Pre amps - A few questions...

[vibrato]

I have been wondering about this for some time.

I am planning to upgrade some of my set up and enter the industry. One of the things I need to get is a Pre amp.

Now, I know what it is and what it does but I am confused about something else.

Currently, I use Digidesign's DIGI 002 R as my front end and use its Pre amps.

So if I get something like say Focusrite's ISA 428 - will it make a difference:

IF...

I take its outputs and plug them back into the 002's Analogue ins?

I mean, finally it will still go through Digi 002...what do other people do and how is this wired in the studios?

If I get a pre amp - should I then only use its Digital output?

And will I then need to get a Word clock?

And btw - if anyone has any suggestions for decent Pre amps between £1000 - £1500 (Would be pushing it but I may manage if its really really good).

I dont need a lot of inputs - may be I can get by having 4 input pre amps - cauz I dont think I am supposed to use pre amps for keyboards and similar instruments etc?? Or am I?

What else are pre amps used for apart from instrument recordings and vocals?

Are solo instruments recorded in stereo or mono?

Thanks.

Best,
Tanuj.

[Nathan Allen Pinard]

Pre-Amp make a huge difference, however I suggest you stay away from digital when it comes to pre-amp. If you can get your hands on a tube pre-amp, even if you have everything else digital it will add the warmth that digital doesn't provide.

I currently have a Manley Mono Pre-amp for vocals. They are a bit spendy but worth the money. It's safe to say they are world renowned and you probably will see one in every professional studio. They handcraft these things!

No...I don't work for Manley. But supporting a business that makes studio gear by hand is a good thing.

My single channel cost $1400 U.S. After hearing it with a Rode K2 by just me speaking in it I was pleased.

[Nathan Allen Pinard]

@Another User said:

Are solo instruments recorded in stereo or mono?

Well, let's say you want to record say a clarinet. You want that clean close clarinet solo. You'd record it mono and apply IR/reverb to it.

However, let's say you wanted to record acoustic guitar. You'd be recording in stereo with microphones at the neck and the body. Also, for a more organic sound, you could add 2 more microphones in each corner of the room for a stereo room sound if you desire. This is assuming your guitar is a solo part.

However, if your guitar part is rythmic whether electric or acoustic you would generall have the player do two perfect takes recording mono, and panning each take L and R. That way you get the stereo doubletrack effect without using an artificial chorus effect or otherwise.

You could actually record the clarinet with the room mic technique too if you wanted a far away room sound. However, you could probably get away with using IR/reverb.

[JWL]

@Another User said:

If I get a pre amp - should I then only use its Digital output?

And will I then need to get a Word clock?

There are different schools of thought on this topic, and what follows is only one of many:

If you have multiple digital sources, it's probably a good idea to have a dedicated word clock. I have had more success with connecting devices via BNC to a central clocking hub than I've had relying on signal throughput alone to lock (and to remain locked). There are sonic benefits with high quality word clocking which are a bit apart from the benefits of high quality ADDA conversion, both of which are topics which might be explored apart from this discussion.

An external word clock would also be important even with one digital source if there is some question about the integrity of the clocking on your 002 or on whatever you are currently using as a clock source.