Your cheap preeamps suggestions

Discussion in 'Soundgear' started by ManMythMaschine, Feb 2, 2025 at 11:05 AM.

  1. Radio

    Radio Audiosexual

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    You have to copy the link and enter it into your internet browser. If you click on it directly, Medifire will block the download!
    Your voice is sometimes too quiet - please move closer and stay close to the microphone!

    To me it sounds like electromagnetic interference, possibly from the power supply or a lack of grounding.
    You can see in the picture of your example 1 that there is a signal throughout the range of 20-20000 kHz!
    Another solution would be buy better hardware and better cables (Example Audient)
     
    Last edited: Feb 5, 2025 at 6:13 PM

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  2. Garamondo Furbish

    Garamondo Furbish Audiosexual

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    FIrepod if you have firewire is a cheap solution to get alot of channels. If you just need phantom power most of your basic usb interfaces are more than adequate. You can use VST's to colour your sound or impulse responses.

    a nice preamp is great, but its not in the top 3 places I'd spend money nowadays, unless of course you have a bad case of GAS, then the heart wants, what the heart wants.
     
  3. Garamondo Furbish

    Garamondo Furbish Audiosexual

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    maybe a compressor to even up the audio level, but its much easier to learn good microphone technique, its simply practice and awareness of the situation.
     
  4. Garamondo Furbish

    Garamondo Furbish Audiosexual

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    the problem was a bad connection in the wiring, if you tighten the connection and it fixed the problem.
     
  5. samsum

    samsum Producer

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    Focusrite Platinum Voicemaster can be picked up pretty cheap now or their Trak Master
    Transistor Mic Pre, Expander, Harmonics, Compressor, Eq/Breath etc
    focusrite-platinum-voicemaster-xl-1525496958.jpg
     
  6. ManMythMaschine

    ManMythMaschine Member

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    My whole point is if i can have a loud and clean signal on the sound source level instead of post processing the signal on the computer
    I mean doing more hardware work instead of mouse clicks...
     
    Last edited: Feb 5, 2025 at 6:23 PM
  7. Radio

    Radio Audiosexual

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    The best, of course, are digital cable connections such as fiber optic cables, i.e. Toslink! Fiber optic is interference-free.

    Sometimes changing the cables and the socket works wonders, even neighbors' phones can cause interference.

    Which hardware do you want to replace?

    The problem is that most anyone who cares about audio has an external DAC connected via USB now. There just isn't enough reason to keep including S/PDIF. better is a PCI SoundCard RME with Optical or SPDIF! https://rme-audio.de/internal-cards.html
     
    Last edited: Feb 5, 2025 at 6:38 PM
  8. Radio

    Radio Audiosexual

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    Optical SPDIF is a godsend for using a tube amp. PC noise is carried over the USB cable and is made audible by the tubes.
    Same thing with a cell phone set right next to it. Optical to DAC to tube amp = no noise.
     
  9. ManMythMaschine

    ManMythMaschine Member

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    For right now currently I'm already fine with my native audio 6
    But for the future I would have much more better options and equipment and access to big studios and doing the works depending on the projects that I would done...
     
  10. Radio

    Radio Audiosexual

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    Sounds like a nice future. Good luck to you.

    As we all know, the devil is in the detail. Sometimes PC cases or USB sockets on the PC are not grounded and then the interference starts. You can of course go to an electronics store to test the USB audio interface thoroughly.



    Nonetheless, there are still several circumstances where electromagnetic interference may have an impact on laptops. For instance, placing a laptop close to electrical substations or high-voltage power lines; using a laptop in an industrial setting where heavy machinery can produce powerful electromagnetic fields; using a laptop in a location with a lot of radio frequency (RF) radiation, like close to cell phone towers or microwave transmission sites; and placing a laptop close to other electronic devices that produce electromagnetic radiation, like an electric razor.

    https://www.ttelectronics.com/blog/electromagnetic-interference/
     
  11. Garamondo Furbish

    Garamondo Furbish Audiosexual

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    no matter what you do, you'll probably want to add things to your tracks, especialy vocal tracks. things like reverb, doubling, compression, eq.

    But you are right you need a good signal to begin with or your just piling shit on top of shit. Thats where learning good microphone technique is important, also learning the characteristics of your chosen microphone. Those are both learned by practice, record, playback, change things, record, playback, rinse and repeat until you know how to use the microphone to get what you want out of it.

    Tracking is an art and a science and both need attention and learning to understand, thats the whole theory of the Tea Boy in the studio...
     
  12. mk_96

    mk_96 Audiosexual

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    It does sound like electronic noise, but i think it's coming from the mic. I have an ECM8000, tested it with my voice at 35-40dB of gain to get around the same level as you, and the noise sounded about the same as it did in your recordings.

    So i tested the ECM8000 against an SM57, gain at the same spot (60dB), same preamp for both (RME), no processing. There's some ambient noise, but the differnece in electronic noise is still very audible. Since the only thing that changed was the mic, i think it's safe to say that the preamp itself is not contributing any noticeable noise.

    The bottom line is, the ECM8000 is noisy, and probably a lot noisier than your preamp.
     

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  13. Garamondo Furbish

    Garamondo Furbish Audiosexual

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    I use an isolation transformer for my gear. it should get rid of most ac line noise, EMF or RF are radiative noise and your devices are receivers picking it up, you need to shield your gear (with metal or metal screen) or eliminate the EMF or RF sources, ie if your room lights are giving off noise, turn them off or replace them.

    groundloops are a real thing, and easily fixed. but it all takes troubleshooting, but its all fixable and has been around since electricity, read up or watch some vids if thats your thing.
     
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