Topic: Got my soundpro at853 modded mics, now i need a preamp!

[George]

Yep, got the sound pro at853 phantom powered mics back, sweeet looking, the mic caps are much smaller than the original at853 mics.  So, i also got the Samson power adapters so the XLR (males) are full sized.  So here i go:

First question: Is there a preamp out there that has inputs for both full sized XLR and mini XLR?  If not...no biggie, but it would be cool so i could avoid the power adapters for the ultimate in stealthing.

Second question: I got some rec's for preamps in another thread (like the Beyer MV100), but that sucker is out of my price range.  I want to get something around $300-$500 that of course, gives 48V phantom power, has a high filter pass (80Hz, 160Hz) and...well, i want the best bang for my buck    

Oh yeah: the sucker MUST be stealthable....nothing worse than trying to sneak in a preamp that weighs so much it pulls my pants down.  

So, feel free to recommends preamp models that are currently available and please list url's as well!  I want to avoid hunting for a preamp that's no loner in production (like the MP2).  I'm new to preamps, so treat me as if i'm an idiot child, thanks!  












and no, don't try to sell me a $3000 preamp  

[George]

Here's a pic!

[leegeddy]

Here's a pic!

gloco;

those look like the AT933 capsules, not the AT853.

marc

[George]

Here's a pic!

gloco;

those look like the AT933 capsules, not the AT853.

marc

Hmmm, if thats the case, i aint complaining    

Serious though, i assume when they upgraded my mics from at853 they went with at933?  Is this normal or do you think i should talk to someone at soundprofessionals and see if they fudged up?   Now you have my curiousity piqued, i was wondering why the mics were much smaller than the at853's i had.

[blu666z]

or 943s.  That would be a pretty big mix up.  My understanding is all they do is lop off the mini plug and insert the mini XLRs.  They don't change the bodies.

http://audio-technica.com/prodpro/profiles/ES943_C.html

[John Kelly]

Big mixup?  Maybe, but it'd be in your favor.  If you can remove the cap, it's a 933.  If it's a fixed cap, it's a 943.  My guess is that you got the 933s.  

Seems to me that your mod turned into an upgrade!  Be happy!

[C.Clark]

even though you wanted to stay away from the mp-2, i'd say go with it, you can usually find one used and although they have been discontinued, SD still services them, and its a great pre, used it myself and has all the bells and whistles you want except for the mini xlr i/o

[George]

Big mixup?  Maybe, but it'd be in your favor.  If you can remove the cap, it's a 933.  If it's a fixed cap, it's a 943.  My guess is that you got the 933s.  

Seems to me that your mod turned into an upgrade!  Be happy!

LOL, i tried to unscrew the cap, it wouldnt budge, so i think they are the 943's.  The only thing that bugged me (and i contacted soundpro about) was the fact that i lost out on my hyper cards for at853's  

[leegeddy]

Big mixup?  Maybe, but it'd be in your favor.  If you can remove the cap, it's a 933.  If it's a fixed cap, it's a 943.  My guess is that you got the 933s.  

Seems to me that your mod turned into an upgrade!  Be happy!

LOL, i tried to unscrew the cap, it wouldnt budge, so i think they are the 943's.  The only thing that bugged me (and i contacted soundpro about) was the fact that i lost out on my hyper cards for at853's  

personally, i like the sound of the 853 capsules over the 933/943.  the 853's response is a bit flatter (and fuller in the low end).

here are the response curves from AT.com

AT853 cardioid


ES933 cardioid


plus they kept your 853 hyper caps!!  

marc

[George]

Big mixup?  Maybe, but it'd be in your favor.  If you can remove the cap, it's a 933.  If it's a fixed cap, it's a 943.  My guess is that you got the 933s.  

Seems to me that your mod turned into an upgrade!  Be happy!

LOL, i tried to unscrew the cap, it wouldnt budge, so i think they are the 943's.  The only thing that bugged me (and i contacted soundpro about) was the fact that i lost out on my hyper cards for at853's  

personally, i like the sound of the 853 capsules over the 933/943.  the 853's response is a bit flatter (and fuller in the low end).

here are the response curves from AT.com

AT853 cardioid


ES933 cardioid


plus they kept your 853 hyper caps!!  

marc

Yeah, they kept my bloody caps, which is annoying the crap out of me, those caps cost me $80, i want them back.  Worse comes to worse, i'll have to sent these back and have them send me the correct modified at853's with my hyper cards.  

Thanks for the graphs.  I see clearly what you're talking about, i still like how darn small these at933/943 mics are...even more stealthable than the at853's.  

So...back on topic!  LOL...c'mon peeps, name some more preamps i should look at, the MP-2 sounds like a plan...but its hard to find ( i tried looking on here and ebay so far, no luck).  

[leegeddy]

Big mixup?  Maybe, but it'd be in your favor.  If you can remove the cap, it's a 933.  If it's a fixed cap, it's a 943.  My guess is that you got the 933s.  

Seems to me that your mod turned into an upgrade!  Be happy!

