As I learn more about quality step-ups in components, I'm curious what level of overall spend is required to /get the benefit of, say, an improved pre-amp. I've heard the term "noise floor" and am wondering what upgrades can be done if one doesn't see having a budget to do lots of upgrades throughout the chain.

In my case, probably will never have better than "bedroom/basement" space; my use runs to small group indie rock: acoustic guitar/vocals, drums, elec. guitar/bass, keyboards (think Death Cab, Andrew Bird).

Current set-up:

Presonus Firebox
i5 (x2)
AT4041 (x2)
SM58
EV767a
M179 (next planned purchase)
KX88 midi controller
microkorg
HP notebook, 2m RAM
FL Studio/Ableton
Garritan GPO
Sibelius

So I guess I'm seeking general comments on "bang for the buck" step-ups or growth path rationales, (not necessarily specific to my set-up) for folks to think about as they get started and look ahead to where their natural endpoint will be, however modest.

Let's think:

Upgrades?

Categories? Benefits?

Microphone preamp: Will allow you to get more out of your mic collection and allow you to get fabulous results from dynamics and ribbons. Cost tends to be high. Benefit tends to be big over the long haul. The only mic pre that I've found that truly performs well with practically every mic and every genre of music is the Great River NV series. If someone could bring the same feature set and abilities to a different topology and lower the price then they'd make out fairly decently. I need to look into this more for myself.

Microphones: Benefit tends to be big over the long haul. I'd probably look at the ATM250 (kick drum, bass cabs), Shure SM7 (vocal), and maybe an AT4047 (versatile mic).

Outboard EQ, compression, limiting: If you're going to master your own recordings, then you're going to need these. In this age of squish it all, self mastering is not a bad way to go. For about $600 you can set up some decent tools to get this done which will also help during tracking. I'm thinking FMR RNC, a couple of used DBX 242 EQs and a used Aphex Dominator. That's probably $600.

Outboard reverb: Very necessary if you love reverb. If you're recordings tend to be dry then forget it.

Monitoring: The best resource for monitoring is my friend Warren at Front End Audio. Pick out a budget and let him know what you are doing. He is the only guy out there who understands this subject from a sales perspective as far as I can see. Don't forget headphones as far as monitoring also. The Extreme Isolation headphones will improve your mic placements if you wear them when positioning mics.

Where to start? Call Warren about monitoring. Second get a pair of Extreme Isolation headphones. Third, I'd probably look at adding one or more of the mics. After that I'd probably start budgeting for the long haul as far as mic pre and other outboard.