petros Posted July 13, 2003 Share Posted July 13, 2003 What tube preamps are people using to warm up and get punch for their their digital Rhodes sounds other than "Speakeasy" preamps? I cannot demo a Speakeasy preamp at a local store, so I want to investigate other brands. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
b_3guy Posted July 13, 2003 Share Posted July 13, 2003 Originally posted by petros: What tube preamps are people using to warm up and get punch for their their digital Rhodes sounds other than "Speakeasy" preamps? I cannot demo a Speakeasy preamp at a local store, so I want to investigate other brands.A.R.T. Tube MP but what's probably a better choice is http://www.behringer.com/02_products/prodindex.cfm?id=MIC100&lang=eng Seems to be the same product but the Behringer is almost half the price. I used the Tube MP for exactly that except I have a Wurlitzer. It was great for putting inline with my B-3, so I could get growl without without disturbing the neighbourhood. It also does a great job on giving that tube sound to vocals. Steve www.seagullphotodesign.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sbrock1san.rr.com Posted July 13, 2003 Share Posted July 13, 2003 The ART Tube MP OLP works fairly good. It's kind of a subtle effect. It softens the attack transient a little too much if you use too much gain, so you have to be careful how to set it. It does make sounds warmer and richer, also great with organ, bass, and lead sounds. It's only $59 at many online stores. Most of the time I just use chorus stompbox pedals with my digital Rhodes sound (Roland RD-250s) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petros Posted July 14, 2003 Author Share Posted July 14, 2003 Thanks, Steve. So the enhancement is rather subtle, that's what I assumed. My tech sent me this: "Tube punch comes from the power section...get a good stereo tube power amp and put a solid state front end on it. A good tube pre will ad some warmth, but if tube punch is what he's after he'll need a tube power section." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kennyex Posted July 16, 2003 Share Posted July 16, 2003 I don't hear much tube action when using a Tube MP with sampled EP sounds. None of these lower priced "tube enhanced" units feed the 12AX7 tube with high voltage (like a guitar amp does) and so the tube doesn't really respond and affect the signal much. IMO, the Tube MP adds in some high EQ boost and a little bit of tube "softness," and that's it. If you overdrive it, you get buzz fuzz. The amp modelers (POD, etc.) don't seem to really "open up" a line-level digitized keyboard sound either. They do do wonders to a low level, analog guitar signal. The Speakeasy is the only current production proper tube path pre-amp (that I know of) that is structured and voiced specifically for keyboards. Perhaps look for an older ADA Ampulator. It actually was a mini tube power amp that really worked and gave you good tube sounds, no matter what kind of signal was used. It had very good reviews in it's day. I've used it with rompler EP's and Hammond clones to good effect. I agree with others here that a sampled EP from a rompler may already have amplifier attributes programed into it. And if it's any good, it should sound OK through a PA (or powered speaker, etc.) However, it has been my experience that a line-level rompler EP sound does pick up a lot of authentic amplifier attributes if you indeed run it through a tube guitar amp!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petros Posted July 16, 2003 Author Share Posted July 16, 2003 Hi Kenny, Great post! Have you ever used the SpeakEasy Preamp with a rompler EP and a solid state amp? I play the Yamaha P120 EP2 thru a pair of Mackie SRM450 powered speakers and they don't get the exciting tube punch that my little '65 Fender Princeton Reverb gets. I crave that tube puch thru my Mackies. Petros Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slowly Posted July 16, 2003 Share Posted July 16, 2003 Notice you never see the Speakeasy on E-bay. I hope that means people buy but never sell. Kcbass "Let It Be!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kennyex Posted July 17, 2003 Share Posted July 17, 2003 Originally posted by petros: Hi Kenny, Great post! Have you ever used the SpeakEasy Preamp with a rompler EP and a solid state amp? PetrosThanks, I just bought a Shotglass model as soon as they announced it, primarily for Hammond clone but of course I'm going to try everything through it. Unfortuneately, I won't be able to pick it up for a few weeks, But I'll be around. Since it is a tube pre-amp, and from the clonewheel organ use descriptions I've read, I'm guessing that in general it's going to add harmonics and openess, particularly in the mids and highs. Not to sure about specifically "increased punch" using a rompler EP, but by design, I'll bet it makes an over-all improvement to the sound and response. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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