LOL, i tried to unscrew the cap, it wouldnt budge, so i think they are the 943's.  The only thing that bugged me (and i contacted soundpro about) was the fact that i lost out on my hyper cards for at853's  

personally, i like the sound of the 853 capsules over the 933/943.  the 853's response is a bit flatter (and fuller in the low end).

here are the response curves from AT.com

AT853 cardioid


ES933 cardioid


plus they kept your 853 hyper caps!!  

marc

Yeah, they kept my bloody caps, which is annoying the crap out of me, those caps cost me $80, i want them back.  Worse comes to worse, i'll have to sent these back and have them send me the correct modified at853's with my hyper cards.  

Thanks for the graphs.  I see clearly what you're talking about, i still like how darn small these at933/943 mics are...even more stealthable than the at853's.  

So...back on topic!  LOL...c'mon peeps, name some more preamps i should look at, the MP-2 sounds like a plan...but its hard to find ( i tried looking on here and ebay so far, no luck).  

i've got bias towards the MV-100 because i like mine alot.  it's small enough for stealthing. runs on 2 9v batteries. very easy to use. it's very light in comparison to other preamps.  outputs are RCA or stereo mini.  LF cut (which i never use). 48v phantom power.  20-40-60dB gain settings.  (i only use the 20dB setting).

here's a sample i put up few weeks ago:

http://pages.sbcglobal.net/mkim/MP3/primus2004-03-10-sample.mp3

i was running my hypers this night.

if you could find a MP2 within your budget, great.  you could probably pick up a used MV-100 for under $300.

marc

[George]

Big mixup?  Maybe, but it'd be in your favor.  If you can remove the cap, it's a 933.  If it's a fixed cap, it's a 943.  My guess is that you got the 933s.  

Seems to me that your mod turned into an upgrade!  Be happy!

LOL, i tried to unscrew the cap, it wouldnt budge, so i think they are the 943's.  The only thing that bugged me (and i contacted soundpro about) was the fact that i lost out on my hyper cards for at853's  

personally, i like the sound of the 853 capsules over the 933/943.  the 853's response is a bit flatter (and fuller in the low end).

here are the response curves from AT.com

AT853 cardioid


ES933 cardioid


plus they kept your 853 hyper caps!!  

marc

Yeah, they kept my bloody caps, which is annoying the crap out of me, those caps cost me $80, i want them back.  Worse comes to worse, i'll have to sent these back and have them send me the correct modified at853's with my hyper cards.  

Thanks for the graphs.  I see clearly what you're talking about, i still like how darn small these at933/943 mics are...even more stealthable than the at853's.  

So...back on topic!  LOL...c'mon peeps, name some more preamps i should look at, the MP-2 sounds like a plan...but its hard to find ( i tried looking on here and ebay so far, no luck).  

i've got bias towards the MV-100 because i like mine alot.  it's small enough for stealthing. runs on 2 9v batteries. very easy to use. it's very light in comparison to other preamps.  outputs are RCA or stereo mini.  LF cut (which i never use). 48v phantom power.  20-40-60dB gain settings.  (i only use the 20dB setting).

here's a sample i put up few weeks ago:

http://pages.sbcglobal.net/mkim/MP3/primus2004-03-10-sample.mp3

i was running my hypers this night.

if you could find a MP2 within your budget, great.  you could probably pick up a used MV-100 for under $300.

marc

Coolm thanks for the mp3 link, sounds good!  Say, when does the 7 pin cable come into play with the M1, one of the most confusing things for me has been whether or not all the preamps in my price range have a minijack ouput (so i would run to line in on the m1) and which preamps need a special cable to run to the 7 pin input.  I'll surf around for a used MV100.

[leegeddy]

george;

>>Say, when does the 7 pin cable come into play with the M1,

only if you want to use DIGITAL input/output of your DAT.

>>one of the most confusing things for me has been whether or not all the preamps in my price range have a minijack ouput (so i would run to line in on the m1) and which preamps need a special cable to run to the 7 pin input.

preamps output an analog signal.  a preamp/A > D converter (like the V3, minime) can output either analog or digital.

unless you get an outboard A>D converter or a preamp/A>D combo, you don't need to use the 7pin.

depending on what type of analog output your future preamp has, all you need is a matching cable (XLR, RCA or mini) > ultimately terminating in a stereo mini.  M1 takes a stereo mini line-in.

marc

[Brian Skalinder]

Say, when does the 7 pin cable come into play with the M1, one of the most confusing things for me has been whether or not all the preamps in my price range have a minijack ouput (so i would run to line in on the m1) and which preamps need a special cable to run to the 7 pin input.  I'll surf around for a used MV100.

The 7-pin cable is for sending a digital signal to your M1, so the only time you'd need it is if you ran an outboard ADC.  Check the Archival Info for more info on 7-pin cables proper and the differences between active and passive.

Search around for an MV100, it's a good option.  I second the MP2 option as well.  While discontinued, you should still be able to find one used.  Also keep an eye out on EBay or other places (though you likely won't find many here) for the Shure FP24 or Sound Devices MixPre.  The MixPre is damn near identical to the MP2 and the FP24 is simply a re-branded MixPre.  Still another alternative is a Denecke PS-2 for phantom power + line transformers for ~20dB of fixed gain.

[nickgregory]

go for the MP2, you should be able to find a used one in your price range, and imho it is probably the best pre option for you, based on size, powering, etc.