Crane Song

[Baz]

Just thought I'd throw some prop's Dave Hill's way for his GREAT, GREAT preamps. Dave, I love em, man...

I just spent a bit of time with the Flamingo a few days last week on a Location gig between times I had to work and had time to mess around on my own. I brought the Great River and Flamingo as all I needed was a few channels, and as a rule, I use GR for vocals, CS for X/Y room and FF400 for KB DI.

I've only had the GR for a few months and while I just love it to death, I thought I'd use some down time to re-acquaint myself with the CS, as it truly has been a gift to our studio over the last couple of years. I've been so intoxicated by the GR's vibe, I kinda wanted to get "real" and those that use both (or similar) will know what I mean. So during our downtime, I brought the Flamingo, FF400, AUDIX SCX25, and Genelec 8020's up into the "TV Room" of the lodge we take over for a week several times a year, and just plinked around with my acoustic guitar and vocals for a few songs ideas I had.

Dan, I love the GR MP-2NV to death (as well as the EQ-2NV) but for as much as I love the GR pre, the Crane Song pre just SLAYS on acoustic instruments. Not saying the GR can't do acoustic, but for my aesthetics, and for what I like to hear, the Flamingo just rips and I'm just happy that I have 4 equally fantastic channels, yet so individual from one another. Kudo's to both Dan and Dave on fine products.

Why the love fest? Well, I've had a couple of pops drowning my sorrows after the elimination of my team, The Vancouver Cancucks tonight by the Chicago Blackhawks, so am wide awake and too wound up to sleep, and thought I'd post...

BUT...the other reason I'm posting is that I've seen a lot of posts / hype about blah blah blah "clean pre's" without any mention to Crane Song pre's: People,regardless of the flava of the week, if you are looking for clean, fast,articulate (yet weighty) pre's for your needs, you owe it to yourself to at least try a Crane Song Flamingo or Spider, given the opportunity..

I'm actually quite shocked on how many times I read posts from the Mercenary guys (Sean and Roc) touting the NPNG's yet no mention of Dave Hill's stuff? Like, never? And they're dealers? I've read fine comments from Fletcher and in fact, an excellent recording example of a Flamingo as the pre for a singer/songwriter with (2) AK47's in Fig 8 that Fletcher did but I'm seriously shocked at how often I fail to see these excellent pre's get thrown into the mix of inquiries into super high quality preamps. While I've never heard the NPNG and am sure it's all it's hyped up to be, the Flamingo still always deserves honorable mention in the "great clean preamp" cat, in my books..

OK, end of rant...Going to guzzle some H2o and hope to avoid a hangover as I have a session tomorrow and the Flamingo is going to be there, front and centre

[Fletcher]

FWIW I've had a Flamingo since they were first released. It gets used all the time on my gigs. However, there is always a propensity to have a serious love fest for the newer toys in the room.

My main uses for the Flamingo are things like "room" sometimes piano, and whenever I need "the cleanest pre in the room". "Roc" and Sean don't do "clean" as much as I do... so it's probably not that high up on their list.

The Flamingo is also very often the "go to" pre-amp on the returns from the Folcrom summing buss we use as an 'expander' for our console.

Reckon we owe Dave an apology for not plugging as much as we should... but then again M-A was the first Crane Song LTD. dealer so we've been there for well over a decade and have been pretty steady promoters of the products [as they've been in use since their first release].

Sorry to hear about your Canucks... something tells me our Bruins will be joining them tonight... which is gonna suck.

Peace.

[frans]

I remember that the IBIS was reviewed in ...was it "the mix" or which mag was it..." a few years ago and they closed with something like "Crane song gear will be in the future what a Neve or a Fairchild is today.. so don't be stupid and buy it NOW."

[Mazo Audio]

Man, Cranesong pre's and converters define the term "musical" for me. I just recorded a 200+ voice choir, with symphony AND chamber orchestra in a huge church. The power and size of this recording while still being beautiful is quite amazing. The signal path was all CS. Makes all the effort stringing up mics,etc worth it. About the coolest thing made in Wisconsin (the guys practically in Canada though!)

P.S. Fletch what kinda hours you keepin' ?

[Fletcher]

Where? I have two jobs and still do engineering work on the side.

