bassdriver wrote:
Have any of you ever used/modified a Altec Lansing 1678c 8 Channel mixer as a mic preamp?
A friend bought one and asked me if I would do the work on it. I’ve found the schematics and a tape op thread on how to mod it.
Just curious if anyone has any experience with that model.
I bought a greenface one years ago and had it modified for direct outs. I also added a pad on each channel but I think I never needed them.
I used it as a permanent front end for an 8-track tape deck (Tascam 238) and I loved it.
Accessing the phantom power was a slight pain but otherwise it was great.
I compared it once to my other preamp option (Soundcraft EPM 12) shootout-style and I preferred the Altec, slightly.
My experience and expertise in the realm of pre-amps is rather thin and my rig was kinda lo-fi but what the hell, it sounded OK to me and was easy to use.
Even after the modifications it was relatively affordable, well under $1k total at that time. Looks cool too.