Altec 'Green Face' users unite: Most/Least Favorite Model(s)

[DokorderFreq]

Curious to know who has/had any Altec 'green face' rack gear, had a sweet/bitter reationship with them and would they give up/go back to it? Me? I'm quite novice of them, but I have my soft spots due to their cool looks and modular designs. I've only experience with two pre models: the 1628A and the 1592B (my latest aquisition). The 1628A always seems to be a hiss/hum battle and is finiky about which mics I plug in regarding that noise. Not so much what type (it'll accept anything really), but rather what model. Really havent found that 'knock my socks off' flavor coming from it either, but I'll keep trying. Very mod friendly thanks to the modular input board design - a tweaker's dream! Meanwhile, the 1592B has me VERY impressed! Butt-load of gain/output options, VU meter w/overload indicator, LF and HF eq controls, a goofy test tone generator and that ever-so-handy headphone monitor output on the front panel (no more mic placement guessing...WHOO HOO!). My first 1592B tryout results have me stoked to play more, whereas the 1628A had me puzzling more over noise reduction to the point that I'd lose motivation in laying down any tracks at all.

There's my spilt milk. Anyone else care to add/mop? TIA.

[mjau]

I've always wanted one of those single-rack tube preamps, but no luck. But I have used both the 1592 and 1589 extensively, and both can be really fun when driven hard.
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sounds

[mjau]

I've always wanted one of those single-rack tube preamps, but no luck. But I have used both the 1592 and 1589 extensively, and both can be really fun when driven hard.
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sounds

[vvv]

I love my 1589B I bought offa rhythmranch.

Today for the cabinetpin.com 20th of the month challenege I did this song with all vocals thru the Altec 1589 into a RNC:

Askance (5-20-12 challenge)
c. '12 The Friday Project

Drums: Krister-yama's-R16 (At4040 OHs)
LdVoc: SM7B-Altec1589B-RNC
LeftBV: PL8-Altec1589B-RNC
RtBV: M500-Altec1589B-RNC
Synth: Yamaha S03
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vlayman; THD; blog; TFP

[tonewoods]

My two 1567s get used on just about every session...
Ribbons love 'em...
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"You see, the whole thing about recording is the attempt at verisimilitude--not truth, but the appearance of truth."
Jerry Wexler

[E.Bennett]

The 438a is a quirky beast, but i love it with acoustic gtr, vocals and drum room. It doesn't work on everything, as the compressor grabs oddly on stuff like female vox. I would love to get another.
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www.thehuntstudio.com

[Mudcloth]

I bought four 1566A mic pres last year on the eBay for $85 each, immaculate condition. I thought I was going to make a ton of money selling them for what they usually go for ( last one on eBay went for $800) until I tested them out. I will probably never sell these.
I use them with AKG D200E mics on toms and kick. Killer. Every mic I have loves going through these. And they look cool racked together.

I have a couple of 1589B pres, but the output trannies are pretty hissy when you crank them up. Jensen replacements are about $70 each, or I bake and re-pot them.

I have a 1607A that is a beast, but it sounds great. It's a whole lot of weight and space to get one channel out of it. I could do a direct out mod on it, though. Kind of a boat anchor right now. I also imagine it as a send amp to a speaker in an echo chamber/hallway/empty propane tank in the future.

I had two 1567A pres for a while, but I bought them to re-sell. They sounded amazing, but again, a whole lot of unused channels and space. 6 rack spaces for stereo, 6 unused channels.
I always wanted to build a single channel version of these with bass and treble controls and the master volume.

I'm pretty much out of my Altec buying phase and will now just enjoy the 1566A pres.
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Matt Giles
Austin, Tx


http://www.mattguitargiles.com
http://www.myspace.com/mattguitargiles
http://www.thedrakesband.com/

How much is a stamp? I'll buy the goddamn stamp.

[tonewoods]

[vvv]

[A.David.MacKinnon]

I have a 1612 pre/limiter that I love. It's 2 channels in and one channel out. Mine is set up with a line transformer on channel 1 and a 1588 pre on channel 2 so I can use it for tracking or mixing. It's a go to input for rock vocals. I tracked a full record last summer with it and a 421 as the vocal chain.
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Dave

http://adavidmackinnon.blogspot.com
http://adavidmackinnon.bandcamp.com

[Mudcloth]

[Mane1234]

I have a 1592 that worked when I first bought it and then it stopped and I never got a chance to get it fixed. Anyone good with repair on these things? I'd really like to have it back in my rack to use with some ribbon mics.
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Of course I've had it in the ear before.....

[radmike]

I have 1592a that I love for that older sounding Motown like guitar.
I have a few working channels but I usually jus use the monitor output on the front.
How do I wire up the outputs on the back??? It looks like I can get seperate outputs back there. This thing would be great to use on lots of other sources.[/quote]

[DokorderFreq]

Mane1234: Just PM'd you.

radmike: Terminals 1 & 4 on the back are your main output; 1 is the positive (phase). Strap terminals 2 & 3 for 600 Ohm impedance OR strap terminals 1 & 2 AND terminals 3 & 4 for 150 Ohm impedance (600 Ohm is most likely preferred).

HTH. Great thread thus far, guys! Who else has love/hate with these beasts??

[elbows]

Any opinions on the 1591a?
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http://www.labozza.com
http://www.studiogbrooklyn.com

[vowan]

Hello!
I have any different Altec units:1628,1678,1592A and B.
1628 was a moded by the method described here: http://www.beyondsanityproductions.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=20:altec-1628a-mixer-mods&catid=18:diy-articles&Itemid=28
and does not use the summing amplifier. Only direct out from 1588c modules with adjustment gain. No any noise! Unbalanced short cables to DAW. Nice for drums!
1592s I left without change, and use the summing amplifier, which is quite noisy. But on loud guitars is not noticeable:)
Besides, there is the ability to mix two or more microphones into one channel.
You can also use different preamps in 1, 2 and 3 channels (1588B or 1588C or 15095) of your choice,simply using the right cable, as uncomfortable all the time to climb to the back of the unit...