ART TPS....

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Spark
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ART TPS....

Post by Spark » Thu Aug 24, 2006 5:10 pm

I saw one of these for fairly cheap in a pawnshop today. I wasnt really looking for a budget pre, but it was pretty cheap for 2 channels.

Anyone have an opinion on this unit? Does the voicing knob add any value? Are there any known mods for these? Thanks!

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I'm Painting Again
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Post by I'm Painting Again » Thu Aug 24, 2006 5:33 pm

Black Lion has a mod..not listed on the site..but it's super hard since the components in the TPS are so small..

http://www.blacklionaudio.com/mods.html

the voicing acts similar to an EQ..it's not a big deal..the unit distorts pretty nicely..thats probably its best value there..as a preamp it's nothing special..but it works fairly well..works well for a live instrument preamp..like a 'coustic pickup preamp to an amp..

the build quality sucks..they break..they develop grounding issues..knobs fall off..crap like that..

thats about all i remember of the one I had..I traded it for a deluxe memory man..

Spark
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Post by Spark » Thu Aug 24, 2006 7:33 pm

So Im guessing in this age of budget gear there really is no reason to jump on it?


Maybe Ill look into building some green pres instead... Hmmm...

vsr600
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Post by vsr600 » Thu Aug 24, 2006 11:23 pm

i had the DPS2 which is basically the same thing but with digital outs. It does what you would expect, adds "tube warmth" (or what they refer to that as) to your signal. It can work nice in the "valve" setting with bass (at least in my experience). I've even recorded vocals on it before in the "neutral" setting. It's pretty quiet too if you don't go too crazy with the gain knob.

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vvv
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Post by vvv » Fri Aug 25, 2006 8:22 pm

I use it less rhan my Meek VC3Q and Studio Projects VTB1, but more than my Mackie 1202.

Except that it is my default bass DI, run into a dbx163X.
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Mr. Dipity
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Post by Mr. Dipity » Fri Aug 25, 2006 11:42 pm

The Spark wrote:So Im guessing in this age of budget gear there really is no reason to jump on it?
IMO, it sounded it noticeably better than the mackie, but a far cry as good as my RNP.

Spark
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Post by Spark » Sat Aug 26, 2006 8:39 am

A question for you fellas, how well do you feel the DI's work? Any concerns?

vsr600
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Post by vsr600 » Sat Aug 26, 2006 10:46 pm

I actually liked the way the DI sounded on the valve setting for bass. It was pretty beefy but again you gotta watch for noise and not drive it too too hard.

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I'm Painting Again
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Post by I'm Painting Again » Sun Aug 27, 2006 10:14 am

I used the art tps on the very first band I ever recorded..for bass..no amp just di..came out very nice..

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the velour fog
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Post by the velour fog » Mon Aug 28, 2006 11:09 am

i have a tps. it's alright. nothing to rave about really. the di is pretty good. the variable voice thing is pretty disappointing.
"Set Phasers to Extra Slow."

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Post by RefD » Mon Aug 28, 2006 7:35 pm

The Spark wrote:Maybe Ill look into building some green pres instead... Hmmm...
you'll probly be happier that way in the long run.
?What need is there to weep over parts of life? The whole of it calls for tears.? -- Seneca

Spark
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Post by Spark » Tue Aug 29, 2006 8:50 am

Thanks to everyone who replied. I appreciate it.

I think I might gather up some of my old unused toys and see if the pawn shop is interested in swapping. If they are not oh well.... green pres it is!

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pandatone
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Post by pandatone » Tue Aug 29, 2006 5:29 pm

the TPS is fun. i had to replace the tube, cause i couldn't stand the stock ones. but i still find the unit to make way to much noise when adding a lot of gain.
i mostly just keep it. cause it doesn't seem worth getting rid of (yet).

panda

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Mr. Dipity
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Post by Mr. Dipity » Tue Aug 29, 2006 9:27 pm

pandatone wrote:i mostly just keep it. cause it doesn't seem worth getting rid of (yet).

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the velour fog
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Post by the velour fog » Wed Aug 30, 2006 9:46 am

Mr. Dipity wrote:
pandatone wrote:i mostly just keep it. cause it doesn't seem worth getting rid of (yet).
"Set Phasers to Extra Slow."

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