I have $750. What preamp?

[FastRedPonyCar]

I'm wanting the ballpark tone of the MK II/III's... more specifically Petrucci's Goregeous tone on the live Score dvd... but anyways, realizing that he uses a lot of expensive stuff, I'd like a good starting point for a rig that can sort of get me the same basic idea of that type tone.

I've talked a while with Cudbucket about the preamps and it seems like an affordable introduction to the mark tones.

So... with $750 at my disposal, I'm obviously not wanting to spend that much on the preamp itself but I've got a quad being offered for $650 shipped w/footswitch. It's missing a slider knob on the EQ but from what I've gathered, I can get those from mesa.

Another guy is offering up a $450 studio pre.

Now, the idea of having 4 different sounds is extremely enticing but I told Dave that I'm not sure if I really NEED all those channels. I just sold a 3 channel amp and I really only used 2 of them.. so I THINK I could get by with the single preamp and use an overdrive if needed but if the two sections of the quad really offer up something totally different... or at least $200 worth of difference, I can swing for the quad.. otherwise, it'd be a good chunk of money to put towards a power amp.

Reason I'm asking which one is becuase I've read that for lack of a better phrase, "The single pre sounds better than the quad". Is this true? Sound is such a relative term so what are the major tonal differences between the single pre and the quad?

If the single pre does sound bigger, fuller, fatter, warmer, more clarity and articulation, I'd prefer 2 really good channels than 4 good channels.

Here's our website with our music to give you guys an idea of what the amp will be being used for. We gig regularly but I have a great amp tech should anything need to be repaired.

www.myspace.com/chromeheartband

Aside from that I'm into progressive jazz, blues and metal like tool, Dream Theater, Opeth, etc... quite a span of genres and sounds... I know..

 

[ytse_jam]

I think $450 for a Studio Pre is maybe too much in the US. I got one for 360 euros in Italy... don't know about the quad price. The Studio is an awesome preamp, even if you still have almost all controls shared. I'd suggest to try one if you can and decide if you can live with those shared controls or not.
You must take a look at a thread started by 4nkam in this forum section (search for it!), in which he makes a detailed comparison between the Studio and the Quad.

 

[reo73]

$450 for a Studio Pre is within the realm of acceptability for price if it's in good condition. I got mine for $400 but its not in great cosmetic condition either.

The Studio Pre is not just a great preamp "for the money" it is a great preamp all together, even if the going price was 4X what it is. I think it is probably the closest any Mesa product gets to a IIC+ tone without it being one. I owned a Mark III which I had modded to IIC+ specs by Mike B. and ended up selling it after an extensive A/B comparison. The Studio Pre was just as huge but more articulate and the clean was MUCH better. People say the clean on a III is good and I thought that too until I heard how gorgeous the clean was on the Studio Pre. Afetr that the Mark III clean seemed dull.

I have never played a Quad so I don't know how close in tone it is to the Studio Pre but for me the Quad seems like more than I want out of an amp and the Studio gives me all I want in tone across 2 channels.

 

[Whoopysnorp]

I have never played a Quad, but the Studio rips. I personally think $450 is too much though...maybe things have changed but I got mine for under $400 shipped on eBay in good shape, cosmetic and otherwise. You're not going to get Mark III crunch out of it; the gain it has is smoother and not so aggressive. I love it, and I have no problems getting a really gorgeous clean and kickass lead out of it in spite of the shared controls, and I don't even use the graphic EQ.

 

[FastRedPonyCar]

I'm discussing the studio pre with "themailmanpsycho" as I've settled on the pre.

I just need to figure out a good amp to go with it... 50/50?

See my other topic.


Oh, he doesnt have the footswitch and it needs new preamp tubes but that shouldn't be a big deal. Are those voodooman switches on ebay a good choice? They're $60 but look very nice.

 

[Whoopysnorp]

I just bought a plain-jane Marshall single footswitch. I don't use the footswitching for the EQ or reverb.

 

[Bobby Marshall]

I'm discussing the studio pre with "themailmanpsycho" as I've settled on the pre.

I just need to figure out a good amp to go with it... 50/50?

See my other topic.


Oh, he doesnt have the footswitch and it needs new preamp tubes but that shouldn't be a big deal. Are those voodooman switches on ebay a good choice? They're $60 but look very nice.

