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citrusburst 9 June 2004

Hey,

I'd appreciate anyone's suggestions on this. I've been doing project studio recording for three years now, and I'm pretty well sold on using software plugins in Pro Tools for mixing, but I'd like to invest in some quality front end pieces.

Specifically, I want to get a good mic preamp, and a good compressor for tracking. I can go up to $2K on each unit.

On the pre front, I've looked around quite a bit, and there are many options. Vintech has their X73 and X73i (though this one makes me nervous), Universal Audio has the m610. Then, there's always the Avalon M5 or their combo unit the VT737. There's the cheaper Grace Design 101, or perhaps a Focusrite Red 8.

On the compressor front, there are offerings from Avalon, and Universal Audio has their reissues of both the 1176 and the LA-2A .

Any recommendations? Most of the music I end up working on tends to be pop with an edge - so from an Americana rock sound to a Brit Rock sound to a indie synth pop sound. That said, I'd like the preamp to be more on the desired colouration side than the ultra-clean side.

My current leaning is towards an X73 into an 1176. I've heard great things about the LA-2A , but it's freq response only extends to 15KHz, which concerns me.

Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Jed

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Comments

Markd102 Wed, 06/09/2004 - 16:35

OK, on the compressor side, I strongly suggest you consider the Buzz Audio SOC1.1
Awesome stereo compressor and Atlas currently has them for $1899. SoundOnSound review at
http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/May02/articles/buzzsoc.asp?session=49e68053895484787b4ec95e89255532

For a preamp, considering your "Brit Rock" style, I would think that the Chandler TG-2 would suit you down to the ground.

A pre amp from the same rare series used on many classic Abbey Road recordings. This pre features the same discrete transformer balanced sound and amplifier stages as the limiter and offers a warm smooth tone with a surprisingly open, clear top end (dare I say a nicer top than a Neve module).

Atlas has these for $1730 with the PSU.

This gives you 2 awesome channels for under your $4k limit

Good luck

Mark

tripnek Thu, 06/10/2004 - 06:23

If you are going for the 1176, I'd suggest spending a few more bucks and get the 6176. It can be had for less than $2000 brand new. The mic pre and comp in the 6176 can be used seperatly so you could still buy the vintech and use it with the compressor in the 6176. That would give you both solid state and tube mic pre's plus a killer compressor all within your budget.

You may here someone say that the compressor in the 6176 just doesn't sound like the 1176, but don't listen to them. I took mine to a friend's studio when I bought it and compared it to his 1176's. It did sound a little different than his 1176's, but then again all three of his 1176's sound a little different. But all of them sounded good and very similar to each other, including the 6176.

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