Hi. I'm looking for a mic pre for my studio to record vocals.I have already got a Studio Projects VTB1 & have read good things about the DMP3 and Rane MS-1b but haven't heard much about the SPL Goldmike. I have used the Goldmike in the past but not enough to remember how it compared to my VTB1 and have the option of getting one extremely cheap. I will be using the pre almost entirely for lead vocals and my budget is $200 / £100. I also have a Soundcraft M8 but will probably have to sell this at some point because I'm moving into a smaller studio.
Which would you recemmend out of these 3 for recording lead vocals? Or, is there anything else in this price range that would be better?

The reason why I'm looking around for different mic pres is because I'm moving my setup into a smaller room and would like to cut down on clutter and have one piece of kit that would do the job more effiently. I currently have a Soundcraft M8 and Studio Projects VTB1 for my pres and am considering having a clean out (due to space) and sell these plus a load of my old Behringer outboard. I would ideally then like to have 2 channels for recording mainly vocals and the option for stereo miking some acoustic instruments (I would eventually look to buy 2 Rane MS-1bs).

The DMP3 and Rane MS-1b have caught my eye because there seems to be al lot of people loving these and tend to recommend these as being about the best quality this side of something like a DAV BG-1, True Systems Solo and Safe Sound P1 etc. They both use very similar electronics and the same Burr Brown op amps which seem highly regarded. The DMP3 costs £104 for 2 channels and the Rane £167 for 1 channel. Is the Rane going to sound any better if the electronics are so similar?

I haven't heard many recommend the SPL Goldmike but SPL has got a good reputation so am not sure why this pre seems to get overlooked? Another pre which costs a bit more than my budget is the ART MPA Gold ( £225 ). A few people have recommended this one aswell but is more than I was intending on spending.

I'd probably take a gamble on the Line Audio two channel. Not many have used it but it gets favorable comparison by people to the Earthworks Lab series and the DAV. Those are fairly particular references that you usually don't see. The only mic pre I can ever recall before getting compared to the Earthworks Lab series (which is not made anymore BTW) is the Sytek four channel.

Wow compared to a DAV and Earthworks!!?? Where have you seen or heard that? I've never heard of these pres before. What info do you have on these?

If I decided against the Line Audio pres, what would you recommend I do with all the pres I listed above?

I'm must saying that it is online info but usually when guys are hyping something they'll pick something else. The DAV and Earthworks comparisons aren't the usual suspects. I don't know about the DAV. I do know that the Earthworks Lab series were excellent mic pres and that the Sytek was a good comparison just as you can read in our Sytek review... http://www.mojopie.com/sytek.html

Anyhow, I've got a bias against M-Audio so given that I'd probably pick the Rane. If I went with the Rane though, I'd probably go used as their resale values aren't the best. I've seen various incarnations of the MS -1 mic pre on sale on eBay for as low as $25 when bought in large lots (10 for example) or as low as $50 when bought individually.

Why do you have a bias against M-Audio? Have you used both the Rane MS-1b and M-Audio DMP3?

M-Audio puts out a fair amount of junk but I do like the DMP3. Enough so that I carry one with me for my singer -songwriter gigs, voice in one channel, guitar in the other -- way better than the PA preamps that are usually available!

I defer to Spatter's wisdom.

Ha, not much wisdom here. In honesty, I don't think the DMP3 sounds much better than the preamps on my ultra-cheap little Behringer board. A tad fuller in the mids, maybe, and it does offer more gain. I've come to appreciate the fairly decent instrument inputs on it as well (not bad for plugging in an 'acoustic' guitar, when necessary).