First off, I'm really sorry for not being around here much lately. I've literally been working around the clock on the album (as in pulling several all-nighters). Guitars and bass are almost totally done, but more on that soon.
I've always been kinda skeptical of the amount of difference mic preamps make. I could hear a difference, but very minimal, so I thought the debate was way overrated (I haven't had the luxury of comparing a lot of high-end units head-to head at the same time).
Hmm...I'm kinda reconsidering though, because I borrowed a different unit for the weekend and did some more comparisons on guitar. I don't know how much it will come across in these MP3s or on computer speakers, but to me the difference is pretty huge (huge in relative studio terms, of course):
Preamp 1
Preamp 2
Both are high-end units. To my ears, the first one is more hi-fi/scooped sounding, with a thinner midrange and extended high end (could be thin/shrill on some sources). The second one is WAY more midrange-voiced, to the point where it could potentially sound honky on some sources. I think both could find very good uses, depending on the source. These were recorded back-to-back, and the only thing that changed was the mic preamp (guitar, amp, cabinet, mic, etc. stayed the same, I just unplugged the mic cable from Preamp 1 and plugged it into Preamp 2).
Interesting. Now to test some vocals...
I've always been kinda skeptical of the amount of difference mic preamps make. I could hear a difference, but very minimal, so I thought the debate was way overrated (I haven't had the luxury of comparing a lot of high-end units head-to head at the same time).
Hmm...I'm kinda reconsidering though, because I borrowed a different unit for the weekend and did some more comparisons on guitar. I don't know how much it will come across in these MP3s or on computer speakers, but to me the difference is pretty huge (huge in relative studio terms, of course):
Preamp 1
Preamp 2
Both are high-end units. To my ears, the first one is more hi-fi/scooped sounding, with a thinner midrange and extended high end (could be thin/shrill on some sources). The second one is WAY more midrange-voiced, to the point where it could potentially sound honky on some sources. I think both could find very good uses, depending on the source. These were recorded back-to-back, and the only thing that changed was the mic preamp (guitar, amp, cabinet, mic, etc. stayed the same, I just unplugged the mic cable from Preamp 1 and plugged it into Preamp 2).
Interesting. Now to test some vocals...