[mark714]

A few years back I was going to dump most of my recording gear and focus on composition and my live stuff. I had a ton of nice preamps and sold off quite a few of them. Since I didn't really need the 8 great pre's and expensive converters to accomplish most of my work at the time, I figured I'd put the Spider on the block. Spiders were/are super hard to come by, so I called up Fletcher and said, "hey, you have any customers that might be interested in a Spider?"

He said to me something along the lines of, "dude, I know sometimes you need to sell gear... but I won't sell that for you. It sounds too damn good. Find another way."

Sage advice, for sure. I don't think you can get a bigger endorsement than that. I still have the Spider and love it. Thanks, Fletcher.

For what it's worth, I don't think Crane Song gear gets the fanfare (recently) because they don't come out with new products fast enough and they get lost in the sea of new releases here on Gearslutz. If you follow the hype on new releases, you'll notice those hyped up items usually end up flooding the classifieds here in about 8-12 months. Crane Song offers lifetime warranties on great designs... that should keep them in the game for a long time.

As an owner, I like the fact that the market isn't flooded with green knobs. I just wish I had a few more.

[dandeurloo]

Originally Posted by mark714

A few years back I was going to dump most of my recording gear and focus on composition and my live stuff. I had a ton of nice preamps and sold off quite a few of them. Since I didn't really need the 8 great pre's and expensive converters to accomplish most of my work at the time, I figured I'd put the Spider on the block. Spiders were/are super hard to come by, so I called up Fletcher and said, "hey, you have any customers that might be interested in a Spider?"

He said to me something along the lines of, "dude, I know sometimes you need to sell gear... but I won't sell that for you. It sounds too damn good. Find another way."

Sage advice, for sure. I don't think you can get a bigger endorsement than that. I still have the Spider and love it. Thanks, Fletcher.

For what it's worth, I don't think Crane Song gear gets the fanfare (recently) because they don't come out with new products fast enough and they get lost in the sea of new releases here on Gearslutz. If you follow the hype on new releases, you'll notice those hyped up items usually end up flooding the classifieds here in about 8-12 months. Crane Song offers lifetime warranties on great designs... that should keep them in the game for a long time.

As an owner, I like the fact that the market isn't flooded with green knobs. I just wish I had a few more.

Cool post!

[Mazo Audio]

Originally Posted by Fletcher

Where? I have two jobs and still do engineering work on the side.

I was just commenting on the fact that you had posted your reply at like 5am. The eighties are over! Get some sleep. Mark's cool story is an example of why we need ya'

Peace

[Fletcher]

I'm usually up between 5 and 6a every day. It's the end of the day in Asia, close enough to the beginning of the day in Europe, and a nice quiet time to get a little work done before I have to get the kids up and out to school. This time of year the sun is even up so it's actually quite pleasant.

[Glamdring]

Flamingo KILLS. Sounds superexpensive. I love mine. Just been tracking acoustic guitars with it. Wonderful piece of gear.

Just wish I had enough dosh for a Spider now. . .

[BradD]

How would you guys compare the Flamingo with the John Hardy M1? I've had that on my list for awhile.

[hisbluness]

I was at the AES booth last week and had my hands on the STC and the avocet. It was so much fun and Im sold to an Avocet for sure (cant afford a STC :( ). I wasnt aware that Dave himself was the one giving me the demo, but it was fun nonetheless

Hes a real nice guy and kind of made me feel "stupid" when I asked for "a detailed" demo since he really went into detail :D

[Baz]

The Flamingo is also very often the "go to" pre-amp on the returns from the Folcrom summing buss we use as an 'expander' for our console.

This is something I hope we get to try ourselves at some point. The Folcrom is probably the way we'd go too, and I had thought that the Flamingo would just be a natural here.

I know you're a fan of the CS pre's as I mentioned, too. I also doubt that if Sean or Roc had to settle for CS pre's because the NPNG's weren't available, they'd have a problem in using them

P.S - your Bruins made it through for game 7 tonight, huh? I'll be watching and cheering them on along with "Don" . Boston has had a propensity to acquire and draft guys from my neck of the woods, eg Neely and Lucic. Pretty darn good Bruins.Good Luck!

