help me spend 5 g's on outboard gear!!!

[george walker's closet]

friends who like tape op,
i have allocated $5000 to spend on outboard gear for my home studio. my setup currently is an otari 8 track which i dump into my digi002, with an allen and heath board. the only outboard gear i have so far is a brent averill 1272, which i like.
so i planned on getting another preamp, a compressor, and an eq.
does anyone have any suggestions to help my cause. my musical tastes range from radiohead to shiner to burning airlines to the queens of the stone age to alot of other rock and indie rock, if that helps the suggestion process. i know these budgetary posts are common, but i swear ive dug through the old posts.
help fight the good fight,
ira
www.georgewalkerscloset.com

[Shawn Simmons]

If I were you, I'd get some API pres and EQs. They would compliment your 1272's and give you some great sounds. I'd also look into getting some mics. You can never have enough mics and pres IMHO.

Good hunting.

Shawn

[chetatkinsdiet]

$5000. Here's the breakdown.
two 1176's. OK, spend the rest on API or better yet, OSA mic pres in a lunchbox.
That was easy.
later,
m

[stillafool]

Get two Universal Audio 6176 channel strips. That will give you two ua 610 pres, two 1176s, and enough eq for tracking. Pretty much the classic rock setup. I got one for my front end -- I wish I had enough for two.

[wing]

you can get some great deals to help you spend the money as best as possible... i just got 4 OSA API 312's and a 10-space powered rackspace for them for $1020 after shipping. that works out to $185/channel. if i had more, i would have gotten at least 5 modules, but that's ok...

[Dot]

I agree with the API recommendations. The 1272 is huge sounding. Doesn't work as well over a lot of tracks. Kind of a one-trick pony. API is a better all-purpose pre that's punchier with a tighter low-end. The 1272 complements the API well.

[Electricide]

or, for super clean compression that does it's job well (kill transients) the GML 8900 stereo compressor is nice. Just something I've actually used. And 1176 or LA-3.
If you get a good pre with eq a la 1073 or 31108, you'll probably find you won't need an eq at mix down.

[wayne kerr]

just got 4 OSA API 312's and a 10-space powered rackspace for them for $1020 after shipping. that works out to $185/channel

Wow. That's a good deal Jwing - wsa that an ebay score?

CC
PP

[wing]

just got 4 OSA API 312's and a 10-space powered rackspace for them for $1020 after shipping. that works out to $185/channel

Wow. That's a good deal Jwing - wsa that an ebay score?

CC
PP

yea, well, sorta... it was more off the record

[stapes]

Well, with zero to little outboard, you might want to get things that are pretty versatile. My first recommendation would be a pair of distressors. You can do pretty much anything with those, and I guarentee you they've been used on all your favorite recordings. If you're not needing much stereo compression or analog mixing, you might want to look into just getting one of those, and then something a little more colorful like an 1176 or LA2A. Something with transformers. Pendulum makes top notch stuff, too. One of the best deals for analog eq is the Speck ASC. It's very clean, and very versatile. You can sculpt the sound into whatever you really need to, and it doesn't portray the harshness or muddiness of cheaper eq. Again, get the one with the transformer on the output for the tone. And if you don't need two, maybe get something else classic like a neve, api or pultec eq. Chandler Limited makes a great solid state mic pre styled after the old EMI desk that was in Abbey Road when Abbey Road and Dark Side of the Moon was done there. They also have a unit coming out soon that has one channel of the EMI pre, and a pultec-style passive eq. Supposed to be very cool. Which leads me to the pre's. They make a two channel version of the EMI pre's, which sound cross between an API and a neve. Big creamy sound, but would probably play nice with your 1272. I agree with the other posts that API is probably one of the nicest compliments to the Neve sound. I would recommend looking into the Old School Audio line as well. They have several different types of pre's, which would help you in your textures. Any mixing and matching of that stuff will net you great rewards, and it'll all hold it's value. But don't underestimate the power of a great microphone assortment. What kind of mics do you have?

