Preamp suggestions for AT4022 pair?

[NathanShirley]

I've decided to get a pair of AT4022 and could use some advice regarding preamps. I'll be mainly recording piano and chamber music, with easy access to AC, portability not an issue, but I would like to keep the price down without compromising sound quality as much as possible.

Here is what I own or have access to-

M-Audio MicroTrack portable recorder
Behringer EURORACK UB802 Mixer
Korg TP-2
Pretty good laptop

I would like to get the most out of the AT4022s that I can, but after doing some research I'm not sure I can with the preamps I've got.

The MicroTrack phantom power is apparently only 30v, and some people complain that it isn't as quite as it could be (low noise is one of the main reasons why I'm going with the AT4022s after all). It does have S/PDIF input, and they claim 24/96, but I've read that it might not really be able to handle that, and you can't monitor using S/PDIF (not sure if that would be an issue for what I'd be doing).

Even if the Behringer is adequate, I'd still need to run it analog into the Microtrack, which might compromise things, although the AT4022 seems to have a fairly high sensitivity (as far as my limited knowledge goes).

I've read that the Korg TP-2 has noise issues, which again may or may not be an issue with the AT4022s, but I don't have enough knowledge to make that call. Also, Jim (jnorman) pointed out that I might want to steer clear of tubes, even though I tend to like a slightly warm sound.

So, any idea if my current preamps would be too risky? Would my best bet to keep price down be to go with a USB preamp straight to the laptop (like the M-Audio Fast Track Pro Mobile USB Audio/MIDI Interface)?

Thanks in advance,

~Nathan

[sonare]

Originally Posted by NathanShirley

I've decided to get a pair of AT4022 and could use some advice regarding preamps. I'll be mainly recording piano and chamber music, with easy access to AC, portability not an issue, but I would like to keep the price down without compromising sound quality as much as possible.

You can spend more but cannot do appreciably better than DAV Broadhurst Gardens.

Now stay tuned for the other several dozen suggestions.

Rich

[NathanShirley]

Thanks Rich, that DAV looks nice, but the price is more than a pair of AT4022 (plus I'd have to get it shipped to the US it seems). If it really is necessary to spend in the $500-600 range, I would assume my MircoTrack would be out of the question for running the DAV into, right? So that would mean another hefty sum for whatever I would need to run it into (so as not to compromise the A/D conversion)... that might be pretty rough financially.

[NathanShirley]

Should I consider these-

Focusrite Saffire 6 USB

Echo AudioFire4

Would these do the AT4022s justice, if not any of my current preamps?

[jnorman]

nathan - i had good results running a pair of at4022s into a lexicon U42s>IBM T61 running Reaper. the lex unit has dbx pres in it, and they are just fine. the mackie onyx pres in their mixers and interfaces are also a good reasonably priced solution. the RNP is also a decent choice.

[NathanShirley]

Thanks Jim, yes this Lexicon U22 seems to be a good price-

Buy Lexicon I-ONIX U22 USB 2.0 Audio/MIDI Interface | Audio Interfaces & Convertors | Audio Interfaces | Musician's Friend

[CGBrian.M]

Nathan,

You might be able to get an even better price the Lexicon interfaces here: Lexicon Audio Effects Processors
You have to call or e-mail them, but they are wonderful to deal with and also very good prices.
I've only owned two interfaces in my life, and both of them are now discontinued. But I heard great things about the Echo AudioFire interfaces, and the Focusrite interfaces, in addition to Lexicon.

Brian

[NathanShirley]

Thanks for the link Brian, good to know.

[jnorman]

nathan - check and see (in device manager) what kind of FW chipset you have. if it is the TI chipset, you can consider a FW interface. if it is ricoh or other, stick with a USB 2 interface. i have owned an echo audiofire 4 that i used with a macbook, and it is also a very nice interface if you do go FW (but oonly two mic pres, where the U42s has 4 for about the same price).

[NathanShirley]

Mine doesn't seem to be TI, here's what it lists-

IEEE 1394 OHCI Compliant Host Controller Vendor

But perhaps I could download a TI driver for it? I suppose It would be safer to stick with USB, especially because USB3 is coming out, fire-wire might have its days numbered??

[jnorman]

nope - driver has to match hardware. you can, however, add a TI FW express card or PCMCIA card if you want to go FW. but i agree on the USB thing - that is why i went with the lexicon. very nice stable unit, and 4 pres come in very handy compared to being limited to just two.

[NathanShirley]

I just came across several E-MU preamps, their specs look great, and the reviews I could find on them all seem very good as well.

Does anyone have an opinion on these?

I have my eye on the 0404 especially-

Buy E-MU 0404 USB 2.0 Audio/MIDI Interface | Audio Interfaces & Convertors | Audio Interfaces | Musician's Friend

[didier.brest]

My first preamp with 48V phantom was a Behringer Eurorack. Then I got successively Behringer Ultragain 2200, Edirol FA-66 with which I started direct-to-disk recording, Focusrite TwinTrak and DAV BG1. You can listen to a test of these preamps here. I think that a PC interface is a much valuable option.

[NathanShirley]

Very interesting. Honestly, I can hear very little significant difference between any of these. The 2nd recording seems to be a little muddier in the bass than the others, other than that... I can't really tell.

All the advice I was given before was that if you have a limited budget, put most of your cash toward good mics and the rest is much more negligable (as long as you don't have garbage cables, preamps, A/D converter). My main reason for starting this thread was to get an idea if my existing preamps and A/D converter would be considered "garbage" to the point where they would not do the AT4022 mics justice.

After doing a lot of reading based on recommendations here, I'm currently thinking I would never hear significant difference between a "good" preamp in the $200 or $300 dollar range, vs. a "great" preamp in the $500++++ range.

I'm still thinking it might be necessary to upgrade from my existing preamps, but I'm certainly not convinced 100% about this (after listening to your examples).

But based on my reading, I think I'm likely to go with the E-MU 0404. If money was not a factor, based on reviews and specs, I would go with the E-MU 1616M (with current, limited knowledge). That one still is only about $500, but seems like it couldn't be worse than any several times that price (Grace, etc...). Except if you were using top quality mics I suppose, and needed the best preamps?

Or perhaps I'm way off with all of this, and missing something important?

Anyway, thanks everyone for the valuable advice, if anyone has further input, I'd love to hear it.

[didier.brest]

Originally Posted by NathanShirley

Very interesting. Honestly, I can hear very little significant difference between any of these. The 2nd recording seems to be a little muddier in the bass than the others, other than that... I can't really tell.

Yes, the take no. 2 is the one with the Behringer Eurorack mixing desk, 4 mic inputs + 2 line inputs, about 70 € (now discontinued): what a bargain!