I remember that the IBIS was reviewed in ...was it "the mix" or which mag was it..." a few years ago and they closed with something like "Crane song gear will be in the future what a Neve or a Fairchild is today.. so don't be stupid and buy it NOW."

What a cool quote, Frans. I don't doubt it!

Man, Cranesong pre's and converters define the term "musical" for me. I just recorded a 200+ voice choir, with symphony AND chamber orchestra in a huge church. The power and size of this recording while still being beautiful is quite amazing. The signal path was all CS. Makes all the effort stringing up mics,etc worth it. About the coolest thing made in Wisconsin (the guys practically in Canada though!)

This is an area I could really see then excelling in, MA. Never recorded a choir. But have recorded a group of about 10 people for backing vocals and the CS is just so natural and real here. Love it for drum OH's too. Great to the more colourful stuff on the close mics.

For what it's worth, I don't think Crane Song gear gets the fanfare (recently) because they don't come out with new products fast enough and they get lost in the sea of new releases here on Gearslutz. If you follow the hype on new releases, you'll notice those hyped up items usually end up flooding the classifieds here in about 8-12 months. Crane Song offers lifetime warranties on great designs... that should keep them in the game for a long time.

Great story (and endorsement) mark714. I think the point about their warranty is a good point. I had to deal with Sean on a minor issue I had with an "extender" arm for one of the gain pots, and he sent me a new arm, the allen screw and the allen wrench needed to tighten it up, gratis. Awesome service.

Flamingo KILLS. Sounds superexpensive. I love mine. Just been tracking acoustic guitars with it. Wonderful piece of gear.

Just wish I had enough dosh for a Spider now. . .

Acoustic instruments is where CS excells, and the Flamingo basically lives on the C7 when we're doing piano stuff.I'd also love to have a Spider. I have a session coming up in the next month where we'll be recording piano, acoustic bass, flute, hand percussion, acoustic guitar and vocals. Love our other preamps, but here's where if I had 10+ channel's of Dave's preamps, I'd start this route with no second thoughts.

How would you guys compare the Flamingo with the John Hardy M1? I've had that on my list for awhile.

I'd like to hear an M1 myself one day. A local studio over here has 4 ch's and he swears by them, and like me, does a lot of acoustic music. I've always heard that the Hardy pre's a bigger than life kind of clean. Very big sounding.

Hes a real nice guy and kind of made me feel "stupid" when I asked for "a detailed" demo since he really went into detail :D

It's cool when you call the manufacture and the boss can even be one of the guys to pick up the phone. Dave is a very cool guy to talk too thumbsup

Now, one thing I'm a little embarrassed about, but damn'd if I can actually hear what the fat and iron settings do . They're just so sublte and I guess my ears and listening environment aren't keen enough to catch it.

[deeper]

If this thread is to salute Dave Hill and Crane Song, I'll gladly stand up to applaud.

The Trakker is a still, years after its release, a one-of-a-kind innovation.

And his customer service is spectacular.

Keep up the great work, Dave!

[Doc Mixwell]

Originally Posted by Baz

I know you're a fan of the CS pre's as I mentioned, too. I also doubt that if Sean or Roc had to settle for CS pre's because the NPNG's weren't available, they'd have a problem in using them

I'd agree!! I recently reached for the CS Flamingo the other day for piano and vocal overdubs and I have to say, every time I patch into this thing the top end "glow" always makes me happy that I patched it. Its EXCELLENT for a very smooth top end response, and all the natural character you can handle. I patch this beast when I want my ears to feel like they are sliding across a slab of ice, its that smooooooth on the top!!! Funny thing, the NPNG was certainly available at the time, but its not the only tool needed for me personally, although its one of the "best" preamplifier's I've ever had the pleasure of patching a microphone into, next to the likes of Great River, CS, DW Fearn and Mercury and all.....For me its nice to know all of these and other textures are available when you need them for the instrument/song/part/microphone selection and client astonishment.

[OurDarkness]

OK, I would like to ask CraneSong owners how the preamps in the Flamingo compare to the ones in the Spider...

Anyone?

Is it safe to assume that the Spider has 8 Flamingos preamp-wise?

