Topic: UA-5 vs. MOD UA-5

[charles]

Thinking about buying a UA-5. Is the quality produced by the MOD UA-5 worth the extra $200?

[bhtoque]

Thinking about buying a UA-5. Is the quality produced by the MOD UA-5 worth the extra $200?

I was really happy with my digi-mod ua-5 for a long time, but now that I have the T mod I wish I had done it sooner.

The right mod for you depends on your mics and your taste/ears but I'd say it is worth the money for sure.

JAson

[Brian Skalinder]

Thinking about buying a UA-5. Is the quality produced by the MOD UA-5 worth the extra $200?

About which mod are you speaking?  Last I checked pricing, it was something like:

$220 | stock UA-5 w/no mods (can't be used standalone w/ DAT/JB3)
$295 | UA-5 w/ Oade digi-mod
$500 | UA-5 w/ Oade digi-mod + "warm" mod
$550 | UA-5 w/ Oade digi-mod + "presence" mod
$???  | UA-5 w/ Oade digi-mod + "transparent" mod (prolly costs the same as one of the above

If you're on a budget, go with the $295 Oade digi-mod.  You can always send it back later for the preamp upgrade. Only you can decide whether it's worth the extra cash to get one of the preamp upgrade.  Listen to a bunch of recordings and decide for yourself, or...let your budget decide.

[Brian Skalinder]

And I might add - most of the information for which you're looking (both in this post and others) is available in the forums.  Check out the Search feature.

[Daryan]

mod vs. no mod is night and day IMHO.  The stock digi mod units are NOISY!

Daryan

[dklein]

mod vs. no mod is night and day IMHO.  The stock digi mod units are NOISY!

Daryan

I love when people say stuff like this.  Let's hear the comp!
(sorry, I used to sell hi end audio and the number of things that were reported to be 'night and day'...well...nevermind)

[pfife]

I love my w-mod, but I have never really heard a comparison of w vs. non-w holding everything else equal.  There are a few comparisons Brian did w/ a w-mod and v3 which produced some interesting results when people were asked which was which blindly...

[charles]

is the basic ua-5 offered by oade what you guys are refering to as the stock digi mod....or am I way off here?

[wsphansam]

Yes, the Oade Digi-mod and the mod you do to a stock UA-5 is the same. They both enable it to run without a computer basically. There are instructions posted around here somewhere if you go the route of buying a stock one, or many folks around here would probably be willing to do it for you for a small fee.

The downside of buying a stock one is that you can't send it back to the Oades later to upgrade to a different mod. They won't do them to UA-5's they didn't sell.

[charles]

If I were to buy a stock UA-5 from oade to start with, around how much would I be looking at to upgrade to a w-mod?

[Zaphod]

See the first post by Brian in this thread for the answer to your question.

[pfife]

Yes, the Oade Digi-mod and the mod you do to a stock UA-5 is the same. They both enable it to run without a computer basically. There are instructions posted around here somewhere if you go the route of buying a stock one, or many folks around here would probably be willing to do it for you for a small fee.

The downside of buying a stock one is that you can't send it back to the Oades later to upgrade to a different mod. They won't do them to UA-5's they didn't sell.

Digi-mod is done by Oade, or by one's self- (instructions are in the archive section) - this must be done in order to allow a UA-5 to run independently from a laptop (or computer);  A Ua-5 with digi-mod only will serve the purpose of a preamp.   This mod is necessary if you are not going to be using a lappy.

There are also mods done by Oade that are the Warm mod (W), Presence Mod (P) and T-Mod-  these mods affect the sound of the preamp, and are not necessary to use the UA-5 as a standalone preamp, but do wonders as far as sound quality goes (IMHO).


Hope this clears confusion...

[Nick's Picks]

true, the stock UA-5 is noisey...but you'd never encounter a problem with this if you are taping concerts.  Home studio apps would be another story.

i've listened prettey extensively to all the UA-5 mods that the Oades offer.
Money well spent.  The T+ mod sounds like an AD-1000 to me.  Very detailed, snappy and refined.

[Mojowill]

I am pretty sure any UA5 bought from Oades will have the digi mod done to it already.

[twatts (pants are so over-rated...)]

I am pretty sure any UA5 bought from Oades will have the digi mod done to it already.

Just reading over there, it is mentioned that any of their mods can be done without the digi for USB computer use, if you ask...

There is alos a Plus mod for any of the 3 (4?) of the mods, that improves a few more things...

Terry