Erik Wofford
Stapes Audio

[george walker's closet]

thanks for the help so far tape opers,
erik, ive spent alot of my money into microphones so far, in my collection i have a microtech gefell umt70s, a pair of AT4033's, an akg414, 3 sennheiser 421's, 3 sm57's, an akg d112, i just ordered a pair of okava 012's and an ml52, and i also just got that avalon DI box, i think its the U5.
i just started loooking into some API stuff, which seems nice, and everyone reccommends. i was originally thinking about getting either a UA 1176 or LA2A as my compressor, but i have no idea which one i should get, and i know they push the budget. i can also get a decent deal on the amek 9098 compressor right now, but im leaning towards something nicer, i know UA makes a box that has a combo of the 1176 and the 610 preamp, but i here so much mixed reviews on the 610. i havent checked out chandler yet, which ill do now. are the emi pre's very transparent? im fairly new with using nicer gear, but my 1272 seems to be transparent to me, and i wonder if it would be good getting something more dynamic.
thanks again,
ira

[Electricide]

it seems things with "character" "warmth" and "beef" all work well on one featured instrument or vocal. These boxes usually add the odd harmonics, attribtuing to warmth, but run everything through them and the sonic space gets full quick. that's why people recommend lunch boxes of typically cleaner and tighter pres.

I think 1176's would stack better than LA-2's, for kick and snare or stacked guitars, but on a bass or vocal, the LA-2 is very very sweet.

I think UA just put out a dual 1176 in one rack space....?

so i guess if it's a heavy use item, depending on how you track, is it for some things in your mix, or all the things in your mix? That's what's cool about big gear closets and racks, you can game plan what colors go well with what other colors, and not rely on your one good piece of gear for everything

[wayne kerr]

yea, well, sorta... it was more off the record

Whaddya mean? What did you go to Arizona and wash Dale Epperson's car or something?

CC
PP

[stapes]

Looks like a pretty usable mic collection. Definately look into a ribbon mic. That's an essential nowadays, especially with how cheap those Oktava's are. I haven't personally used one, but people that I trust like them for what they are. Not as nice as the expensive ones, but still has a sound.
If you're up in the air about the UA stuff, I'd probably go with the 1176. It's a bit more versatile from track to track. The LA2A is sweet mama jama for certain things, but not a workhorse. I'd get an 1176 and a distressor. The distressor can sound like the compression of an LA2A, but it can't match it's tone. You can get that tone from a good tube pre, which the 610 could be. I haven't used one myself, but quite a few people seem to like it. Build quality's pretty lousy, though.
As for pre's, the 1272 is about as far from transparent that I can think of without getting REALLY weird. You might want to rethink your definition of transparent. If you're looking for more colored than the 1272, the list gets pretty short and expensive. You'll realize once you start comparing more mic pre's that the neve stuff is not very transparent. It's all a matter of different colors, and the neve is like a very deep brown that can pervade everything if you're not careful. API and EMI are slightly brighter and stronger colors that can draw your attention to those things. Neither of these are transparent, but very musical. You really need to get your hands on this stuff and realize what you like and don't like. Be ready to trade out things if you don't like them.

Erik Wofford

[chetatkinsdiet]

What Stapes said....
I've got a Vintech 1272 and it's amazing on kick, snare and guitars, but far from transparent. I don't really even try it on vocals, unless using a dynamic mic.
I just noticed someone, I believe on the "buy/sell" forum here at tapeop, selling a UA 1176 for $1000. You should definitely contact that person. That would be a steal and should make your mind up for you. I agree that it's going to be a better all round, sounds good on everything type of compressor. If you need more flavor than that, you can always grab a couple of RNC's. While you're at it, grab an RNP....I think you can get one of each in a rack for about $700. If you can get that 1176 for a grand, then grab the RNC/RNP combo, then blow the rest on as many OSA mic pres you can afford...you'll be smoking. FYI....the trick setup is to order the 6 space lunchbox from API. Mercenary is selling them for $450. Then order the OSA pres from Atlas for $450 ea. Or if you think that a 6 space box is not enough, both OSA and API sell bigger frames.....8 space, 11 space, etc....
later,
m