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Post by bluesholyman on Sept 26, 2024 20:48:44 GMT -6
I have about $200 to burn to improve my studio, preferably hardware in signal chain, but that may not be realistic. Looking for suggestions, apart from plugins, that are worth having in that price range. I am set on headphones (DT1770s) so can skip those I think...
Appreciate the input...
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Post by smashlord on Sept 26, 2024 20:52:36 GMT -6
DBX 160X or 160XT.
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ericn
Temp
Balance Engineer
Posts: 15,946 
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Post by ericn on Sept 26, 2024 21:41:52 GMT -6
Beat me to it! Second thought a Countryman 85 or one of the BSS active DI’s |
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Post by drumsound on Sept 26, 2024 22:01:40 GMT -6
RNC
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Post by Dan on Sept 26, 2024 22:51:01 GMT -6
DBX 500 series like the 560, 530, or 520. The RNC.
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Post by recordingengineer on Sept 26, 2024 23:59:12 GMT -6
For some reason, the Midas 512 V2 really works for me on snare.
A Tama Iron Works Studio Series mic stand?
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Post by thehightenor on Sept 27, 2024 1:33:53 GMT -6
Spend $5 on a nice jar ... Put the other $195 in it. Every week add your change/ low value bank notes to it and then "tempus fugit" .... before you know it. You'll have a lot more than $200 to buy something truly fantastic for your signal chain. Works for me  |
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Post by bluesholyman on Sept 27, 2024 5:47:13 GMT -6
Spend $5 on a nice jar ... Put the other $195 in it. Every week add your change/ low value bank notes to it and then "tempus fugit" .... before you know it. You'll have a lot more than $200 to buy something truly fantastic for your signal chain. Works for me This is great advice.....and I know myself well enough I probably won't follow it...  |
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Post by ninworks on Sept 27, 2024 6:37:19 GMT -6
Spend $5 on a nice jar ... Put the other $195 in it. Every week add your change/ low value bank notes to it and then "tempus fugit" .... before you know it. You'll have a lot more than $200 to buy something truly fantastic for your signal chain. Works for me I LOVE this!!! That's really funny and so true. |
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Post by kcatthedog on Sept 27, 2024 6:56:38 GMT -6
Improve your patchbay or cables?
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Post by doubledog on Sept 27, 2024 8:18:48 GMT -6
Sweetwater and Alto (probably others) still have the KT 1176 for $149... but they are backordered (Alto says 11/11/24). Or if you look around you can find them used for around the same. the EQP-KT is around the same price used, or $209 new. Not the holy-grail specimen of either that you will ever find, but you probably won't find anything better for that price (at least not a physical outboard device that you could hold in your hands or mount in a rack). Do they sound better than a plugin? depends on how you use both.
I got my 2A-KT for $200 as well (used) so if you look around...
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mrcel0
Junior Member
Posts: 64
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Post by mrcel0 on Sept 27, 2024 9:27:55 GMT -6
Sweetwater and Alto (probably others) still have the KT 1176 for $149... but they are backordered (Alto says 11/11/24). Or if you look around you can find them used for around the same. the EQP-KT is around the same price used, or $209 new. Not the holy-grail specimen of either that you will ever find, but you probably won't find anything better for that price (at least not a physical outboard device that you could hold in your hands or mount in a rack). Do they sound better than a plugin? depends on how you use both. I got my 2A-KT for $200 as well (used) so if you look around... I liked the KT-76 and 2A when I had them, I didn’t enjoy the eqp-kt as much because I felt I liked plugins a bit better but the compressors had a good enough sound that you might be hard pressed in a dense mix to tell it apart, all this to say I ended up selling each cheaper piece of gear I had to buy the 1-2 quality pieces I could potentially end up keeping forever, there is truth in “you buy it right or buy it twice” as I did lose money in this process BUT it opened my eyes to want to take a leap with investing more money into hardware |
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Post by Ward on Sept 27, 2024 9:32:35 GMT -6
Sometimes you can find the old Aphex Tube Essence series units at under 200. The 107 and 109 are good buys.