[mark714]

I'm happy to be proven wrong here, but this is what I remember being told :

A popular mis-conception is that the Spider is made up of 8x Flamingo pre's. I called Crane Song years ago around the time of my purchase and asked if they were the same. I recall hearing they are different designs... and at that time Dave said the Spider had the best preamp he had ever heard. Just how far apart the two are sonically I couldn't tell you, especially now that the Flamingo has seen a recent revsion. Even though they may be different, I think it is safe to assume they are in the same general family as far as sonics. I'd call the Spider detailed, present, warm but not fuzzy. Overall, very sophisticated... highly recommended. I'm sure the Flamingo isn't far away from a similar description.

[Baithak]

A few years ago when I was purchasing a Spider, Dave Hill and co went out of their way to give me a substantial discount because CraneSong is not represented in this country and he figured, he would not be able to support it to their standards.

Unfortunately, the power supply was not set for 220 as mentioned on the box and verbally communicated to me and was pretty much toast the first time I plugged it in. Not only did Dave and co help me get a new power supply at no additional cost but actually carried one for me to swap out at the next AES so I could pick it up in person. Oh and they also threw in some of the analog cables for the direct outs just 'cos ...

Great company, great customer service. May their kind multiply.

Baithak

[vudoo]

After sales costumer support from Cranesong is by far the best in the business an his product is out of this world.

[Donny]

Loving the STC and IBIS here..Will be getting a Flamingo soon

[Dog_Chao_Chao]

love my flamingo. It has a kind of liquid essence to it. Not a bit of harshness.
Dont use the other features much (iron, tone)

[sawhorse]

People,regardless of the flava of the week, if you are looking for clean, fast,articulate (yet weighty) pre's for your needs, you owe it to yourself to at least try a Crane Song Flamingo


I love mine on room mics and acoustic... great top end... actually, you don't even think about it.

[teamsterjim]

I have changed my mind about expensive mic pres since hearing a live recording using the Solid State Flamingo.
I have always been one to say I don't hear a 5000 USD difference. Well now I can rent one so it's easy to change my mind.
We recorded the same material live several times with my FMR83830's and the Sax and vocals sounded good, but a recent mixdown of the same material and the same mics with the Flamingo ( coincidentally Live at the Flamingo ) were more revealing than expected.
For 150 USD it was worth it. The owner has even talked me into using 2 U86 Neumanns for an additional 75............

[studjo]

I got 2 Trakkers and all I can say that stuff sounds incredibly great - I really have to buy more stuff from Dave - and let me say this: the Phoenix is basically the ONLY plug in I use regularly

Jo

[Dog_Chao_Chao]

npng and forssell users do leave me curious when they say that the flamingo is not even in the same level...what could we be missing?

[gainreduction]

Originally Posted by Dog_Chao_Chao

npng and forssell users do leave me curious when they say that the flamingo is not even in the same level...what could we be missing?

I sold my Flamingo to finance my NPNG. That doesn´t mean the NPNG kicks its ass big time.

Just a little.

Kidding... the Flamingo is a monster in every good way possible.

[not_so_new]

Originally Posted by Baithak

Great company, great customer service. May their kind multiply.

Baithak

Originally Posted by vudoo

After sales costumer support from Cranesong is by far the best in the business an his product is out of this world.

thumbsup thumbsup

[robot gigante]

Big thumbsup for Cranesong and Dave Hill.

There hasn't been a single thing I've used that Dave Hill has designed that I didn't think was amazing.

Phoenix has made mixing ITB a lot more tolerable for me. I haven't used any other tape simulation that wasn't a compromise in some way.

[Dog_Chao_Chao]

Originally Posted by gainreduction

I sold my Flamingo to finance my NPNG. That doesn´t mean the NPNG kicks its ass big time.

Just a little.

Kidding... the Flamingo is a monster in every good way possible.

why did you sell it? what do you find the NPNG doing best compared to the flamingo? i remember that we do have very similar gear. I was "inspired" by some of your posts and samples.

[echotp]

I have all the respect for this company and gear one could have- great options and sound. Customer support if ever needed is amazing. Dave himself answers the phone 1/2 the time. Smart Smart man.

Thanks Mr. Hill


Tom Pfaeffle
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