|
To vintage or not? Part 1: Mic preamps
By Fletcher (click here
to go to his Rec Pit Forum)
|
1 2
|
Mic Preamplifiers
There are two major schools of mic pre design - tube and solid-state.
We have grown to love many of the solid-state sounds and designs.
In many cases they are superior to their tube counterparts. The
tube models generally have a more distinct character. Let's look
at some tube goodies first:
|
Conforming to brown book
standards: V-72
|
|
Perhaps the most popular (at the moment) are the German brown
book standard units. They were built by a variety of manufacturers
for German broadcast and were used by other manufacturers
(most notably EMI)
for their consoles. The V-72, V-72A, V-76 and V-78 are the
most notable. (The V-74 is a line amplifier, V-73 a comp/limiter.)
The V-72 is a dual-tube unit employing two Telefunken
EF-804S tubes. It has 34 dB of gain and a maximum output level
of +15. This is especially good for high-output microphones
like the U47, U67s (pad removed), M49s, C-12s, etc. The V-72
offers a very musical shimmer at the top end, as well as a
full tone and thickness.
|
The V-72A used one E180F and one 5654 tube; it has 42 dB of gain
and also a +15 output. This will work better with FET condensers
(414s, U87s, etc.). V-72S amplifiers were found in the EMI REDD
37 Abbey Road
consoles that were used on the Beatles recordings up to Sgt. Pepper.
These have 38dB of gain, but you'll never find one anyways so don't
worry about it.
|
Das tube: Object of much discussion.
|
|
The V-76 employs four of the EF-804S tubes. It has a variable
gain for 0 dB to 76 dB. The V-76/80 has an equalizer (useless!),
and a high-pass filter (nearly useless). The V-76/M doesn't
have these features and to my ears sounds a bit better. It
is double the width of the V-72 and, coincidentally, about
double the cost.
The V-78 is perhaps my favorite of the group. It has a variable
input gain from 50 dB to 72 dB, excessive in most applications
but controllable with a Shure
variable mic pad. Its maximum output level is +24, so it will
net you headroom for days.
The Shure variable pad is about as sonically transparent
as I have ever encountered. It is an inexpensive and indispensable
tool. I highly recommend that everyone in this industry own
at least four of them. You will need these when using V-78
modules because their input gain is so high. (No, I'm not
a Shure endorser.)
|
While we're on the subject of mic pre's that require pads in most
applications, let's look at some of the stand-alone tube units from
American manufacturers. The Langevin
AM-16, the Altec 458, a couple of the RCAs, and my favorite, the
Western
Electric (WE) units run on 300 volts of DC. They have enormous
potential to sound really good and to make you damn sorry you didn't
pay more attention before sticking your hand into one.
The Langevin has a very "sweet" musical tone. It doesn't
seem to distort quite as much as the Altecs and WEs but is very
full and large-sounding. It will give you wonderful clarity without
sacrificing any of the bottom you are trying to achieve.
Western Electric preamps were used on all those classic Motown
vocals. They have that absolutely wonderful buzz/distortion in the
treble ranges that made you fall head over heels in love with Martha,
Diana, Marvin, etc. They have a presence and authority that is unrivaled.
If you're as bored with modern rock 'n' roll radio as I am, turn
on the oldies station. Within an hour, you'll start to notice the
different distortions on the vocal tracks. The vocals that make
you sit up in your seat, and draw you into the track are most likely
WEs. (FYI, I've since learned this is wrong, sorry.)
|
API 512, "c" version.
|
|
The Altecs and RCAs I find very similar in tone; they seem
to be slightly clearer versions of the Langevins. No less
solid in their tone, they have the ability to make any track
incredibly present and pleasing to the ear.
In solid-state land, there are innumerable great preamps.
The two most common are the Neve 1272 and the API
512. Both are very solid and thick-sounding. The API is a
bit clearer than the Neve, but the Neve accomplishes the "Neve"
tone that nothing else can achieve.
I have found that using a combination of the two makes it
very easy to separate my guitars and vocal when it comes time
to balance the song. If I use the Langevins on drums, Altecs
on the piano, Neves on guitars, I will use APIs on vocals,
or other combinations that complement the music.
|
|
