surely tho if you are putting a mic preamp into a input of say a mixer, you are canceling out the mic preamp in the first place because its still going into the mixer preamp it was going to in the first place. i can see the benefit of level but not the "tone" or "sparkle" factor.

i maybe very very wrong but thts the way ive always seen it, i do run a zoom mrs1608 from time to time and have thought on buying a preamp for it but it still seems a little vague to do so?!

I dont really want a TUBE mic pre per se, but I put 'tube' down for whatever reason. Tube dosent automatically equal 'good', and I'm happy with solid state gear. For mics I have 3 pairs of dynamic mics and 4 Condensers: a pair of Audio Technica Pro 24 Small Diaphragms, an AKG C1000S small dia. and an MXL 2001 large dia., and purchasing these have greatly increased the quality of my mixes. I'd rather invest in more good mics than a sub-par mic pre.


I think that my recorders pre's are good enough for now. They're definetly not terrible, and it is probably true that I wont be getting much better unless I'm willing to spend a good deal of money. Also, the more signal paths, the more noise you generate, and I like to avoid uncessary noise at all costs. To all who replied: Thanks for not treating me like too much of an audio newbie.


Also, I have this old, cheap Shure Microphone Mixer:



I dont know if anyone has used this old peice of equipment, but I think its terrible. Its extremely noisy and only adds insignificant amounts of gain to the signal. I didnt pay anything for it. I'm learning more and more about electronics, so I might try to crack it open and turn it into an okay mic pre.

my advice is to experiment more with micing techniques, read up on polar patterns, and see if you can find the technical specifications on all of the mics you have.

try moving the mics around, and you will get very different sounds. subtle movement in any direction can result in surprisingly drastic changes.

my roommate had an aw16g, and for some reason i thought it had 8 mic pres, but looking at yamaha's site, it clearly only has 2 xlr ins, though the spec sheet would have you believe that channels 3-8 can accomodate the same sort of gain as channels 1 and 2, they just have trs jacks instead of xlr jacks. ("Nominal Input Level / -46 dB – + 4dB" for all 8 channels)

maybe invest in a cable snake or a set of xlr->trs adapters so you can use all 8 channel inputs at once.

WoundedFoot wrote:I'm learning more and more about electronics, so I might try to crack it open and turn it into an okay mic pre.

Ah, excellent! Then I'd suggest looking again at the Op-Amp labs stuff--while doing a power supply isn't particularly glamorous, that is a skill that pays off in many, many ways. And the Op-Amp labs stuff is pretty good, although it can build up a Nevey kind of haze over several tracks. But that might be to your taste.

The Shure mixer that you are showing is not really for doing recording sessions I used the one you have a jpg of for doing live radio broadcasts from tent revivals back in the day.

I have a later version the M267 which has a blue and grey front panal which is nicer and has a battery power option which is why I bought it as I used it in video shoots where it could perform well with a boom mike and a couple of laveliers. Mine has phantom power which would come in handy except I had battery powered Lavoliers.

The M267 can get loud using the master volume but I usaly from habit keep it arround 3, It does not have the power (of a real mike pre but if you push the sub up and keep the master low I guess you could use it.

For work it has been replaced with a stereo mixer. I now use it to put line outs from my keyboards through. This is just cause I am to lazy to plug everything in each time or resell it.

They are OK for doing a sum mix in a live situation using dynamic mikes mine has some gain but it is not something I would use doing music recording if I wanted a clean recording. But it is relable.

In the same price range but nicer is the Altec Mixer Preamp Model 1692A. Which has a lot more options 6 ins and a lot better pre amps (but still stereo outs) I use it for recording drums in my rehersal space. This is the solid state unit that replaced the much loved tube Altec mixer. The tube version is over $500 and is mono and the solid state is arround $100 on ebay with stereo outs

I would agree that buying the pres you build (mentioned above) are really a great idea it seems like for about $100 each you get a different flaver of high quality pre and get to build it too. As well there is some guy whose name I forget who sells mono tube pres that are arround $500 you build yourself but are top notch.

The Yamaha digital mixers are pretty much standard in video mixing rooms. The digital eq and reverbs are nice when you figure them out the presets are well thought out for most situations. Did you buy the recient fire wire one?

Big John wrote:The Shure mixer that you are showing is not really for doing recording sessions I used the one you have a jpg of for doing live radio broadcasts from tent revivals back in the day.

I have a later version the M267 which has a blue and grey front panal which is nicer and has a battery power option which is why I bought it as I used it in video shoots where it could perform well with a boom mike and a couple of laveliers. Mine has phantom power which would come in handy except I had battery powered Lavoliers.

This is an 'a/v mixer'. Versions of them are still being made, with that same 'military radio' look. They are typically used to patch lavaliers into the wall of hotel convention breakout rooms and such.

Try setting up an A/B-type situation if you have a friend with more gear. You will find that each preamp has a different sound, although if you don't have a reasonable monitoring situation it will be difficult to tell. There is reams of information here and on the net about preamps and what they do. Check out, for example, Seventh Circle Audio for some reasonably priced kit mocks of 'famous' preamps.

Big John wrote:The Shure mixer that you are showing is not really for doing recording sessions I used the one you have a jpg of for doing live radio broadcasts from tent revivals back in the day.

Tent revivals - like jumpin' for Jesus type stuff? People twitching on the floor? Fat old women having Godgasms? I hope you kept some tapes man. We need to see/hear this.

Tent revivals - like jumpin' for Jesus type stuff? People twitching on the floor? Fat old women having Godgasms? I hope you kept some tapes man. We need to see/hear this.

Should we start a 'found video' network/support group? I have done a fair amount of location video production...

Honestly, I hate to seem like a dick, but I don't think you should buy or build anything until you really learn how to use what you have. That Shure mixer is an interesting toy. I say toy because having used a couple over the years for that certain low-fi, pinched sound they can be useful. As for the noise you are experiencing, recapping it might improve it but I wouldn't use it for the time being and certainly wouldn't worry about fixing it.

I think you should spend more time with your mics, working on placement and different techniques and really trying to get the best possible recordings you can with the gear you have before getting something else. I think doing the DIY thing is great but can be a bit overwhelming at first and the attention and focus you would have to put into it would certainly detract from your recording. Rather I would suggest picking up a few books like the Yamaha Sound Reinforcement handbook and maybe a intro book on electronics. Once you have truely outgrown your current equipment I think you will be better prepared and educated to make a decision about expanding your setup.