Vintage Synth Explorer Forums

madtheory wrote:Rodes have this high end boost that to me seems really fake most of the time. I detest their Classic and Classic 2. However, for choir an NT2 pair beats a 414 or U87 pair. Seriously.

That's true of their older designs, but the new capsule in the K2, NT2A and some others fixes this.

hmm okay thanks for all the info guys...

I think I'm going to go for either the ME1NV or RNP/RNC combo for now, and then upgrade my mic later

Joey wrote:hmm okay thanks for all the info guys...

I think I'm going to go for either the ME1NV or RNP/RNC combo for now, and then upgrade my mic later

for the price of the rnp, you should have a look at the black lion audio auteur preamp. they have couple of demos online that compare it to other higher-end pres. i don't know if it will be the sound you'll be after but i found it very usefull in my set-up.

i've been running sm57 and a studioprojects(early mk) C1 condenser thru Focusrite ISA428 (Neve design) and it's fairly robust and punchy with nice open highs. this in comparison to the pre's in a mate's lunchbox he lent me last month loaded w/ - P1(pacifica), montessi red and a brent avril- i liked the avril on my voice and guitar it's smooooth, the best and the red for it's slamming vibey character, the P1 for open forward detail(guitars & keys).

i still have an Emu 1820 which is robust if a bit muddy. So now i use the ISA double-duty for tracking instruments...i've found it best on acoustic guitar and drums. when i track drums through them there's big difference in low-end integrity and mix-ability. synth basslines sound bigger, too.

novielo wrote: for the rice of the rnp, you should have a look at the black lion audio auteur preamp.

I'd have to agree. If I didn't have the Great River, I'd go this route.

After all that... a mic upgrade will get you a better return for your money.

madtheory wrote:After all that... a mic upgrade will get you a better return for your money.

I strongly disagree, the NT2A is a very decent sounding mic, the only reason not to use it would be if it brought out something in the voice that should stay hidden. The Ultralite pre is not very good sounding.

I think we can both agree that treating the acoustic space will be a big upgrade, and probably the cheapest one too.

My bad, I thought the OP was using a 58

Stab Frenzy wrote: I think we can both agree that treating the acoustic space will be a big upgrade, and probably the cheapest one too.

+1.

Get some bass traps right away.
throw 'em in the corners and you can practically forget about them. then get a dB meter and check your reflection points and oustanding nodes: that's where you need treatment. You can spend about half of what Auralex goes for by using Corning panels.
There's a slew of threads on gearsluts about it: http://www.gearslutz.com/board/search.p ... d=20896900
if any of this is confusing, it just takes a couple days of research, tests, shopping and install.

Acoustic treatment is not an option for me right now

Ok.
2 more cents:
I think you should keep your Rode and buy a good preamp.
Then you listen to the difference.
If you buy new, buy from a place like Guitar Center. "Satisfaction Garanteed". If you don't like it. return it.
If you want used you can always sell it for what you paid, if you buy well.
Or perhaps you can borrow someone's preamp and test it for yourself.
You get a lot of mixed opinios in this forum. It's simpler than it sounds here. A good preamp will greattly improve your sound. There's no questiom about it. And IMHO a good preamp is the most important link missing in your chain righ now.

yeah I think I'm going to go with an RNP/RNC combo for now... I can use them on more than just my mic, and what I've read about them makes them really sound great

Joey wrote:Acoustic treatment is not an option for me right now

1. No way to makeshift something into a booth in the apt or a friend's space?
2. Anyway you can bang up some tracks to take to a studio and record just the vocals?
3. What about that SE reflector thing you attach to a mic stand?

I guess option 4 could be f**k it, and record your best album ever in a glass factory with s**t equip and proceed to make exceedingly pointless and irrelevant music as production values go up...

i'm currently in between apartments, so I'm staying at my parents, so any treatment I do would be wasted, plus this basement is f**k huge and impossible to treat anyways

I have been looking at the SE reflector, I had just forgotten the name of it haha

so going with 3 and 4, minus the increasingly irrelevant music part

Joey wrote:yeah I think I'm going to go with an RNP/RNC combo for now... I can use them on more than just my mic, and what I've read about them makes them really sound great

I'd check out some of the other options around the same price range, the RNP is pretty good but it's too clean for my tastes. I reckon something with more colour (transformer colour in particular) would suit your stuff better.