Mic preamplifiers 500 series and rack format

All the preamps in our professional outboard catalog dedicated to recording, have been carefully selected to meet the most demanding requirements in terms of sound quality and equipment reliability, both for use in the recording studio and in situations of greater technical stress, as in broadcasting or in live applications, concerts or events.  

Why do we need to amplify a microphone?

Amplifying a microphone means increasing the level of an audio signal by thousands of times, so it is an extremely delicate operation, which must be managed only with highly precise and quality instruments. It should also be remembered that each preamp, due to the analog nature of the circuit of a microphone preamplifier, it has its own 'color' or 'timbre' that will further characterize the sound of a microphone, so it is essential to approach the choice also based on the kind of recording. For example, in the recording of Jazz or Classical Music, the choice of a mic preamp would be directed more towards the most neutral or transparent sound, a feature that can only be achieved by choosing solid-state preamps, such as Maselec or Millennia Media. In the recording of Rock or Pop, instead, often different sounds are desirable, according to the type of production, and therefore more versatile preamps will certainly find much more application; among these, the most sought after are API, SSL or AMS Neve preamps, or, among the tube preamps, Thermionic Culture, Universal Audio or Retro Instruments.  

Choice of microphone preamplifiers

The Milk Audio Store staff is obviously at your complete disposal to identify the most suitable microphone preamplifier for your recording needs. Another very important factor to consider when choosing the preamplifier is the format:  

500 series preamplifiers

The 500 series is a format compatible with all VPR lunchboxes, ideal for creating mixed, multi-brand preamplification systems and for having in a single chassis preamps, compressors and equalizers.  

19” rack preamplifiers

The 19” rack is the most classic and known format. Many manufacturers use the rack format as the only constructive option, because it allows the creation of multi-channel preamps, excellent for Live Recording or Location Recording systems.  

Proprietary format preamplifiers

The numerous applications in the history of sound recording have given rise to many other proprietary formats; among these the most famous are the 1073/1084 series or the Neve 8048 series and the SSL X-Rack series.