The goal was not to compare preamps for their sound under normal conditions as much as it was to observe their overload characteristics, each responding to the same stimuli - a snare drum from soft to loud, for example. Two mics were tested to observe their reaction to an eight-preamp load - a Shure SM57 dropped about 10 dB as compared to a nearly 4dB level drop for an AKG C 414 EB. With that range as reference, the six preamps represented a potential load of between 250 and 333 ohms. Ribbon mics are typically 50 ohms, while the “load” (a preamp’s input impedance) is about 10 times higher and therefore considered a “bridging” input. Typically, mics have a 150-ohm to 200-ohm output impedance. I always wanted to explore the fringes of preamp performance - overload characteristics and noise floor - deviating from just about every convention in the process, starting with one mic driving six preamps. Lynn Fuston of 3D Audio in Nashville has a well-deserved niche in that area, so there’s no reason to reinvent his wheel. It started last fall when I was asked to do a preamp shootout. I just completed seven exhausting weeks of testing mic preamps for an educational video.
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