Shhh... I'm huntin' Wackmount tube pweamps...

[Nadz1lla]

Heya guys...

This kind of follows on from a discussion I started a few months back about trying to get some more realistic tube tone into my chain for home recording. I had the idea of using those Blackstar tube-powered pedals, but sounds like a no-go. I basically want my Pod XT to sound a bit better, give myself a bit more to play with, tone-wise, but at the same time keeping it down to "home" volume and not upsetting the neighbours (otherwise I would happily save up and buy a proper valve amp, namely a Fryette Pittbull CL 50, man I love the sound of those!!!)

Yet again we enter the head-scratching "How to get good tone at a reasonable volume" area of recording. It's a bloody minefield, and not something I like to drag up again, but I have to be realistic about my living situation. If I could have it all my own way it would be "Buy a detached house out in the sticks, chuck in some expensive and loud, decent amplifiers and have at it!" But the situation is this: I am p1$$ poor, and the walls between me and the neighbours either side of this mid-terraced house are so thin I can hear them BREATHING at night when I'm in bed.
(Yeah, believe me, that's really not the worst thing I've heard... :?)

So someone suggested a tube pre-amp. I've seen a few around like the Engl one, but I am wondering exactly what kind I should be going for, and if there is such thing as a good sounding one on a low budget (flea-bay I am guessing)?

A thought I also just had: would a tube-driven EQ like the one Electro Harmonix do ramp my sound up a notch or two? In theory it sounds like the perfect thing: It has tubes plus a bunch of EQ stuff to further shape my sound, or am I barking up the wrong tree completely there?

[Toe-Knee]

THe engl E530 is pretty damn awesome.

If you want something a bit more versatile theres the ADA MP1 which is pretty much one of the staple preamps.

The rocktron voodu valve is also meant to be good but i haven't tried this one myself just the Pirahna which was awesome.

I'm currently working on some 1u SLO preamps of just the lead channel which should turn out fairly cheap and there are also others on the horizon from Jackson RR but i can't really say much else on that atm other than i know you'll probably love at least 2 of the ones hes working on :D

[darkbluemurder]

In the 80s preamps were the big sellers - in the 90s nobody wanted them anymore. Among the popular models were the Marshall JMP-1, the Kitty Hawk Quattro and the Lee Jackson Perfect Connection 1000. Not to forget the Mesa Boogie Studio preamp and Triaxis preamp.

Cheers Stephan

[BigB]

This kind of follows on from a discussion I started a few months back about trying to get some more realistic tube tone into my chain for home recording.
(...)
Yet again we enter the head-scratching "How to get good tone at a reasonable volume" area of recording.

I already posted a similar answer somewhere here (was it in your previous topic ?), but anyway: the best result I heard so far was my HRDx into a palmer PDI-03.

[TheyCallMeVolume]

Triaxis is a MONSTER

[Nadz1lla]

BigB, I hadn't seen your previous answer, so maybe in another thread? Even so, that PDI-03 sounds like a very good piece of kit for a studio. The fact that it acts as a speaker emulator AND a dummy load is very appealing. That would also mean I could actually save up and buy myself a decent all-valve head and not have to worry about recording levels!

So that's an interesting new direction to think about, at least. If I went down that route I would probably sell my Pod... hmmm. Way to throw in another option, there.  ^_^  But also, on that same thread...there's a lot of money involved in that direction. :x

Thanks to everyone who has suggested pre-amps so far, I've added a few to the ol' evilbay watch list!

[Oli]

I've used my ADA MP-1 for just practising at night, plugged straight into my MBox, with just a touch of software EQ to have a bit more of a speaker-like response. It sounds really great, so much better than my POD, and it's a lot more inducive of playing well as you have better tone, less latency, and much more enjoyment! :)

[Toe-Knee]

BigB, I hadn't seen your previous answer, so maybe in another thread? Even so, that PDI-03 sounds like a very good piece of kit for a studio. The fact that it acts as a speaker emulator AND a dummy load is very appealing. That would also mean I could actually save up and buy myself a decent all-valve head and not have to worry about recording levels!

