Noob question: I'm clipping the input of my preamp, right?

danbronson · 11th June 2008

I just got a Blue Bluebird today (very nice sounding mic for the price!) and have been playing around with it and my OktavaMod Mk-319, which I've also noticed this on...

As a room mic, drum overhead, on acoustic guitar or vocals, either mic works fine. But put them on a guitar amp or snare drum and massive clipping results. If I look at the waveform, it's like a brick wall limiter has been applied and clipped the tops off all the waves. When I put an SPL meter up to my guitar amp (same spot as the mic was), it measured 125 dB max. The Bluebird should be able to handle 135 dB before any noticeable distortion but this was insane amounts of clipping that sounded horrible. This happens with my Mk-319 as well.

I'm using the preamps in my Presonus Firepod. There is no pad on either the mics or the preamps to try out. EDIT: The clip light does not come on and the gain is lowered all the way. So I know it's not the preamp's output clipping the converters. It must be either the mic itself or the input of the preamp that's clipping.

So my question (and I think I know the answer but I want to be sure) is, am I clipping the preamp's input with too hot a signal or is it possible that this clipping is happening in the mic? Assuming it's the preamp, I suppose I will have to buy an in-line pad or two. Or a preamp with greater headroom...

KingDiamond · 11th June 2008

Are you adjusting your pre-amp input gain on the front panel of the Firepod? You should lower it until the "clip" light doesn't activate anymore.

danbronson · 11th June 2008

Quote:

Originally Posted by KingDiamond

Are you adjusting your pre-amp input gain on the front panel of the Firepod? You should lower it until the "clip" light doesn't activate anymore.

Sorry I should have mentioned this. The clip light does not come on at all. In the case of the snare and guitar amp, the preamp gain is lowered all the way (the knob literally cannot turn counter-clockwise anymore).

rackdude · 11th June 2008

Even if its not clipping you shouldn't have it too high. Does it still have the same sound when recorded at low volume?

11th June 2008	#1
danbronson Lives for gear Joined: Feb 2008 Location: Calgary, Alberta Posts: 871 Thread Starter	Noob question: I'm clipping the input of my preamp, right? I just got a Blue Bluebird today (very nice sounding mic for the price!) and have been playing around with it and my OktavaMod Mk-319, which I've also noticed this on... As a room mic, drum overhead, on acoustic guitar or vocals, either mic works fine. But put them on a guitar amp or snare drum and massive clipping results. If I look at the waveform, it's like a brick wall limiter has been applied and clipped the tops off all the waves. When I put an SPL meter up to my guitar amp (same spot as the mic was), it measured 125 dB max. The Bluebird should be able to handle 135 dB before any noticeable distortion but this was insane amounts of clipping that sounded horrible. This happens with my Mk-319 as well. I'm using the preamps in my Presonus Firepod. There is no pad on either the mics or the preamps to try out. EDIT: The clip light does not come on and the gain is lowered all the way. So I know it's not the preamp's output clipping the converters. It must be either the mic itself or the input of the preamp that's clipping. So my question (and I think I know the answer but I want to be sure) is, am I clipping the preamp's input with too hot a signal or is it possible that this clipping is happening in the mic? Assuming it's the preamp, I suppose I will have to buy an in-line pad or two. Or a preamp with greater headroom...

11th June 2008	#4
rackdude Lives for gear Joined: Aug 2007 Location: Orange County, CA or Oberlin, OH Posts: 1,752	Even if its not clipping you shouldn't have it too high. Does it still have the same sound when recorded at low volume? __________________ Just having fun!

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11th June 2008	#2
KingDiamond Gear addict Joined: May 2008 Location: Chicago Posts: 479 1 Review written	Are you adjusting your pre-amp input gain on the front panel of the Firepod? You should lower it until the "clip" light doesn't activate anymore.