Focusrite Liquid 4 Pre

[deep thought]

Focusrite Audio Engineering | Global Site | Products | Liquid | Liquid 4PRE Does anyone have this product or has experience with it,the technology seems awesome!!

[brandondrury]

I'm not aware of anyone that owns it. I've heard what various big boys have to say about it, bit I don't like to repeat hearsay.

My impression (without hearing this unit) is I would rather run every mic I record with through the same high end preamp than risk running it through individual preamps that are designed to do all things for all people. I'd be more inclined to go for this sort of technology in the Liquidmix. The reason being that I'm interested not so much in the emulation but the sound of the preamp to begin with.

Is the stock preamp in the Liquid4Pre as fast as the fastest preamps out there? If so, it would probably have to be very expensive without the emulation technology. If not, it won't be possible for this box to emulate the fast preamps, which are generally preferred for drums and any time a fast, bright transient is desired.

Overall, I still don't think it's worth it to put that much time into preamps anyway. That's my personal opinion.

Brandon

[GP Systems]

I have a Liquid4pre arriving tomorrow for demo and evaluation purposes. I am actually quite anxious to try it out. Given it's posted capabilities, and the the quality of the other products in the Liquid range, I have high expectation. IMHO, a quality Pre is the second most important investment [next to acoustic treatment] if the goal is to push the quality of your recordings to the next level. With the 4Pre we are given access to more vintage pres than most of could ever hope of trying let alone owning!

I will try to post a mini-review later this week once I have played with it a bit

Tim

[brandondrury]

IMHO, a quality Pre is the second most important investment [next to acoustic treatment] if the goal is to push the quality of your recordings to the next level.

What all preamps do you have?

Brandon

[drago]

TL Audio Ivory 5001 4-Channel Preamp and more Microphone Preamps at GuitarCenter.com.

I used this yesterday and holy shit. Buy 3 of these if you wanna spend 3 grand on preamps. You'll have 12 channels of ZOMG instead of 4 channels of artificial zomg.

[GP Systems]

I have used the TL Audio Ivory 5001 and I agree that it sounds great. Sometimes you dont want a Pre that "sounds great" but is more nuetral though. This depends on what's being recorded of course. The exciting thing about the Liquid4Pre is that it includes some TL Audio Models as well as a bunch of Neves, a Manly, SSL, and a whack o' others. I recall Hugh Robjohns being extermely impressed with the Liquid Channel and if the Liquid 4Pre is in that league I would image it would be a great value at $2800. I will know for sure later this week when I start testing it myself.

[GP Systems]

Hi Overlord...

I dont have many stand-alone pres at the moment. I do have a Great River MP-500NV, API 3124+, and a Mindprint Envoice MKII. I also use an RME OctaMic D and a Saffire 26 i/o quite regularly.

Why do you ask? Is there one in particular that you feel I should be checking out?

[brandondrury]

Why do you ask? Is there one in particular that you feel I should be checking out?

No, quite the opposite. When I run into people who have been really impressed with this whole preamp thing I always want to know what they are using.

Brandon

[deep thought]

GP Systems,i will be looking forward to your review on the Focusrite Liquid 4 Pre

[GP Systems]

Hi Brandon,

I did read your article regarding preamps and whether they make a difference or not. I enjoyed it quite a bit. I am impressed by the amount of effort and time that was put into it and I have to agree with much of the findings.

IMHO, the greatest benefit of using quality preamps, and specifically the Liqui4Pre, is the added creative flexibility they can offer in manipulating tone. There is no question that different pres offer different tonal qualities but many home users will prefer to simply get a level and then push record. When used this way most of the differences are negligible. To my ears, the harmonic distortion offered by some premium tube pres is what is often defined as '****th'. This particular character can be a huge asset when trying to get a certain vibe or feel. There is also the option of effecting existing tracks or mixes when used as a line level device.

A couple interesting quotes from Hugh Robjohns that peaked by interest were:

"In addition to serving as a conventional four-channel preamp, I also used the Liquid 4 Pre to add character to some stereo mixes, using both the analogue line and digital inputs. This worked very well, and the ability to pick and choose different preamp types (valve, solid-state, class-A, and so on) quickly and easily made finding the right character a very rewarding experience."

And this one:

"Overall, I found the Liquid 4 Pre to be a very impressive preamp indeed, and I am sorely tempted to add it to my wish-list, simply because it is so versatile. If you want squeaky-clean and accurate, it can do that. If you want characterful it can do that. If you want dirt and attitude, it can do that too. And if you want to rework something at line level, it can even do that. What's more, you can have all four of those options running simultaneously! "

It's hard for me not to believe there will be significant value here. I just need to find the time to play with it! That is the biggest challenge with a business to run, a band, a wife, and a two year old.

Cheers!