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Drewslum 5 January 2008

First of all I want to say that I've recently stumbled upon this forum and I'm getting addicted! There is so much invaluable information here & a round of applause to you all for being so helpful.

My question is: I am assembling a small studio set up that I want to keep fairly mobile. I own a PreSonus Firepod (that I think sounds good for $350) and I'm running Logic Pro 8 on a MacBook Pro. I plan on using my Firepod for tracking drums/rhythm sections live, but I kinda want to have a better preamp for tracking vocals.
Providing that I have some good mics, would it make sense for me to purchase a better sounding 1 channel DI or preamp of some sort or should I save my money for a while and purchase a better interface with better pre's later on?
My price range is only about $1000 preferably less, so I know I'm not going to get an amazing pre. I've heard some good things about Apogee's Duet. Anyone have any Goods/Bads about it? Or a different unit I should consider?

Thanks,
Drewslum

Comments

Cucco Sat, 01/05/2008 - 06:06

Hey Drewslum -

Welcome to RO. Glad you're enjoying it!

For a budget of $1000, you have a lot of options for getting a good pre. A lot more than you might think.

While I could sit here and rattle off some high-end pres for that price, why don't I give you a few links. See what the prices are, research a little and then let us know what questions you have about what you found.

Adding a good pre to an already fine setup can be a great way to get started.

Here are the links:

http://www.atlasproaudio.com
http://www.mercenary.com
http://www.vintageking.com
http://www.sweetwater.com

These will get you started and they all have some very nice pres for under $1K

Cheers
J

BobRogers Sat, 01/05/2008 - 07:08

If you are looking for suggestions, you might do well to tell us what kind of music you are recording, what instruments, etc. If you really are looking for a single A channel for vocals $1K seems to be a good price point from what I can see. The only reason I would wait would be if you are doing a lot of stereo recording. Then you might want a dual channel for $2K.

Cucco Sat, 01/05/2008 - 07:13

TheFraz wrote: you did not even drop the summit audio.
have you lost faith since you sold yours?

man I miss that thing. It should be back from the shop in a week or two.

Not a chance man! I still love the Summit and eventually plan on picking up some more. There are just so many choices for under $1K, I didn't feel like doing an exhaustive list since it's been done so many times here before and a short search would turn up the results...

Feelin lazy - that's all...

TheFraz Sat, 01/05/2008 - 09:04

Haha, thats cool. I figured as such.
I am really happy with mine. at first I could not hear much of a difference. But then I spent some time with her, and I fell in love. I have yet to use a mic on it that required me to even struggle to get the gain I wanted.
Then it broke. but hey, its under warranty, and it should be on its way back. And dealing with the company was the best customer serves I have ever had.

I strongly recommend it.
But i am looking forward to the time that I can get my hands on another mic pre, or two.

Drewslum Sat, 01/05/2008 - 19:28

BobRogers wrote: If you are looking for suggestions, you might do well to tell us what kind of music you are recording, what instruments, etc. If you really are looking for a single A channel for vocals $1K seems to be a good price point from what I can see. The only reason I would wait would be if you are doing a lot of stereo recording. Then you might want a dual channel for $2K.

I'm gonna be doing a lot of Rock, Pop, and Soul. How would I pick a pre based on a style of music I want to record?

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