what Preamp to get.

[dylanger]

Right now I own a new desktop mac and a presonus firestudio 26x26. I want another 8 channel preamp so I can record a live band. I'm wondering if I should go with something thats different from what I have now. My budget is 500 and under. What do you guys suggest.

[macrae11]

Well there's the Presonus DigiMax which I imagine would be right at the peak of your budget, but if I were you I'd probably just go with the Behringer ADA8000. It's got crummy preamps and mediocre conversion, but it's one of the best value in this type of product. As long as you feed it a nice hot signal it does fine. You can probably find a used one for under $200 and new ones should be under or around $300.

[Jef]

If your budget is in the $500 range, you should probably get the second PreSonus FireStudio 26 x 26 since you are already set up with a FireWire interface They go for around 5 - 600 US. The units that Andrew mentioned require an ADAT interface which you will probably have to purchase separately. The soundcard that I bought for my computer to run an ADAT (light pipe) interface was around 600 bucks and will only handle simultaneously 8 ins and 8 outs. So, even with the cheaper ADAT units, you'll probably still blow your budget. Not to mention that PreSonus preamps are a lot better than Behringer.

[macrae11]

Actually the Profire 2626 has 16 channels of IO via Lightpipe. Not that the dual Firestudio setup wouldn't work, but it would cost significantly more. If buying used you could probably get 16 more channels of IO for $300.

And while you're probably right that the Presonus preamps are probably a lot better than the Behringers, but the Behringers are perfectly serviceable when kept under 60ish% gain. More than enough gain for most drums, loud guitars, bass etc. Most things recorded with a high output mic.

[Malcolm Boyce]

I hate to say it but this little back and forth about the ADA8000 reminds me of that Ethan Winer video I posted. In the case of someone starting out with a limited setup merely looking for more inputs, money spent on "better preamps" is money spent on something most at that level will not hear.

The only bad thing about the ADA8000 in this case is the lack of a switchable pad on the XLR input. The overwhelming amount of time, you would keep the gain of the unit in a low enough position to be fine with the thing sonically. I find on loud sources, drums and such, that a mic with an integrated pad is necessary to avoid clipping at the AD.

Otherwise, I have done blind testing between the Behringer unit and other pres for friends... and myself of course, and the results have been neutral using basic input sources. This of course is something that most gear sluts don't want to hear, but it is a fact. There is a reason why the ADA8000 continues to show up in discussions like this. It's a reasonable, and super affordable solution to getting channels of I/O via ADAT in your system. The "best"? Certainly not. But I am a believer of spending a limited budget where it will make the biggest difference in your work.

Spend the extra money on a mic or two, or some cables, or some great mic stands. It may not be super slutty, but it will be more tangible to you right now than "better preamps".

[Jef]

Actually the Profire 2626 has 16 channels of IO via Lightpipe. Not that the dual Firestudio setup wouldn't work, but it would cost significantly more. If buying used you could probably get 16 more channels of IO for $300.

And while you're probably right that the Presonus preamps are probably a lot better than the Behringers, but the Behringers are perfectly serviceable when kept under 60ish% gain. More than enough gain for most drums, loud guitars, bass etc. Most things recorded with a high output mic.

Don't get me wrong, I own a Behringer AD8000 and it works quite well. But in dylanger's case, he's using a FireWire interface. If he was to add an ADAT device such as the AD8000 or the DigiMax, he will also have to add the light pipe interface to his computer (an added expense). Neither of these units have a FireWire output.

[macrae11]

Actually the Profire 2626 has 16 channels of IO via Lightpipe. Not that the dual Firestudio setup wouldn't work, but it would cost significantly more. If buying used you could probably get 16 more channels of IO for $300.

And while you're probably right that the Presonus preamps are probably a lot better than the Behringers, but the Behringers are perfectly serviceable when kept under 60ish% gain. More than enough gain for most drums, loud guitars, bass etc. Most things recorded with a high output mic.

Don't get me wrong, I own a Behringer AD8000 and it works quite well. But in dylanger's case, he's using a FireWire interface. If he was to add an ADAT device such as the AD8000 or the DigiMax, he will also have to add the light pipe interface to his computer (an added expense). Neither of these units have a FireWire output.

Yes but there is an ADAT interface built into the ProFire 2626. He can just plug the ADA8000 or the Digimax directly into the Profire.

[Jef]

Yes but there is an ADAT interface built into the ProFire 2626. He can just plug the ADA8000 or the Digimax directly into the Profire.

Oh, I wasn't aware of that. I had an opportunity to use a 2626 last week and I didn't even notice it had a fiber optic input for adding other devices.
This, of course, changes everything...
As you were.

[dylanger]

Thanks a lot guys for you input. I'll probably go with the Berhinger unit.

[Mathieu Benoit]

I have one you can borrow if you just need something once in a while in the meantime too.

[Jef]

Now I know why I didn't see any fiber-optic connectors on the Presonus unit I was using...

This is the 26 x 26



This is the Unit I was using:

They both look very similar except that the FP10 doesn't have all the other connectors on the back (and why I didn't notice any on it).