Preamp advice - Do I even need one?

[-Loco-]

Im interested in a recording preamp - i've heard good things about the engl E530 but for some really hi-gain stuff it'll only JUST do the job. Has anyone heard/played/got the engl e570? or can recommend me any other good preamp?

I'm currently using my output on the triple recto with impulses for my amp sound but im not really satisfied. I've heard some cool stuff about mesa triaxis if anyone would care to elaborate or just point me in a general direction to what i should be looking for?

 

[-Loco-]

come on surely someone must know something

 

[uknowitsallagame]

i dotn know about engl pre amps, but i have owned 3 Engl heads lol. got rid of them all within 2 weeks. a friend had an Engl invader 150W he got used off of ebay. it didnt have the original tubes in it, but for a while it was the best amp i ever heard. I only heard it in drop B flat tuning bec thats what my band played in. after a while the tube socket broke and it didtn work for a while

long story short, i had it fixed, bought my own engl powerball. it just sounded like garbage. only a good clean channel. i sent it back, and bought the engl invader 150 new. played it a few times, and it also sucked. i A/B'd the two invader's and my friends sounded 10000x better. so i returned my engl, bought his. after a while i started recording lighter bands with it and realized it only sounded good in extremely low tunings. i used two gibson SG's. one tuned to standard, one in B flat. the one in standard SUCKEd. sounded like a line 6 tone. then even the engl with different tubes started to suck, and got rid of it. i have no idea wtf happnd

so i would stay away from anything engl makes. the invader head is 3000 new

it just has a very muddy digital kind of tone. it made an amazing recording i will post if anybody wants to hear it. only came out good once tho

 

[uknowitsallagame]

i dotn know about engl pre amps, but i have owned 3 Engl heads lol. got rid of them all within 2 weeks. a friend had an Engl invader 150W he got used off of ebay. it didnt have the original tubes in it, but for a while it was the best amp i ever heard. I only heard it in drop B flat tuning bec thats what my band played in. after a while the tube socket broke and it didtn work for a while

long story short, i had it fixed, bought my own engl powerball. it just sounded like garbage. only a good clean channel. i sent it back, and bought the engl invader 150 new. played it a few times, and it also sucked. i A/B'd the two invader's and my friends sounded 10000x better. so i returned my engl, bought his. after a while i started recording lighter bands with it and realized it only sounded good in extremely low tunings. i used two gibson SG's. one tuned to standard, one in B flat. the one in standard SUCKEd. sounded like a line 6 tone. then even the engl with different tubes started to suck, and got rid of it. i have no idea wtf happnd

so i would stay away from anything engl makes. the invader head is 3000 new

it just has a very muddy digital kind of tone. it made an amazing recording i will post if anybody wants to hear it. only came out good once tho ,EVERYTHIGN else afte rthat sucked
sorry if this posted twice, my computer froze in th emiddle of it and igot a bunch of error mesasges

 

[Pot]

i "think" u should try harder to put your rect to use instead of GASing

 

[-Loco-]

GASing?

Its easy to say 'try harder' but something more productive than that might be worth 1 glance of my eyes. its hard trying,asking for help and getting nowhere when some dicks on this forum think their post size is linearly proportional to their penis length i.e in the thread i wrote about trip rec + impulses. I'm not bitchin' at ya im just fucking fed up getting snotty,bastard remarks about anything I ask..I'm sure i'm not the only one. There's too many elitist pricks on this board.I used to just sit and read stuff for fun but when i actually started posting stuff I either got shit feedback or no critique. Might just go back to reading and hope thats somebody asks my questions for me and gets flamed :-D.

 

[Metaltastic]

Post clips and we'll take it from there!

 

[-Loco-]

thank you ill get some up asap sorry if i was mean...too tired last night

 

[Pot]

loco, i know what u mean but the thing is if u can´t make it work it with a rect how can u make it with another pre/amp?
don´t u like the sound u get with it? do u know how to dial it right?
i´m not trying to be a smartass here, but i still think the problem is the operator unless u reaaly are fed up with the rectifier sound.
So, isn´t it better to learn and tame that beast than starting contemplating a future gear purchase.
i have a e530 and like it. goes well with impulses. i would imagine a triaxis would be killer....but then again a rectifier flavour...
i´ll check out your other thread and see if i can add some

 

[-Loco-]

MAYBE!! i dont know what the fuck it is because in the general sense most of these amps 6505/5150/Recto should give the same kind of result with preferences/nice artifacts that other users would like to tell apart each one.Could do me a favour and post ME some clips of your pre-amp or amp with impulses and explain any processing then show me it in a mix with some drums and bass for context? Im so frustrated because it sounds nice on its own but in a mix i'm never happy with it. I'm at home tomorrow so gonna upload some raw/processed recordings with my amp!


