Great River or Aurora Audio for tracking to DAW

[polysoniq]

What Up Sluts ,This is my first post. I,m a writer/producer in the market for 2 channels of pristine neve flavored pres for tracking vocals, bass,guitar,keys and drum samples.Unfortunately i haven't heard either as i usually vote with my ears and wont be able to as im from NY currently livin in the UK.Primary musical genre's are RnB, hip hop and pop.I have lynx 2 , Rme ADI 8 and DA7 for AD conversion . uad and powercore for ITB flavor but would like to add some fat on tracking to disk.I have tracked and mixed on
old Neve 5305 ,8087 and Api desks but cant make an informed decision as i havent heard the newer rackmounted stuff. Also can a pair of CL7602's do the job for less money. I had a DMCL (it got stolen,maybe they did me a favor?) Any sujective comparisons are welcome to help me make a decision. Thanx and all the best to you during this season.

[TonyBelmont]

I'm a huge fan of the Aurora. It's a little bit more than the Great River, but it also gives you a 3 band EQ. I own a pair of Chameleon's and think they are good for the money, but the preamps themselves don't sound as good as my GTQ or 1073's. I actually didn't like the 7602 pre at all on vocals.

I've preferred the Aurora over the Great River in the past, as I feel it has a more 1073-colored sound. There was some good discussion about the GTQ in this thread: Aurora GTQ2: 2 "1073" style Pre/EQ for the price of 1 ?

[polysoniq]

Thanks for getting at me Tony B,I read the thread in the link and it looks like the general consensus is that the low end EQ on the gtq2 is sick. My understanding is that the pre is more pristine than a 1073 with a wider bandwith ,possibly more headroom? I also like what im hearing about the DI which is really important for my particular applications.If all thats true then im sold. Theres the question of cost inc VAT and how to get it to me stress free. Could you PM me with a quote and possible procurement options.I would love to do this soon.Thanks again.

[Kubilay]

A somewhat useless opinion, since I have no experience with the other pres you mention, but:

I love my GTQ. Awesome, awesome pre... Makes everything sound "better than real": viola (through Baby Bottle) into GTQ - yum! Ditto with guitar amps (my SM57 never sounded this good), hand percussion, vocals, you name it. It also has a wonderful DI (el. bass sounds great there), it can bring digital synths to life, and saves many a sampled instrument from being flat and lifeless... (i.e. I wouldn't dream of using any sampled pianos without sending them through the GTQ anymore.)

You'll have to pry mine out of my cold, dead fingers...

[chrisgraff]

+1 for the Aurora. I also really like the Brent Averill 1073.

[RIZ Records]

I LOVE the GTQ2 aswell, i get instant great sound when using this thing!

[Doc Mixwell]

APPLES AND ORANGES!!!!!!! My firends, I like both flavors so much how do you distinguish bettween the two?!?. I think that you really cant compare these two units seeing how the great river doesnt have the 3-band eq. Anyway Heres my run down for both preamps. But first let me clarify how much use I have given these two pre's. First off I HAVE the GTQ2, its about the only that I care about in life seeing how its worth more than my truck. Second I work at Mercenary Audio, so I see The MP2NV(MP1NV) pre get used more than a condoms on prom night. The thing about the MP2NV(MP1NV) is that it is one of the most versital preamps on the market today. It has a quality about it that is unmatched. It can be clean and it can be very warm sounding. It is a go to pre for everything from kick and snare to drum overheads to gutairs and bass direct. The other night we used the DI for a mini moog. I mean, it has a very full, no bull, punchy character to it. Being the youngster that I am and not having heard a real 1073 yet(dunno why..you could bassicly build a neve console from the shit that sits around at Mercenary) I feel as though the River is and I quote "what a 1073 should sound like" end quote. With that said the GTQ has a lot to offer in it has the "BRITISH TONE" I will give it that. However i find it a bit on the bright side up around presence range 5k-12k. Great gutair pre, esspecially if you use a ribbon mic smashed up on the grill of the cab. The GTQ is great for the room as well. We might throw up the room mics for the drum kit and the GTQ gave us a nice color of the room and was not to big sounding. The room sound is already big enuff right. Try the MP2NV on the room drum kit and it will be enormously open sounding. I would compare the GTQ2 to the Chandler TG-2 even though that does not have the eq, it has the similar "tone". Thats my take yall
peace
mixwell

[andrewj]

Perhaps the Brent Averill is also a nice alternative! I like that one a lot!

[musicminister187]

Originally Posted by Roc Mixwell

APPLES AND ORANGES!!!!!!! My firends, I like both flavors so much how do you distinguish bettween the two?!?. I think that you really cant compare these two units seeing how the great river doesnt have the 3-band eq. Anyway Heres my run down for both preamps. But first let me clarify how much use I have given these two pre's. First off I HAVE the GTQ2, its about the only that I care about in life seeing how its worth more than my truck. Second I work at Mercenary Audio, so I see The MP2NV(MP1NV) pre get used more than a condoms on prom night. The thing about the MP2NV(MP1NV) is that it is one of the most versital preamps on the market today. It has a quality about it that is unmatched. It can be clean and it can be very warm sounding. It is a go to pre for everything from kick and snare to drum overheads to gutairs and bass direct. The other night we used the DI for a mini moog. I mean, it has a very full, no bull, punchy character to it. Being the youngster that I am and not having heard a real 1073 yet(dunno why..you could bassicly build a neve console from the shit that sits around at Mercenary) I feel as though the River is and I quote "what a 1073 should sound like" end quote. With that said the GTQ has a lot to offer in it has the "BRITISH TONE" I will give it that. However i find it a bit on the bright side up around presence range 5k-12k. Great gutair pre, esspecially if you use a ribbon mic smashed up on the grill of the cab. The GTQ is great for the room as well. We might throw up the room mics for the drum kit and the GTQ gave us a nice color of the room and was not to big sounding. The room sound is already big enuff right. Try the MP2NV on the room drum kit and it will be enormously open sounding. I would compare the GTQ2 to the Chandler TG-2 even though that does not have the eq, it has the similar "tone". Thats my take yall
peace
mixwell

Which on would be best for vocals with a Pearlman Tm-1 or Lauten Atlantis or Oceanus to give that in the face presence. Which you prefer?

[RonGherkins]

grRAAAAAAAAAAVEDIGGEr

[Gduron]

I miss threads like this...