So that's an interesting new direction to think about, at least. If I went down that route I would probably sell my Pod... hmmm. Way to throw in another option, there.  ^_^  But also, on that same thread...there's a lot of money involved in that direction. :x

Thanks to everyone who has suggested pre-amps so far, I've added a few to the ol' evilbay watch list!

Whilst the palmer is great i found it to have a weird attack for metal. I returned mine after a week or so.

However you can bypass the cab simulator and use impulses also.

You could probably get just a load box or a weber mass that can function as a loadbox for about £90 and also use impulses. This is a better option imho as the £300 for the palmer is a bit steep especially to say the built in cab sims arent exactly optimal for metal.

[FELINEGUITARS]

I have a Rocktron Piranha preamp for sale which is brilliant
It's a high voltage to the tube plates design which means it responds and cleans up like a real amp
Many have compared it to being like a more versatile Marshall JMP1 which is somewhat of an understatement
The mid frequency can be swept up and down with a plus or minus range of up to 12dB
The control interface is via knobs so it feels very amp-like and you can save 128 settings  too
It has an FX loop that you can program to be in or out on each patch
It has a HUSH noise gate  that you can dial in  to optimum effect  for each patch setting or completely remove if you don't like or require a noise gate.
It has 3 voicing - clean tube, and two different drive channels one classic and one more intense (a bit more ENGL like to my ears)

One clever feature is the "global" EQ settings that are good if you have all your patches set nicely that you carefully tuned at home or in rehearsals but find that they sound too dark or bright when you play somewhere else - you can just tweak these for the new venue - like a gig venue or suchlike and hopefully all your patches will then sound as good for that place as they did at home.





It has speaker simulated outputs which let you record or whatever as well.

Famously it is what Glen Tipton from Judas Priest used for years

I used to own two of these - one I used to have at work and this one was my spare that I used at home - hence the condition is very clean - was bought new by myself (damn thing cost me nearly £800 back then ...1998)

[Nadz1lla]

Speaker simulated outputs too? Sounds like a really nifty piece of kit! Had a gander at your site but no price there, how much were you looking for?

(I have a funny feeling it will be out of my immediate price range, though, heh)

[HTH AMPS]

I have a Boogie Studio preamp that sounds great even using my powered PC speakers as monitors.

I may let go of it if you were looking for one (PM me if you're interested).

[BigB]

Whilst the palmer is great i found it to have a weird attack for metal.

Well, I don't do metal so I can't comment about this. All I can say is that I spent a whole morning playing on this setup and to me it sounded quite close to the "real" live cranked tone and felt as close as possible (minus the SPL and nice feedback obviously), at - litteraly -  bedroom level.  Now I can well believe you can get as good or better results (and possibly more options) with some other dummy load / cab sim combo.

@Nad: well, looks like if you're in metal stuff (which is the case IIRC), it might not work for you, but still give it a try if you can. FWIW I was really skeptical at first but it JustWorked(tm) for me.

[ericsabbath]

peavey rockmaster kicks ass for metal
pretty much a peavey XXX 4-tube preamp in a 1u rack
no diode clipping in this one (unlike the JMP-1 and most of the non-boutique others)
about US$250 on ebay

[Loomer]

peavey rockmaster kicks ass for metal
pretty much a peavey XXX 4-tube preamp in a 1u rack
no diode clipping in this one (unlike the JMP-1 and most of the non-boutique others)
about US$250 on ebay

I was just about to ask about this 'un.. One has come up for fairly cheap so I'm sort of considering it. My biggest worry though, is how to make it work with my racktuner, and what footswitches work with it.

[PhilKing]

I have a couple of Hughes & Kettner 'Machine' amps.  These are half rack units which have a built in power amp.  I have a Cream Machine and a Metal Master.  They have a built in 'Red Box' for recording and you can pick them up pretty cheaply on eBay.  For something more special I have the prototype and first production model of the Lexicon Signature 284, which is a stereo 3 watt all valve rack mount amp, using 2 EL84 power tubes.  It has speaker emulated outputs (4x12 or 2x12 open).   When I was recording with mine, you couldn't tell the difference between the actual outputs and the emulation, though I have a set of speakers that John McIntyre (the designer), made me with attenuators, which I use with the original all the time.