Pre Amp

Would a seperate pre amp really make a difference?

I have a Parasound HCA 1200 amplifier that I am driving with an old Pioneer reciever (SX-780) silver face, analog. Driving the amp from the headphones jack. I am thinking of getting a Carver or Adcom pre amp. Do you think it will sound audibly better? I’ll tell you this, my speakers sound way better through the Parasound than they did with the Pioneer receiver driving them. Particularly in the bass. Any thoughts?

There are two levels of audio, mic level and line level. Mic level is not enough to drive an amplifier and requires a preamp. (Many amps have a built-in preamp and, depending upon input, will access it or bypass it.)

Line level does not require a preamp. In fact, if you do try to run line level into a preamp, all you’ll do is distort the audio something horrible. No if’s, and’s, or but’s about it.

Why two different levels? The stronger, higher lline level will travel further with less degradation. But the weaker, lower mic level will maintain better frequency response over the same distance.

CD players, DVD players, tape players, use line level. Some old turntables also use line level from the ceramic cartridge pickups with the needle. But for better quality vinyl playback, the better turntables used mic level magnetic cartridges.

MOTOROLA SYNTOR X 9000 PREAMP HLD 4123A1 $5.99

Low noise HF preamplifier. 15 dB. $9.90

(6) TA7705 Configurable Op-Amps, LOW NOISE Audio Pre-Amp (very versatile Op-AMP) $7.00

2 RF Pre-Amplifier’s Parts Not Working $5.99

Realistic microphone noise cancelling pre-amp 21-1175 ham CB radio estate EMIO A $19.99

LUNAR Electronics 2 Meter SSB/FM 80 Watt Amplifier with Preamp. $150.00

CEI ACP-1 Microphone Compressor-Preamp $14.99

Texas Star Keying / Pre Amp Transistor Matched Pair fit’s Linear & Modulators $0.99

ICOM AG-35 external preamp for IC-375/820/910/911/9100 $179.99

Ameco PT Preamplifier $19.99

Ham radio Microphone AKG and EQ preamp ART tube $199.00

Grove TUN-4 Tun4 Mini Tuner Antenna Tuner Preamp $30.00

Ameco PLF 2 Preamplifier $15.00

CUSTOM RADIO CONSOLE FOR VANS TRUCKS WITH PREAMPS & FM ST XMTR $9.99

Vintage Vanletronics Video Monitor – Model VM-450 Preamp? UHF $4.99

Pyle Pro Pwma1003T 1000-Watt Hybrid Pre-Amplifier & Wireless Microphone System $153.75

DEMI 5ULNA 5760 mhz preamplifier LNA 5.7ghz 5.6 ghz DownEast SHF EME $50.00

ADVANCED RECIEVER RESEARCH 432 GASFET PREAMP $47.00

Grove TUN-4 MiniTuner Plus ~ LW/MW/SW Antenna Tuner/Preselector w/PreAmp $61.55

James Millen 92101 Receiver Preamplifier Pre Amplifier Amp $19.99

James Millen Antenna Matching Preamplifier $9.99

NEW ICOM AG-25 Pre-Amp for IC-820 IC-821H IC-275H IC-970H IC-910H 144Mhz Band $167.95

CB RADIO RECEIVE PRE AMP KIT FITS INSIDE RADIO.I $25.00

MFJ-959B Antenna Tuner/PreAmp/Atttenuator $68.50

Glenayre Paging Transmitter Parts Pre AMP 900 mhz Paging Tx $75.00

AMECO PREAMP $27.00

Pre-amp Tube Amplifier Headphone Kit 6N3 for DIY New $19.96

UNIDEN SCANNER RECEIVE PREAMP FOR BEARCAT MODELS BC600XLT, BC590XLT, BC950XLT $9.99

PREAMP FET 2 GHz 24V INPUT —————-LOC A-23 $25.00

Advanced Receiver Research VHF Pre Amplifier SP150VD 150-160 Mhz Range $69.00

New! Icom AG-35 Pre-amp IC-910H/IC-970/IC-820/IC-821 $165.00

Ameco Converter/Preamp, etc. manuals plus+++ »R² $13.95

Amperex USA NOS 6939 quartet vintage audio preamp amplifier tube, cb radio tube $36.00

