OLD LYME, CONNECTICUT: Sony Music Studios, New York, recently purchased a True Audio Precision 8 preamp for their classical remote recording kits. Andreas Meyer, classical sound engineer at Sony Music Studios, first noticed the True amplifier at AES '98 San Francisco. "I'm always on the lookout for new mic pres," noted Meyer. "After the show, he requested a unit from Neumann USA, True Audio's Distributor, for an audition unit. The Precision 8 was packed into a classical remote kit, flown to California and used to record several sessions of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Meyer also used it in smaller New York City venues for piano/voice duets with the Neumann TLM 170, "it tends to warm up the sound a little," he noted.
When asked why he chose to purchase the True Precision 8 amplifier, Meyer responded: "The price for quality is just phenomenal. In A/B tests with mic pres priced far higher, the Precision 8 held its own. But it wasn't just price that sold it," he continued. "The quality of the mic pre, itself, is quite exceptional...very clean...great signal-to-noise ratio, with a warm tube-like sound ...quite pleasing for a solid-state design." The True Precision 8 preamp is booked solid for future Sony classical recording sessions.
The True Precision 8 provides eight channels of transformerless mic preamps, two of which can be used as direct instrument inputs with each channel offering five-segment level indicators with a selectable peak-hold feature. A button on channels one and two allows them to be used as an MS pair for added flexibility. Designed for use with today's modular digital multi-track units and hard disk recording systems, the Precision 8 can easily be connected to TASCAM or Mackie digital products via a DB 25 multi-pin connector.
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