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Agreed with Eliya. Get external phantom power boxes...if you want 4-8 channels you ll probably need to get multiple devices as I think most of what s on the market is 2-channel boxes. Rolls makes one in the ballpark of $50 USD.If I was in your position I d use the Roland strictly for I/O and utilize the board preamps, but that s largely because I like to use my DAW as a black box with I/O and that s it. I don t know what your mic locker looks like but you d probably get more mileage from buying a higher-end mic to use with the board preamps than buying an expensive preamp to use with your existing mics (I say that assuming you dont have any mics that would be considered high-end). Also, you can get excellent no-frills preamps for not much money retail, and for even less if you get curious enough to try building your own from a kit.

First, get a Phantom box to power your condensers. I don't know who makes a good one, but google it. +48V is easy and cheap to build, so it shouldn't cost a ton, and if you don't buy one from a shitty company, you'll be fine.Preamps vs. microphones. I don't know if there's an answer. I think that microphones are more important than preamps, but I know people will disagree. It also depends on the type of the recording. The best way to find out is to borrow or buy a nice-ish preamp and see for yourself. Personally if something doesn't sound right, I move the mic, and if it still doesn't sound right, I change the microphone. Meanwhile, I think of preamps in a utilitarian manner - do they have enough gain, do they have pads, polarity reverse, phantom power, etc. I can hear the difference between different preamps, but I can't really accurately predict what a certain preamp will sound like. I plug in and see what it sounds like, and most of the time the preamp doesn't make nearly as much different as the microphone does. With that being said, I was disappointed by preamps, and that was when I used cheap onboard preamps on recording interfaces.To answer your last question: there are no line inputs on the Studio-Capture? It's all preamps? From what I see online, there are four preamps in the front and line inputs in the back. Use the line inputs in the back then, or use a combination of both with the Tascam as the front end. I don't know if an older generation 828 would sound better than the converters on the Studio-Capture. Might be a different story if you buy a newer interface.

(briefly posted this in the Little Tech Questions thread but it's too lengthy for that I feel)I record with a Roland Studio-Capture interface, but I also have a Tascam M-312 console that I've used a few times as front-end. I haven't done any meticulous A/Bing between using the Tascam for the preamps/EQ and just going straight through the interface, but both options sound good, with the Tascam sounding a bit more Interesting (or whatever ”please bear in mind as I continue that I am Unlearned and a Bozo).The main stumbling block with the Tascam board is that it does not supply phantom power. As such, the few times I've tracked through it, I was restricted to dynamic and ribbon mics with the exception of maybe two condensers that had their own power supplies. This is not a terrible thing! However, I've been wanting to incorporate more condenser mics as I acquire them. In particular, I have a recording project coming up this year that'll be my first for a band I'm not in, and I'd like to put my best foot forward given how much I like that band and want their record to be good. Maybe that will require using more condenser mics (where appropriate ”I don't believe condenser mics are automatically "better" than dynamics or anything), maybe that will involve tracking through the Tascam, maybe some combination of the two.So:1. Generally speaking, is a person better served by having access to a wider variety of mics but only average preamps, or a more strict selection of mics (that are still good/appropriate!) but nicer preamps? 2. For my situation does it make the most sense to: a. use the Tascam for its preamps, live without the +48V?b. go straight into the interface, go nuts w/r/t +48V?c. use the Tascam for its preamps, hook up an external phantom power supply, go nuts w/r/t +48V? ” ” i. who makes a good 4-8ch external phantom power supply3. In a situation where I have a stable setup I like that involves the Tascam console as front end, would it be better served by replacing the Studio-Capture with some strictly line-level conversion, like a pair of MOTU 828s? For the cost, would it be a drastic improvement over running everything through the Studio-Capture's preamps (which can't be defeated iirc) and bringing the levels down?

While my answer is almost always "Use the Tascam.", something sticks out to me in this instance. Is this something you are thinking over without laying it out the the band in question?It seems like it could be worth it to explain the choice, and at least ask them if they have a take on if they want to have any sort of a say in this sort of a situation.Edit: I've used a standalone phantom supply with a Tascam board that was less advanced than the one you mentioned. Any old supply should work just fine if you go that route.

I use audio technical phantom power boxes with my M308 and shure M67 preamp. I have 4 single ch supplies that I got for around 20 bucks each on ebay. I used to have a crown ph-4a (?) 4 ch supply that always fine and I think I got it on eBay for 40 or 60. Check ebay. They pop up cheap all the time. Rolls makes them too I think. I think the eq on the m300 series desks are really fun and use mine for drums a lot.

Thank you homies for the input. As usual I've been overthinking things completely without thinking any one element through sufficiently, and I'm happy to have that counteracted here.Rolls makes a six-channel jawn called the Phantom Hex and that's badass so I plan to go with that.numberthirty wrote:Is this something you are thinking over without laying it out the the band in question?It seems like it could be worth it to explain the choice, and at least ask them if they have a take on if they want to have any sort of a say in this sort of a situation.I've talked options with them, and it sounds like they don't care as long as I'm happy. What's fortunate for me here is that I'll have more time for setup than I usually allot myself, so having to lug and wire the thing up isn't a concern. It was more about weighing that time/effort ”along with the additional points of potential failure, the extra gain-staging, all of that ”against how much Better it would sound. But if I'm honest with myself, I do prefer the sound of things going through the board. I'll buy an external power supply and call it a day.