Texas Star Keying / Pre Amp Transistor Matched Pair fit’s Linear & Modulators $1.19

PDC100FM Vehicle FM Radio Pre-amp for weak FM Reception $20.00

Commander Palomar Texas Star Keying Pre Amp Transistors $2.99

New! Icom AG-25 Pre-amp IC-910H/970/IC-820/821/IC-271 $159.00

GLOBAL Manual DX-MAGNUS MIC PRE-AMP Wiring inst $10.00

2N4401 NPN Small Signal Transistor, Preamp Trans. for CB Radio’s – 25 pcs $5.29

New Tube 6N3 Buffer Audio Preamplifier Pre-AMP Board $26.00

Raven Industries Commercial GPS Line Amplifier PreAmp $49.95

SUB preamplifier board NE5532 35-150Hz adjustable $18.90

BBPV SHORTWAVE HAM RADIO HF RECEIVER PREAMP VINTAGE RX $35.00

National HRO-500 230Khz Filter PreAmp. L-17 $6.95

Solid State HF Power Linear Preamplifier Driver $135.00

AP-1 REMOTE MOUNTED ANTENNA PREAMP $105.00

J310 push-pull HF pre-amp complete KIT $19.95

Buffer 6N3 Tube Preamplifier AMP + Transformer $48.00

mini 6J1 tube headphone preamplifier headphone amplifie $120.00

OP37 OP37EJ, PREAMP, LO NOISE OPAMP IC, AUDIO, MTL TO99-8, ADI, NEW, 6 PIECE SET $27.00

The signal from a microphone that picks up is actually very low, and needs to be strengthened so it can be used with the recording device. This is exactly what is a microphone preamplifier is, it increases the signal to a level that is useable for recording.

Initially, you probably want to use pre-amplifiers built into your mixer or interface, if you happen to have good, since it saves money. However, these types of preamplifiers are often a rather low quality. Basically, with mic preamps, you pay for the sound quality. Musicians after the best deal as it might sound spend $ 3000 on a preamp. However, if you are just beginning and perhaps a budget of $ 1000 can use the preamps on your mixer or your audio interface.

It is not only budget that affects the quality of output in the preamp, you must also know how to properly set levels, etc. Let's talk a little about the features you'll find most mic pre, and some tips to ensure you get optimal sound.

Entry – Set the input high as possible to provide the meters are not crossing into the red. After reaching the levels of red is the introduction distortion, which will go through the entire signal path. The sense that when you listen back to your record in the team, who are likely to hear a lot of clicks. So again, press the signal as high as possible, but not let it enter into the red.

Pad – This is a great feature if you want to record other sounds than the guitar. For example, if you go to a microphone and sound source loud as the drum, even with the entry all the way back to the levels may still be catching red. Select this function and will help tame the sound and make it usable.

Phantom Power – This is a source of energy that is sent through a microphone cable to a microphone in need, as a condenser microphone. Is good to point out that some fairly inexpensive preamps offer only 30 v, and some condenser microphones can not perform his best at this level. It's good to have food Built-in phantom microphone preamp would otherwise have to obtain a separate phantom power supply.

Number of preamps – This can vary from a single right preamp through eight preamps in one box. What is recording usually determine how many need. Vocals are usually recorded in mono, while acoustic guitars could be recorded in stereo. Maybe you're recording a full band and require one for each amplifier and vocalist, along with several of the drums.

High Pass Filter - In general, this means that all high cross while reducing low. Microphones pick up an amazing amount of bass so this is a great feature to have. Of course, this can be corrected using the software, though well could solve the problem at source so you do not have to worry later.

We hope this has given him an idea of what a mic preamp does, and what features to look for when shopping around. Have a read through the bullet points again and compare your list of needs with the characteristics those available in a variety of preamps. Hopefully you will be able to find a product that suits your needs.

About the Author:

Richard Marples has over 10 years experience of playing and recording guitar, and also hosts a website exaplaining how you can record at home. If you enjoyed this article on Home Recording then you can get more free tips at =>
www.uncleslinky.co.uk

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com – Home Recording Guitar – Why You Need a Mic Pre-amp