in praise of the RNP

general questions, comments and ideas about recording, audio, music, etc.
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EasyGo
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in praise of the RNP

Post by EasyGo » Tue May 27, 2003 8:51 am

Just got my RNP. My best pre had been the Joemeek VC6Q, followed by the pres on my Tascam Model 3 mixer, the dreaded fART, and old school Mackies mixer pres.

Tracking drums yesterday, I my kick (D112) and snare (SM57) through the RNP.

"Okay, let's hear that snare." (wood Noble and Cooley)

I brought the track up, and it, well, sounded HORRIBLE, all whump and no crack, just AWFUL. So after much mic moving, it dawned on me that I'd been monitoring the FLOOR TOM MIC. (D'oh!)

So I start to bring up the correct monitor channel for the snare, and a cloud-parting miracle ensued. Needless to say, that snare came through like a shotgun blast. Those of us wearing headphones nearly shit ourselves as the glory of the snare came exploding through. The kick sounded similarly incredible, very immediate with an intangible exciting presence.

The RNP also improved the sound of my Rode NT1000, making it sound more muscular while smoothing out the top end.

I'd read many accounts of how a good pre makes all of your mics sound better. Now I think I've glimpsed a bit of that for myself.

I'm obviously in the honeymoon phase, but I just wanted to share. 8)

Don

takeout
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Re: in praise of the RNP

Post by takeout » Tue May 27, 2003 9:38 am

djeasygo wrote:...I'd read many accounts of how a good pre makes all of your mics sound better. Now I think I've glimpsed a bit of that for myself...
Absolutely. Of course, I just got done with a session this weekend where I ran a $20 Radio Shack mic through a Vintech Neve-alike, so my opinion may or may not matter.

OneZero
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Re: in praise of the RNP

Post by OneZero » Tue May 27, 2003 12:00 pm

I just ordered my RNP from Humbucker.com

It will be here in a week.

I will post my own reveiw

dwelle
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Re: in praise of the RNP

Post by dwelle » Tue May 27, 2003 12:49 pm

honeymoon on, dog...

i have an rnp and some much higher dollar pre's, and i swear the rnp gets used every bit as much or more than the others.

mark from fmr is a totally killer guy, too. he's helped me out a few times with some problems i've had. totally bent over backwards and helped straighen me out.

i'll always go with good customer support...

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tiger vomitt
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Re: in praise of the RNP

Post by tiger vomitt » Tue May 27, 2003 8:22 pm

hearing your new mic pre in action for the first time is an awesome thing.

ive had the experience going from broken DJ mixer to tascam 424, from 424 to mackie, from mackie to joemeek and ART and from those to great river neve clone. every time it was like "wow, i didnt think it would be like THIS, i had NO IDEA." :)

good luck with your new toy! im lusting after a UAD1 card, hopefully that'll be my next toy.

evan
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Re: in praise of the RNP

Post by evan » Tue May 27, 2003 11:06 pm

I was wondering, how much of a difference would a separate mic preamp make on cheaper mics (i.e. AKGC300B, AT4050, etc.)? I currently just use a Behringer UB1202's phantom power. It seems like it would be impractical, since if I did in invest in the RNP, it would be nearly as or more expensive than the mics themselves...

todd
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Re: in praise of the RNP

Post by todd » Wed May 28, 2003 7:01 am

evan,
depending on your applications an outboard pre can make LOTS of difference. also, very often the mic pre willl cost more than most of your mics (note the 57 and d112 used with the rnp abve). one reason to get an outboard pre is so you don't have every little thing in yuor mix recorded through the exact same signal path...it can help (perhaps) make your mixes stand out better. as for the 3000b and the 4050, they are both great mics (depending on who you talk to, people either love em or hate em) and maybe they could benefit from being run thrugh a different pre once in a while (and i'm sure they would be much happier too). so, yes i say invest in a good outboard pre to shake things up a little bit.

thanks,
todd

Kyle
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Re: in praise of the RNP

Post by Kyle » Wed May 28, 2003 7:43 am

Evan

Buying the RNP would greatly improve your sound. You will be amazed at what a nice pre amp can do. This would be a great next step for building your studio.
Kyle

Jay
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Re: in praise of the RNP

Post by Jay » Wed May 28, 2003 8:03 am

I switched from 1/2" 16-track to 1" 16, and got an R-121, Stapes omni, and RNP all at roughly the same time (consequently, I'm now broke). Though it's hard to tell exactly, I feel like the preamp made the most difference in the quality of my recordings. I used a Mackie prior to the RNP, and there's no comparison. It sits well with stuff I used Neves on too. To conclude, I like it a lot.

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Re: in praise of the RNP

Post by evan » Wed May 28, 2003 9:05 am

Alright, thanks for your input. It's going on my things-to-buy list.

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