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anonymous 26 January 2006

hello i m thinking about buying an avalon
i m a singer and like that tube sound
can any one recommend something similar?
tube of course
terry xyz

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anonymous Thu, 01/26/2006 - 20:12

You can get Avalons through just about any online music retailer such as AMS or Musicians Friend - lots of places have them.

Yes the UA is a tube pre and comp in one unit. It's a hybrid 610 pre with an LA2A style comp. = all tube :)

By the way I just noticed your website - it brought back memories of the 80's of when I was performing...

:wipes sentimental tear and looks for spandex in old clothes bag: ;)

moonbaby Fri, 01/27/2006 - 06:32

Be VERY careful with the purchase of a 737. There have been many of those units ending up on e-Bay over the past few years. There have been posts on this site complaining that the company has changed hands and that the "new guy" was not very nice to customers calling in for support.
My personal experience with the one that I USED to own was mixed. I used it for voice-overs, and it's reputation for that application is pretty good. But as a front end for tracking singing and instruments, it tends to color things up quickly. The old addage "a little bit goes a long way" is very appropriate here. I got rid of mine because there were too many tube issues- intermittent "spitting" noises, microphonics, etc.- and just too many tubes to quickly track down the problems. Believe it or not, I have found that I get the right "tube sound" I want by using a Brick through an FMR RNLA ( or a Drawmer Front End One). Maybe not as pretty as the Avalon, but definitely great-sounding and reliable!

shanabit Fri, 01/27/2006 - 16:36

Moonbaby stated "But as a front end for tracking singing and instruments, it tends to color things up quickly"

You are the ONLY person Ive ever heard of that claims the 737 COLORS things up. This is just the opposite of EVERY opinion and mine BTW. AVALON 737 is a NON-Colored PRE. Ive yet to color anythig with my 737, it is TOO CLEAN and NON-Colored IMO. to each his own I guess. :roll:

moonbaby Sat, 01/28/2006 - 08:25

My comments about the Avalon were multi-faceted. It was not just about the sound. As far as THAT is concerned, it IS a tube product designed to "color" things as it gets pushed. That is very subjective to its input source and the settings of its parameters. My statement was concerning that aspect was meant as a caveat to that. That same warning about the 737 has been voiced by MANY at Gearslutz, as well. So have the complaints about lousy customer service from the latest incarnation of that company's management. Maybe that will explain why so many 737s end up on e-Bay...
To the bloke who has used the Langevin Dual Vocal Combo "several times" (but can't spell it's name...BTW, the name "Manley" is nowhere to be found on the front panel, and yes, I know EveAna manufactures it) : "Harsh" in what way? I use mine with mics like the AT4047, ADK Vienna, and Lawson AIR... very smooth, and with good mics, the EQ (which is limited by design) is a non-issue. I stand by my statements. Have a nice day.

AudioGaff Sat, 01/28/2006 - 11:18

I have said many times that I' m not a fan of the 737. Not that it was bad, but I never got a sense of what all hype about it is. Many other boxes I prefer and I much prefer any of the other Avalon gear such as as the M5, optical comp and their mastering eq.

The 737 seems to be one of the first pro units that many have ever heard or used or owned compared to the wanker junk they had been usiing so that may have a lot to do it.

coldsnow Sat, 01/28/2006 - 18:20

I have had the 737 and then sold it for various other more expensive models including the LA610 and M-5. I've ended up back with the 737 because for my voice nothing has matched up to it. I wish I had known that before trying all the others. For other voices it sometimes doesn't sound so sweet and Neve's or something else sounds better, so it really doesn't matter if someone else likes it because on your voice it may be the best thing out there or it may be ho-hum. If you do get one have Avalon do the compressor mod (Avalon does them for $60). It makes it one of the fastest opto compressors I"ve heard and without it, it is too slow for my taste.

moonbaby Mon, 01/30/2006 - 06:32

That was one of my complaints about the 737...the compressor was too slow for the material I was doing. Specifically, when I wanted to de-ess, it was frustrating to say the least. Mine was an early model, with ghastly purple knobs. Maybe the later versions were better.
My main gripe is that I see clients with home recording workstations who go and buy this glowingly gorgeous box, twist the knobs until they get a good vocal sound, and then do the same thing to their guitars, basses, etc.
Then they wonder why the mix is mud and want me to "un-do"what they screwed up. AudioGaff has a point: the end user is part of the problem. I used to work at a facility with a Sony MPX desk that had several channels of Avalon modules (some APIs, too). They were great sounding, quiet, and reliable.

anonymous Mon, 01/30/2006 - 13:25

The 737 is still great but it does depend on ones voice characteristics. If you were to take the same voice and run it thru a variety of pre's you will quickly hear the difference...it all depends on the sound your looking for. I too am impressed by the 737 but im even more impressed by the 747 stereo comp with 6 band mastering eq.

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