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Post by hadaja on Feb 13, 2020 2:42:05 GMT -6
Well i picked up a la-610 mk1 and hought it was going to be a cool addition.
i am not really falling in love with it. I know people swear by these for electric guitars and i am yet to do that but its not living up to my expectations of an all round unit.
i clearly had the wrong expectation of it.
Do any of you guys use these and what works for you when using it?
i am hoping its not a one trick pony. Just electric guitars.
Any thoughts would be appreciated.
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Post by jcoutu1 on Feb 13, 2020 5:21:24 GMT -6
Kick drum?
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Post by kcatthedog on Feb 13, 2020 6:45:19 GMT -6
You can upgrade the tubes which improves it but I found it too Smokey and sold mine.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 13, 2020 9:35:37 GMT -6
You have to gain stage it right. Turn the input gain up very slowly and increase output gain more freely each turn of input until you get what you want.
It’s great for vocals and adding weight and smoothing out fizzy high gain distorted guitar cabs miced up with an sm57.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 13, 2020 9:40:56 GMT -6
I've had some good luck with them on room mics. Blow them out a touch. They seem dark to me, so helps with the cymbals.
EDIT: The pair I've used are the 6176, not the LA. Sorry, Missed that part. I'm guessing not all that diff, besides the obvious.
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Post by Tbone81 on Feb 13, 2020 10:19:17 GMT -6
I have a LA610 Signature Edition, so basically like a MkII but with NOS telefunkens. It's so sweet and euphonic on vocals. I really like it on e guitar and acoustic. Its a great all around pre. You can push it into a really pleasing sounding distortion but you have to experiment. The input gain, compressor, and output gain will all distort differently and at different levels. I find its best to push the input till you hear a just a little breakup on loud transients, then I add compression (as much for tone as for dynamics), then I keep the output fairly clean.
Hope that helps.
p.s. The DI and comp work great on bass.
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Post by notneeson on Feb 13, 2020 14:04:33 GMT -6
I lived with a 2-610 for a long time, but backed way off of using it after the honeymoon with the exception of bass.
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Post by chessparov on Feb 13, 2020 14:38:50 GMT -6
FWIW Chris Martin's studio vocal chain, is sometimes... 58>610. Worked well for Brian Wilson's solo vocals too, on Pet Sounds... 545>610. As you can tell, I'm a 610 fan on vocals!  Chris P.S. Along with API/Neve. |
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Post by popmann on Feb 13, 2020 14:41:13 GMT -6
I've had the mk1 forever. Literally like Serial 102 or something....anyway....I have a lot of thoughts, FWIW:
-other 610s aren't the same circuit. Don't sound the same. The mk1 is more like they modded the front of an La2a to accept mic gain and phantom, etc, than the old 2-610/M610. If it wasn't--I'd have sold it for a 2-610 a LONG time ago, because I only use the preamp.
-there's a LOT of gain staging in this strip....and it changes the tone drastically. I just leave the output on 10. Start by getting as much of my gain from the little knob as I can--that "big knob" on the preamp side is where it saturates fast AF. Over 5 or 6, it will. Not the end of the world--it's a little like an old tube exciter. Makes a blah vocal mic get a little euphonic sizzle. Same with a bassDI, sometimes....and keep in mind being a passive EQ that they effect the gain staging--boosting the bass will functionally remove HF gain....I VU metering I never found that helpful besides the output level. My gain reduction stopped working many years ago. Never bother fixing, because....don't use the compressor.
-I tend to leave my HF shelf on 10k @ +1.5db. It does darken the tippy top a skootch. By starting there, this offsets it.
-I have all old stock tubes in mine. But, I didn't for a long time. It really makes the mids a little nicer like, well--like old stock tubes do for everything. No one says shit like "these old stock tubes really SIZZLE compared to the new stock!!" It's always that compared to new there's something "not whole" about the 800hz-3khz range.
-The compressor actually does sound a LOT like a vintage 2a I had here, but in the intimate irony--not when using the unit as a preamp. If you use the line input with a hardware insert, barring EXTREME abuse where the old ones shine "special", it actually sounds VERY VERY similar. However, if you use the mic input, it sounds very NOT similar. See above on how it's more like they modded a 2a....once you're using all that stuff for the mic preamp'ing--the gain staging must just be totally different and "wrong". I've cut wonderful tracks with the GreatRiver preamp into that as a vocal limiter--ALSO used that as a vocal preamp to wonderful ends--but, I've never been able to combine them, which was obviously the "point" of a strip like that.
It's a lot. You CAN make it sound fairly lame....or great....but, it's stayed when many many other preamps have come and gone over the years.
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Post by oliviadolphinjohn on Feb 13, 2020 15:08:23 GMT -6
I also have a super early one, that about sums it up. Mine came stock with NOS JAN tubes and is finicky about what mics it likes but works nicely on some things rather randomly.
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Post by Vincent R. on Feb 13, 2020 18:40:15 GMT -6
I had the desktop 610 preamp. So I can only talk about the premap. I really liked it, especially with my Altec ribbon. After I picked up the Tab Funkenwerk V78M I found I wasn't using it so much and sold it to grab the Demeter VTMP-2B. It's not as Vintage sounding as the 610, but has a kind of magic with FET and TLM mics. My favorite preamp for a BLUE Kiwi or U87AI. Still, I miss that Altec through it. I debate sometimes grabbing one for that purpose only.
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Post by hadaja on Feb 13, 2020 23:23:53 GMT -6
Well thats a lot of suggestions thanks for all those I shall look forward to trying both RIbbons mics and different Gain staging. Great ideas. So glad this place is full of positive people.
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Post by nick8801 on Feb 14, 2020 8:58:35 GMT -6
I used to love my 610 on my Shure sm7. You basically needed to crank the thing, but because the Shure had such low output it didn’t distort as much as really warm up. It was great for vocals. Wish I still had it!
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Post by Tbone81 on Feb 14, 2020 9:19:36 GMT -6
I should add that my Signature Edition LA610 likes to run hot. It's not as obvious as when I first bought it, but letting it warm up for at least a good 30min resulted in a much better tone.
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Post by theshea on Feb 14, 2020 14:53:45 GMT -6
i own one for years and it gets used as my number 2 preamp if my number one preamp AML 1073 is already in use.
i can't quite understand the sometimes harsh critique it receives. i find it not that hard to set to get a good sound out if it. yeah, it has like 4 knobs that you have to set and which can change the sound a lot: the little input gain knob, the big one, the comp knob and the output gain. all potentially can screw up your sound. but - repeating myself - i don't find it that hard to get the sound i am after. in fact i am quite happy that it offers such flexebility and such a vast palette of sound.
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Post by iamasound on Feb 16, 2020 7:31:17 GMT -6
One of the most foolish things that I did when I had a load of cash in my pocket was not to buy the combo of the Beezneez Mahalia that was severely discounted to like $1100 and the UA LA-610 which I swear gave me a woody just listening to myself sing in the mic room at Dale Pro Audio in Jamaica, Queens, NYC. Fool I am, I am a fool.
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Post by 000 on Feb 16, 2020 8:49:31 GMT -6
It’s one of my favorite choices for bass DI. I’ve always found these a bit too tweaky for vocals - especially if the singer has wide dynamics.
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