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Post by Dan on Sept 27, 2024 9:36:26 GMT -6
Art Dual Limiter too. The VLA is out of your price range.
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Post by andersmv on Sept 27, 2024 9:50:37 GMT -6
Do you have a decent chair?
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mrcel0
Junior Member
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Post by mrcel0 on Sept 27, 2024 9:57:34 GMT -6
Art Dual Limiter too. The VLA is out of your price range. I believe I found an ART Pro VLA I (american version) for ~$100-200 used, don’t remember exactly but it was amazing what you get for that price, especially having stereo capabilities you could even chain one side to the next as a sort of “faster into slower comp chain” If I had to recommend one thing it would probably be that |
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ericn
Temp
Balance Engineer
Posts: 15,946
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Post by ericn on Sept 27, 2024 10:03:12 GMT -6
Spend $5 on a nice jar ... Put the other $195 in it. Every week add your change/ low value bank notes to it and then "tempus fugit" .... before you know it. You'll have a lot more than $200 to buy something truly fantastic for your signal chain. Works for me How dare you interject logic into a completely emotionally based discussion of gear lust 😁 |
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Post by chessparov on Sept 27, 2024 10:06:52 GMT -6
$200?
That’s 7 or 8 Lava Lamps!!
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Post by doubledog on Sept 27, 2024 10:28:42 GMT -6
Sweetwater and Alto (probably others) still have the KT 1176 for $149... but they are backordered (Alto says 11/11/24). Or if you look around you can find them used for around the same. the EQP-KT is around the same price used, or $209 new. Not the holy-grail specimen of either that you will ever find, but you probably won't find anything better for that price (at least not a physical outboard device that you could hold in your hands or mount in a rack). Do they sound better than a plugin? depends on how you use both. I got my 2A-KT for $200 as well (used) so if you look around... I liked the KT-76 and 2A when I had them, I didn’t enjoy the eqp-kt as much because I felt I liked plugins a bit better but the compressors had a good enough sound that you might be hard pressed in a dense mix to tell it apart, all this to say I ended up selling each cheaper piece of gear I had to buy the 1-2 quality pieces I could potentially end up keeping forever, there is truth in “you buy it right or buy it twice” as I did lose money in this process BUT it opened my eyes to want to take a leap with investing more money into hardware That's precisely why I'm not advocating for buying new at MSRP. If you get a good deal (like these), even if you were to resell it, you won't lose much (if any). That's pretty much my philosophy for buying all gear. |
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Post by chessparov on Sept 27, 2024 12:45:09 GMT -6
FWIW Austrian Audio X-15 Headphones ordered. Fun for casual listening/Tracking. Chris |
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ericn
Temp
Balance Engineer
Posts: 15,946
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Post by ericn on Sept 27, 2024 16:06:39 GMT -6
I’ll be honest the most fulfilling sub $200 purchases have been taking a risk on old dynamics!
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Post by dok on Sept 27, 2024 16:26:25 GMT -6
Sometimes you can find the old Aphex Tube Essence series units at under 200. The 107 and 109 are good buys. I have and love a 107. I bought a 109 and it imparts some weirdness to the sound even when the EQ is set to flat. Which I guess means I have a 109 for sale. |
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Post by geoff738 on Sept 27, 2024 16:30:56 GMT -6
I’ll just echo the RNC suggestion. I’m not sure what the cheap 2series dbx eqs go for if you can find one, but I would pick up another if I came across one.
Cheers,
Geoff
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Post by chessparov on Sept 27, 2024 16:46:21 GMT -6
I’ll be honest the most fulfilling sub $200 purchases have been taking a risk on old dynamics! Like my AKG D790’s and D770! |
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Post by Tbone81 on Sept 27, 2024 18:58:41 GMT -6
Aphex Expresser (651 or 661)
DBX 160xt
Art Dual MP (for distortion not as a preamp)
BK Butler Tube Driver (no expert with this one yet but again it’s just for distortion)
A headphone amp (pick your poison)
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