I bought a two button switch from Voodooman to switch the EQ and reverb on my studio pre and have had no issues. I use a Mesa lead/rhythm switch for channel switching. The all in one he makes does look good.

 

[FastRedPonyCar]

Well, the studio pre should be on it's way monday. $375 shipped. It needs new preamp tubes and here's what I've got to try in it if you guys have any ideas.

NOS RCA 12AX7
2 - Sovtek LPS
Penta 12AX7
Shugang 9th gen 12AX7
A couple of EHX 12AX7's
A few JJ's ecc83s's (sounded like dog crap in my carvin amps)
Tung sol 12AX7 (lacked the power the others had but wasn't harsh like the JJ's)

I'll be running it into the FX loop return of my 100 watt carvin vavlemaster amps. It's got a set of =C= 6L6GC's but they're old and tired. Danny is sending a pair of mesa 6L6GC's with it so I may stick those in the center 2 power tubes sockets and run the amp in 50 watts for the time being. I'll probably order another set of the =C='s from doug this week and whenever I get the 50/50, stick them in.

Sound like a plan or no?

 

[stratplayer]

Sounds like a good plan...Depending on your style of music I think you made a good choice with the Studio. You really will need a couple of balanced tubes for best results but mess around with what you have.

 

[Whoopysnorp]

I don't think you should need any balanced tubes in there since there's no phase inverter in the preamp. Congrats man, that's a good price, and you're gonna love it!

 

[FastRedPonyCar]

It doesn't matter if the power tubes are balanced if the amp is run in 50 watt mode. As long as the two middle tubes are matched it will work. I've run it and my V3 with different tubes in the inner and outer sockets with no problems.

The new tubes from doug will probably get here before the preamp does anyways. It usually only takes 2 days to get them.

 

[CudBucket]

Hey Drew. Congrats on the Preamp. You got a great price. I'm looking forward to hearing what you think of it. I just got some new preamp tubes to play around with too.

If you had these tubes, how would you set them up in the pre?

1-JAN Philips 5751
1-Shuguang
2-Mullards
1-EH 12AX7
2-Tung Sol
6-JJ ECC83

Later.

Dave

 

[FastRedPonyCar]

If you had these tubes, how would you set them up in the pre?

1-JAN Philips 5751
1-Shuguang
2-Mullards
1-EH 12AX7
2-Tung Sol
6-JJ ECC83

Later.

Dave

I'll let you know in a few days if everything goes as planned... but based on what I know from the valvemaster and V3 regarding how they sound with those preamp tubes (I think I've got one or more of all of those you listed)

1-JAN Philips 5751 - Great for adding clarity at the expense of punch and gain. My GE 5751 worked surprisingly well in the V3's V2 slot.
1-Shuguang - Good high gain, quiet, no real "character" though
2-Mullards - If they're originals, I'd use them in the primary/secondary input drivers. If they're sovteks, they MAY not be able to handle extreme levels of gain at high volumes and not go microphonic. I tried a couple in V1 in the V3 and it sounded good until the gain went past 7 and the master volume went past 2.
1-EH 12AX7 Blah.. very blah. not bad but dull and bland in every position I tried.. and I've got like 5 of these and they all sound the same.
2-Tung Sol good clarity but probably the weakest 12AX7 regarding output and gain I've ever heard.
6-JJ ECC83 quiet, lots of gain but harsh and brittle, very sturdy though.. I have a couple of these and a couple of groove tube 12AX7C's as backups if I need something durable in a clutch.


If you want a tube that has lots of gain, clarity and isn't harsh, the sovtek LPS has worked really well for me as well as that RCA 12AX7 brian gave me. I'd hunt down a couple of high gain RCA's or bugle boy's on ebay and use them in the primary driver(s) slots.

 

[CudBucket]

I'm curious to hear what you say when you've received the Pre. I've got mine loaded with JJs right now and it's anything but harsh. And I'm normally no fan of JJ tubes. Other than some hiss on the Lead channel, the OD is just thick and smooth.

 

[Martin]

I have JJ's in all my amps, triaxis, 290 and my MK3 and I really like them ?

 

[phyrexia]

I'd get a Studio and a JMP-1 if I were you.