Your cart is empty.
Your cart is empty.4.5 out of 5 stars
- #242,607 in Musical Instruments (See Top 100 in Musical Instruments)
- #466 in Microphone Preamps
INTRODUCING THE REALLY NICE PREAMP!The Really Nice Pre-amp, the RNP, is a 1/3 rack two channel mic pre-amp. FMR s objectives for this pre-amp were: Relatively neutral sonics Compatibility with the RNC/RNLA A Really Nice price!WHAT S COOLLots o headroom. These days, the trend is for microphones to increase their output signal levels while reducing their output noise levels. This means either employing a front-end pad and/or increasing the headroom of a mic pre. FMR decided to do the latter: at unity gain, the RNP 8380 has a clip point of +27.5dBu (almost 25Volts peak-to-peak)! Even with a hefty microphone output, the RNP8380 should take what your mics have to give.FidelityWhen designing a pre-amp, there are many ways to balance the sometimes conflicting operating constraints. Unfortunately, with the proliferation of integrated-circuit (IC) based mic pres in recent years, one of the typical casualties has been fidelity. At this point, I won t bore you with the geeky details, but I want to assure you that fidelity was not sacrificed in the RNP8380. Even though there are many mic pres that are quieter, there are very few that have the spurious-free (i.e., distortion-free) spectrum of the RNP8380. Now, more than ever, what you put into a mic pre is what you ll get out.Ugly boxIf you look beyond the RNP8380 s utilitarian ugliness, you ll see that we opted to throw the money saved in cosmetics into the quality of the audio electronics. Given the choice between something that so unds nice versus looks nice, the sound wins out everytime.Really Nice Compressor (RNC) insertsEach channel on the RNP8380 has an unbalanced send/receive jack that allow you to connect an RNC1773 using a single Tip-Ring-Sleeve (TRS) cable (per channel). With proper cabling, you could also use this feature to balance any other unbalanced piece of gear. In addition, with the right external configuration, the RNP can provide a separate +22dBu unbalanced output and a +28dBu balanced output sim
Tom Poore
Reviewed in the United States on November 26, 2021
The RNP is a spartan box that puts its eggs in one basket: excellent sound at a bargain price. If you’re looking for a preamp with a distinctive color, look elsewhere. There’s no “RNP Sound.” Rather, this little preamp is clean and transparent—nothing more. It’s also not chock full of buttons and switches. Gain meters? Yes, it’s got one for each channel, but you won’t be doing any fine tuning with them. Gain knobs are stepped in 6 db increments. Phantom power and phase inverter buttons round out the front panel. Sexy, it ain’t. But it’s a tiny footprint that’s apt for desktop recording.To run this directly into your computer DAW, you’ll need an A/D converter. I say this because many who are familiar only with entry-level interfaces (for example, the Focusrite Scarlett) aren’t aware of what they’re getting into when investigating an outboard preamp. You can run the RNP into some entry-level interfaces and bypass the interface’s own preamps. But if you do this, the RNP’s performance will be affected by whatever you’re running it through. I’ve run the RNP through an Apogee Mini Me—it sounded wonderful. I’ve also run the RNP through a Focusrite Scarlett, and it sounded ”meh.“ And through an SSL 2 it sounded okay. The A/D conversion is a crucial part of the signal chain. With great conversion, the RNP will sound great. With mediocre conversion, the RNP will sound mediocre. Further, some interfaces don’t entirely bypass their own preamps. So you’d be running the RNP through another preamp. “No problem,” you say, “I’ll buy a stand-alone A/D converter.” Good luck finding one under $1,000.Bear in mind that you’ll get out of the RNP what you put into it. If you have an acoustically great recording space and great mics, then you’re good to go. But in home recording, many of us make do with subpar space and gear. The RNP will make this obvious. Mediocre mics will sound mediocre. So prepare to open your wallet for better mics. Also be prepared to spend more time hunting for that elusive sweet spot in your crappy recording space.In short, if you buy the RNP as an upgrade from modest gear, you’re moving up in the world of audio recording. Adjust accordingly.
Josh
Reviewed in the United States on December 10, 2017
Honestly, for the price I don't think this is that amazing.
H. Jay
Reviewed in the United States on March 7, 2015
This is great but the price is atrocious! I sold it back and got one for 250 on Ebay. Ebay has like ten different ones that are half this price. It's one of the best preamps but don't buy on Amazon!
EDWIN .P.
Reviewed in the United States on January 11, 2015
very good gain and a super clean sound.
Liam Mac
Reviewed in the United States on February 12, 2014
This pre-amp was recommended to me by a friend who spends his life in a recording studio for a living. I bought a high-end cardioid mic and was asking for advice on a good pre-amp (a must-have for quality recording). This was the one he recommended.Not fancy, not pretty. A serious workhorse with great sound.
Chad P.
Reviewed in the United States on November 22, 2013
I've had this preamp for a couple of months now, and I've recorded a few projects with it. It's a definite step up from the preamps that you'd find on an average mixer or an entry-level or mid-level audio interface. As far as I can tell, it's a clean and capable preamp. I do notice the noise factor, especially when tracking bass direct. This noise stacks as you add more and more tracks to a project, but it's not a deal-breaker. It's only been a factor on my bass tracks that get compressed, which tends to make the hiss more noticeable.It's a somewhat dark sounding preamp, but with the plethora of available EQ and exciter VST plugins, that's easy to overcome in a digital home studio.$500 for a 2-channel preamp with channel inserts is a great deal, and the unit itself is rugged. It comes with a very good manual that gives you the ins and outs of using it effectively.
Shaun
Reviewed in the United States on December 9, 2012
Works well. Decent mid-range preamp. Noise floor gets a slight bit obtrusive at the final two steps. But I rarely need to crank it up there so it doesn't really bother me. It's way cleaner than my budget preamps on my AF4 interface.Besides the fact that I can't have infinitely variable gain, it does its job well
David M. Cochran
Reviewed in the United States on January 31, 2010
The RNP is a must for small studios. I've mostly used it for vocals and acoustic instruments. Not only does it have a very pure sound, if allows for relatively low noise at high gain for the price. The only reason this did not get a 5 star rating, is the somewhat annoying pot. Every click is 6dB, which can be aggravating. Other than that, buy this preamp, you won't be disappointed.
Recommended Products
$10.85
$ 4 .99 $4.99
$32.59
$ 13 .99 $13.99
$899.00
$ 99 .00 $99.00