mad, tried all settings but getting ready to dump it..

Boss vf1, try as i might i couldn't get it to not make my guitar sound worse...

Cheap gear i wish i hadnt got rid of:
Symetrix cl150
Frostwave resonator
Art tube eq
Lexicon

Interested in what someone said about tla eq 2, wonder if the eq1 is also 'chip' based...

Ive also got some akg 240s mk2 but think it was the mk1s i should have got :(