Shadow Hills GAMA mic pre w/ switchable output transformers

[cwileyriser]

http://shadowhillsindustries.com

Anyone using any of these Shadow Hills GAMAs?

Whatever it sounds like, it sure looks bad-ass. Bakelite knobs!

The switchable output transformer idea is cool. $4000 is an assload of money to drop, but thinking of it as $500 per channel, it seems like a bargain - if it sounds as good as I imagine.... They make a single channel card ($700) to fit into an API lunchbox, but then the single channel ends up costing about $1,100 if you have to buy a lunchbox to put it in.

So, has anyone used one or at least checked one out?

Hmmm, maybe I need to start buying lottery tickets....

[I'm Painting Again]

I might order a pair if I could sell my two extra api 512c's already

they LOOK nothing short of AWESOME though..I will let everyone know how they are if I get 'em..

[Professor]

I checked them out at the AES in October, but it wasn't like that was a test session or anything. I think the idea is cool, and I like the idea of having multiple transformer options plus a discrete signal path. I was surprised the price was so low considering the price points of other high-end 8-channel preamp packs. Sure, it's more than the Octopre or Onyx, but it's less than a Grace 801, less than 8-channels of Focusrite Red, heck it's about the same as 4 of the JoeMeek Twin-Q preamps that have one transformer switchable in & out of the path. So yeah, I think that's a really great price for 8-channels. I wouldn't mind seeing a 2- or 4-channel model, especially if they landed around $1200 or $2k for those models, but compare it to buying a 2-channel discrete, a 2-channel 'Neve-style' and a 2-channel UA preamp. The mono channels would be alright if you already have a cage for API modules and a few open spaces - I don't.

-Jeremy

[I'm Painting Again]

also the mono channels dont have a couple of the options of the stand alone units can have if I'm remembering correctly..

[Coco]

also the mono channels dont have a couple of the options of the stand alone units can have if I'm remembering correctly..

They have the tranny switching options, you just don't have the option of substituting St. Ives transformers in there if you want. They won't fit in the smaller modules. I think you can put a max of 4 modules in the API rack because of power supply demands of the Gama modules.

[weatherbox]

Looks really cool. If I had that kind of cash to drop right now, I'd be looking pretty seriously at it. I hear the wait lists are *very* long, though. I think I just read something about someone ordering two units last September and they recently recieved the first of them. But yeah... looks like a great unit and the reviews have been favorable.