In reference to what you said about dialling - i usually have my mids just under my treble so say this is typical w/ s-preshigh impulse

Master 2.5 Bass 4 Mids 5 treble 6 gain 6 output 10

TS settings: drive almost at 0 level 12 o clock tone 1 o clock

I put the guitar into the TS then the amp..should i be putting it in the FX loop?!

 

[Glenn Fricker]

GASing?
There's too many elitist pricks on this board.I used to just sit and read stuff for fun but when i actually started posting stuff I either got shit feedback or no critique. .

"Gear Acquisition Syndrome." It's the engineer, not the gear, that matters most. Too many guys starting out tend to blame the gear.

As for elitist pricks, I think you've got this board confused with Gearslutz.com. Try to keep the attitude in check & maybe you'll get a better reply.


Personally, I'm not a fan of preamps & impulses. I prefer to work with amps, cabs & mics so I'm not the best guy to answer your original question.

 

[Lasse Lammert]

i have no idea wtf happnd

you've just explained it yourself.
that's the engl story.

To the OP:
although it'll put me in danger of being called an elitist prick, I'd still say if you can't get anything decent with the recto no ather amp preamp will help you.
I could understand if you don't like the character of the recto, in that case a different amp would make sense, but you'd still be able to get a great sound out of it (perhaps just not matching your taste).
Do you have the chance of micing a cab? cause I'm with Oz here, a miced cab will shit all over impulses etc.

Oz: loving your sig ( being serious!)

 

[Pot]

i´m guessing your in the learning curve, don´t expect immediate results ....trial and error....

when u say:
"Im so frustrated because it sounds nice on its own but in a mix i'm never happy with it"
this ilustrates my above statement and tells me that u need to do some homework on equing freq etc....u just got to keep trying and learning, absorve the knowledge that goes around this forum pricks etc, try to aplly it...
there were numerous threads explaining what u are asking...i remember one from behindert for example, using revalver
As for the sound of a e530 with imp'ulses search for kazrog´s posts on it.


the TS will always go in front of the amp

 

[Metaltastic]

Pot, stop encouraging him to keep putting off making clips

 

[The Unavoidable]

The thing is, that if you're not getting good result with such an awesome amp as a triple rectifier, then the problem probably isn't the amp.

 

[zackpennington]

The other problem might be that the master volume is down too low. This is the biggest complaint people have with the Recto's, especially the Triple. You have to crank those bad boys to get them going! That said, I've never gone direct with one so I don't know if the line out circuit is effected by the master circuit. It wasn't on my Randall, but was on my Marshall.

 

[Fox Mulder]

-Loco-,
I'm satisfied with freeware plugs. Gear isn't always the answer. As it has been said in one or more posts up there: keep on experimenting. Do your homework on identifying frequencies and EQ-ing. I'm not exactly trying to say that you're inexperienced or anything, though. Sometimes people worry too much, and even if you do find a tone that sounds cool today you're gonna dislike it tomorrow. Learn to move on and not give a fuck.

 

[Mikaël-ange]

The other problem might be that the master volume is down too low. This is the biggest complaint people have with the Recto's, especially the Triple. You have to crank those bad boys to get them going!

+1000
My dual start to sound good for recording at 9 'o clock imo. I can't imagine same setting for a triple
For exemple master was at 12 o'clock for last Vader recording (you can see this after looked same studio report episode during a couple of hours).

But if you really want stay with impulses why don't try (supposing you haven't already try this) Metaltastics recto impulse in replacement of Ryan impulse (5150 poweramp for a recto)...

Good luck and post some clip

 

[-Loco-]

TOMORROW. Amp clips will be up. Where can i find Metaltastics recto impulse? I might give it a try!

 

[Metaltastic]

Here ya go dude, though DEFINITELY make sure you're running the preamp in modern mode going into it! (and even then it'll probably be too fizzy, just to warn you, but I never actually tried my Dual Rec into impulses, so maybe not!)