Sebatron or....

[RaySolinski]

Okay, So lot's of folks are raving about the Sebatron pre...it looks great and the price can't be beat (450$ a channel)..what if you only need and can really only use a 2 channel pre...anything out there at 500$ a channel that compares to the Sebatron in a 2 channel model?

Ray

 

[Kurt Foster]

The Sebatron vmp 2000e is $950 USD although he has told me he sometimes can do a "blem" or "seconds" unit for less. Contact Sebatron directly about this.

I have been mistaken.. recently I have been posting that the 2000e was around $750 ... I am sure when I first wrote my review they were going for around that sans meters.. were being the operative word here. I just exchanged a PM with Sebatron and he is thinking about what he can do in this price range.. $500 to $700 , perhaps a vmp "lite" a simple pre with phase and hpf maybe a pad ? These were my suggestions to him.

 

[sdevino]

My VMP2000 is pretty unique sounding. It has become one of my primary vocal preamps. i also like it a lot on snare.

Can't say any of my other pres sound much like it though.

Steve

 

[Kurt Foster]

Steve,
Alot of people have been saying the VMP sounds a lot like the Peavey / AMR VMP 2. Have you tried yours on an acoustic guitar with a LD condensor at the 12th fret / neck joint? Amazing!

 

[sdevino]

I tried it on acoustic guitar, and it wouldn't be my first choice for acoustic. I really have not found a tube pre yet that I think sounds good with acoustic.

I could try the LD on 12th fret as something different, but I typically like more ambient micing of acoustics and almost always use some type of stereo pair.

Steve

 

[sdelsolray]

Originally posted by sdevino:
I tried it on acoustic guitar, and it wouldn't be my first choice for acoustic. I really have not found a tube pre yet that I think sounds good with acoustic.

I could try the LD on 12th fret as something different, but I typically like more ambient micing of acoustics and almost always use some type of stereo pair.

Steve

I guess it depends first on the type of acoustic guitar music you are recording. For recording solo fingerstyle acoustic guitar, I've found several tube pres that excel. Three that come to mind are (i) DW Fearn, (ii) Millennia's straight tube pre (can't remember the model #) and (iii) Pendulum Audio MDP-1A.
--
Stephen Boyke

 

[Kurt Foster]

Is the Millennia you're thinking of the STT-1? That is nice on acoustic...

Steve I usually double acoustics, second part capoed up 3 or 4 frets .. left / right.. I don't do to much stereo micing og any guitars because I do a lot of pop, blues kind of stuff. In stereo, I feel confined, stuck with hard left / right placment and struggeling to keep a proper balance.. If I were doing classical guitar, I would do more of what you suggest. But for acoustic guitar, what I discribed using a U87 with the Sebatron and my Martin D28 this works great.. If you have time, listen to the Sebatron example I posted..

 

[RaySolinski]

I like the sound although the mp3 at 24k is a tad bit...crappy. I realize you are on a dialup but that example isn't doing any justice to the sound..

Ray

 

[Kurt Foster]

Ray,
If you are lo fi streaming, I agree.. if you are hi fi d loading hmmm, it sounds ok to me.. it's not a wave file but its alright. I have actually had people ask me how I did my mp3 conversion because they said it was better than most.. if you like, I would be glad to send you a CDr (wave files) of all the comparisons for a buck and shipping.. a non profit thing for me..

 

[sdevino]

I do mostly R&B and Pop/rock but I still find stereo micing the acoustic stuff makes it easy to place in the mix (I usually don't do too much hard right/left stuff) I usually try to move things around on the sound stage with ambiance and small delays. This way I can move them front/back/side and up.

For finger pickers I love a coincident pair of Earthworks QTC30s going through the cleanest pre I can get (Earthworks again) with the mics between 2 to 6 inches from the fingers. It sounds huge!

If I have time I will post an example or 2. And I will try the U87 through the Sebatron at the 12th fret just for fun.

Steve

 

[Kurt Foster]

Steve,
Looking forward to your clips.. I agree about the finger pickers, sameo for classical guitars too..

 

[sdelsolray]

Originally posted by Kurt Foster:
Is the Millennia you're thinking of the STT-1? That is nice on acoustic...

Steve I usually double acoustics, second part capoed up 3 or 4 frets .. left / right.. I don't do to much stereo micing og any guitars because I do a lot of pop, blues kind of stuff. In stereo, I feel confined, stuck with hard left / right placment and struggeling to keep a proper balance.. If I were doing classical guitar, I would do more of what you suggest. But for acoustic guitar, what I discribed using a U87 with the Sebatron and my Martin D28 this works great.. If you have time, listen to the Sebatron example I posted..

Actually, I meant the M-2B Transformerless Stereo Vacuum Tube Microphone by Millennia. I've never heard the Origin, but I believe it uses the same tube circuit as the M-2B for its tube pre path, so it should sound identical in the identical configuration (trannyless tube).
--
Stephen Boyke

 

[RaySolinski]

Sorry Kurt,
I can't get the hi fi on your tune to stream..I can on other stuff from nowhere...could be my i connection, cable has been funky all day..I will listen tommorow..

Ray

 

[Kurt Foster]

Ray,
I can't get hi fi streaming either .. I have to download it about 20 mins each.. but it sounds much better.. lo fi is only good to listen to see if you want to spend the time d loading...