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What your experience with it ?

In a comparison between the Gold Channel and others solid state preamps like 9098, api 512, or any Neve like 1081 or 1073, Focusrite red or isa, etc., in applications like male vocal tracking, do you think that the Gold Channel have equivalent performance ?
What the pros and cons ?

Thanx so much

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Screws Fri, 11/26/2004 - 18:41

I own the following preamps:

Yamaha 02R mixer built in
TC Gold Channel
JoeMeek VC3
Peavey VMP-2
Toft Audio ATC-2
2 x Seventh Circle Audio N72 (Neve 1272 type)
2 x Seventh Circle Audio J99 (John Hardy Twin Servo type)

The TC preamps sound similar to the Yamaha mixer - flat, dry and 2 dimensional. Usable for less important tracks, but not for essentials like lead vocal, kick/snare/overheads, bass, electric and acoustic guitars. I find they are ok for toms, some percussion, some background vocals and other stuff that you won't mind sounding a bit on the boring side. They certainly sound vastly inferior to the 1272 and Twin Servo types, and even the JoeMeek has a distinctive character/flavor that makes the TC pale in comparison.

The Gold Channel has some useful digital plugins built into it - similar to some of the TC Works stuff found on the Powercore card. EQ is clinical, but ok, and compressors are decent for digital stuff.

All in all it's a handy "Swiss Army Knife" kind of tool for someone who doesn't have a lot of equipment yet. And though I'd rather use a real Phillips screwdriver, the one in the swiss knife comes in handy when a real one isn't available.

Randyman... Fri, 11/26/2004 - 21:03

Hey Screws,

I have a Seventh Circle kit on the way (should be here next week!) with one A12 and one N72 module. How do you like yours, and what do you find yourself using them on?

FWIW, I plan on expanding to 2X N72, 2x J99, and 4X A12 to fill up the 8-slot chassis. I am planning on the A12 for Kick snare (and Guitar Cabs?), maybe the J99 on Overheads, and the N72 for Vox, and misc duties. I will pass them through a RME AID-8 Pro, and into my PC via ADAT. What do ya think?

Sorry to hi-jack your thread :)

:cool:

Screws Sat, 11/27/2004 - 06:56

J99's are fabuous sounding on any sources you want to sound clean and 3 dimensional. Acoustic guitars, vocals, overheads, synths, percussion of all sorts, and especially D.I.'d bass. Huge and detailed.

N72's are great on guitar amps, Kick and snare, male rock vocals and some rock style bass. Everything you put through them gets a rounder bottom and a bit of upper mid edge to it. I recently ran a very screetchy electric violin track through the N72 and it warmed and fattened it nicely. I tried to do it on another violin track the next week and it made it more screetchy - so go figure. One size does NOT fit all.

SCA is the best deal out there.