I'm surprised since the Apollo is said to have very honest preamps..
Of course the Focusrite ISA preamps are very good, I have 8 of them and love them..
What's special about them is that you get 80db of gain without any noise.
The are clean but with a touch of mojo.

Nonetheless, I must admit, most of my lead vocal tracks are done on my UA La-610 these days. Having a compresor and EQ on the way in is a blessing. And when the 610 is hit hard even the saturation sounds good. I'm tempted to sell one of my LA610 and get a ISA430 or even an older ISA220, but I haven't done the move yet...
Take your time to consider a channel strip instead of a preamp alone... for vocal recording they are pretty handy.

Thing is, many things can make a recording not to your liking. Room acoustics or even just the fact you are not used to hear your voice from the exterior of your head which has bones conductions.
A good mic and pre won't make you sing in pitch and sing with emotion...

Why don't you put a sample and try to describe what you don't like.. Maybe we can help you make the most of the apollo before spending the big cash.

Hey man thanks for your help and advice I do appreciate, I really don’t want to go splashing to much money as I already did in the past, but still do need to get a professional sounding vocals, I already did all the necessary acoustic treatment, I really do think that the problem I am facing with my recordings Is more about the matching equipment, like I think that the tlm 103 and the Apollo Is not the best match
I think that I might purchase a didicated external preamp,compressor and maybe a eq
all out board, but first the preamp, and I will let you know if there is any changes good or bad
In the come weeks are so
Thanks again
have a great day
Jking
before I go what is one of the most affordable good sounding preamp would you recommend
like around the £500 range?

Of course the Focusrite ISA preamps are very good, I have 8 of them and love them..
What's special about them is that you get 80db of gain without any noise.
The are clean but with a touch of mojo.

Nonetheless, I must admit, most of my lead vocal tracks are done on my UA La-610 these days. Having a compresor and EQ on the way in is a blessing. And when the 610 is hit hard even the saturation sounds good. I'm tempted to sell one of my LA610 and get a ISA430 or even an older ISA220, but I haven't done the move yet...
Take your time to consider a channel strip instead of a preamp alone... for vocal recording they are pretty handy.

Thing is, many things can make a recording not to your liking. Room acoustics or even just the fact you are not used to hear your voice from the exterior of your head which has bones conductions.
A good mic and pre won't make you sing in pitch and sing with emotion...

Why don't you put a sample and try to describe what you don't like.. Maybe we can help you make the most of the apollo before spending the big cash.[/QU

Jking, post: 459732, member: 51468 wrote: Does anyone knows what’s the best mic pre to match with my tlm 103?condenser mic
I have a Apollo twin duo but not getting
a good vocal recording from It

Jking.

Jking, post: 459736, member: 51468 wrote: I think that I might purchase a didicated external preamp,compressor and maybe a eq
all out board, but first the preamp, and I will let you know if there is any changes good or bad

I feel that buy all those seperate will cost you more in the end.. but the good thing is you will be able to choose each part that will make your sound.
As I said, it all depends on what you are looking for and what you feel your recording is missing.
If you'd want it cleaner, I'd say go for a grace design or Millennia. Not so clean ? the ISA one is a good choice..
Can't wait to hear about your experiences.

BTW, Welcome to RO !! ;)

Have you demoed different UA preamp emulations? I would try that first, as it is risk free and may help you decide the direction you want to go in purchasing external gear. Try a 1073 or the API Vision. If you don’t get what you are looking for from either of those I think you are going to have to consider a different mic.

I agree, i find the apollo pres no better than a motu or scarlett pre. I dont know that they upgraded the analog section of the new apollo x's either. Apollo is about real time pluggins....

Its more about matching tbe mic to the source. Especially with vocals. Id highly suggest getting a low cost, high performing dynamic mic like the sure sm 57, or beta 57, or sm 58. Those are world class audio recording tools.

As far as pres go, the isa is one of the best out there for all around usage. It was designed to be the ultimate console pre, and will work on just about anything. Another option is the presonus eureka channel Strip. Both units perform way above thier price point, and sit well alongside any neve or Manley, albeit each has its own flavor.

I highly suspect the tlm 103 to be the culprit. Condenser mics are very selective to what sources they sound best on. I favor the akg 414, or the tlm 102 far more than the 103. They've proven to be far more versatile.