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Overrated Vs Underrated Studio Gear Ep 7

Andrew Chapman Creative

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Omg I can't believe it's Episode 7 of Overrated vs Underrated Studio Gear. This is maybe my longest running installment, where I give honest, experience-based opinions on the microphones, preamps, compressors, EQs, and interfaces that actually deserve a spot in your studio. No hype, no brand loyalty, just real world results from years of professional audio engineering.

In this episode, I break down some of the most talked-about pieces of studio gear and explain whether they’re genuinely underrated, massively overrated, or properly rated based on tone, performance, value, build quality, and how they actually sit in a mix.

**Links to all gear mentioned in this video are new listings, as used listings come and go quickly**

🔥 Underrated Gear Featured in This Video (affiliate unless otherwise noted)
• Blue Microphones Spark - underrated… but with some caveats
https://amzn.to/4pXrtSd
• SE Electronics Voodoo VR2 Ribbon Mic - Has no business being this good as an affordable ribbon mic:
https://www.zzounds.com/a--3993776/it...
• Warm Audio WA-47 - Sounds nothing like a U47, but sounds nice:
https://www.zzounds.com/a--3993776/it...
• ART Pro MPA Gold - Surprisingly solid preamp. Flies under the radar:
https://sweetwater.sjv.io/o4264W
• Trident 80B EQs - a legendary EQ that doesn’t get talked about enough
https://sweetwater.sjv.io/7aA0X5
• Line 6 DL4 (Original) - the most influential delay pedal of all time:
https://www.zzounds.com/a--3993776/it...

❌ Overrated Gear Featured in This Video
• Focusrite OctoPre - Great for expanding the I/O of your interface... but those preamps.... ugh
https://www.zzounds.com/a--3993776/it...
• Rupert Neve Designs 511 Portico Preamp - great brand, but this module is not their best imo. Go for CAPI instead:
https://www.zzounds.com/a--3993776/it...

⚖️ Properly Rated (Middle of the Road)
• Warm Audio WA-2A - decently solid optical compressor, priced a tad high, performs as expected... maybe go for the LiN2A and swap the tube instead?
https://www.zzounds.com/a--3993776/it...

What I Typically use for my audio on Youtube:

My Voiceover Mic: (Not Affiliated)
https://www.dachmanaudio.com/products...
Roswell Mini K87:
https://roswellproaudio.com/chapman
My VoiceOver Preamp:
http://sweetwater.sjv.io/kO6NWN
My Interface:
https://www.zzounds.com/a--3993776/it...
My Main Monitors:
https://www.zzounds.com/a--3993776/it...
My Headphones:
https://www.zzounds.com/a--3993776/it...
My LiN76 Compressor:
https://www.zzounds.com/a--3993776/it...
Plugins:
https://pluginboutique.com/?a_aid=691...

My Camera Gear:
My Main camera: https://sweetwater.sjv.io/RGQarg
My Main Lens: https://sweetwater.sjv.io/554z7L
My Main On Camera Microphone: https://www.zzounds.com/a--3993776/it...
My B Lens: https://sweetwater.sjv.io/qzPo2L
My Softbox: https://amzn.to/3EyfA2Q
My Video Lighting: https://amzn.to/4oISvMC

Subscribe for real-world, no-hype recording insights: @andrewchapmancreative
Patreon: Patreon: andrewchapmancreative
Follow me on TikTok/IG: @andrew_chapman
Business inquiries: andrewchapmancreative@gmail.com

#musicproduction #audioengineering #homestudio #homerecording #recordingstudio #homerecordingstudio #microphone

Timestamps:
What is this: 0:00
Blue Spark SL Microphone: 0:53
SE Electronics VR2: 3:33
Warm Audio WA47: 5:04
MIX COMPETITION UPDATE: 8:07
ART MPA Gold: 9:20
Focusrite OctoPre: 12:38
Cloudlifter CL1: 14:35
Sennheiser MKH 416: 16:53
Rupert Neve Designs 511: 20:09
Warm Audio WA2A: 22:44
Trident 80B 500 Series EQ: 26:34
Line 6 DL4: 29:00

20 Comments

@RickyMontijo 9 months ago (edited)

“The warm audio people are an Extremely passionate group” 😂😂😂 how diplomatically said.

@jimmydigriz362 9 months ago

The parts about Warm Audio are basically a hostage tape, LMAO!

@Hootcifer 9 months ago

I want a two hour video of him only reviewing warm audio products in a polite but sassy way ❤

@billysilverio9336 9 months ago

This is a classic series. Oh I love gear, and I love this videos.

@sheappearscomposed 9 months ago

“The line 6 DL-4 is the most influential delay pedal ever made.” Can confirm. Had one when I was 16, sold it at some point… since then I’ve acquired an EP-3, big box DMM, volante… but a few years ago I bought another DL-4 and it hasn’t left my board since

@thebreakfastmenu 9 months ago

You are 100% correct about the DL4. It may not be the best anymore, but it laid groundwork that cannot be overlooked! Also sweep echo rules.

@patrickchase5614 4 weeks ago (edited)

There are 2 places where a CloudLifter can really make sense even today: For a very long XLR run to something like a ribbon mic, and to manipulate input impedance for passive mics like ribbons and dynamics.

Quality modern pres have noise floors very close to the theoretical minimum (due to resistive thermal noise) for a 150 ohm load. Some examples of pres of that level from my own kit are my Audient iD48 and my SoundDevices location recorders (MixPre and 888). A CloudLifter makes absolutely no difference with one of those. You're just replacing one "clean" device with a -129-130 dBA noise floor with another. There is no improvement to be had.

But that logic only holds if the signal is getting from mic to preamp intact, and that can be a problem for very weak signals and long cable runs. What the CloudLifter does is allow you to "push" some phantom-powered gain up close to the mic. Of course even that is somewhat less critical than it used to be, because in a modern setup it begs the question "why not Dante"? But for somebody who hasn't made the investment in a Dante system it can be a lifesaver. I use quality (Canare stock) star-quad cables and can count the number of times I've had to do that on one hand though

The other place I've seen folks use Cloudlifters is to "replace" the input impedance of their preamp. Some of the higher-end Cloudlifters have controllable Z for that purpose. I know folks who swear by the SM57 at somewhat higher Z...

@jaykarimi7123 9 months ago

This is probably my fav series from you. LOVE it. Keep em coming! 😄

@deaddoomed2380 9 months ago (edited)

10:54 that's a huge generalization. it depends of where the component is and what is doing in the circuit, change an opamp with no charge dependency and you will need to go to the microvolt/seconds territory to find a difference. Of course a tube preamp relay way more in the tubes, the problem with ART is they use PSVANE tubes (at least my VLA2 have a pair) and they work pretty bad with low frequencies and bandwidth in high gains, I worked with them and suck in "extreme" conditions. Change them for a pair of JJ (or any decent brand) and the circuit begin to work from well to great.

@Labbeet 9 months ago

another part to my favorite series rn, this channel is gold 🙌🙌💯

@charleshale8504 9 months ago

I’ve got two of the Trident eq’s, have made my life easier tracking through them. I like my 511’s but my Avedis MA5 does it all to me

@asimgeekhan 9 months ago

Love this series!

@compucorder64 9 months ago (edited)

Trident 80Bs are very useful tools. They sound good, but are great value and flexible. It's economical to have a few for shaping secondary drum close mics. Keeping the pricier APIs like 560s for kick, and 525B (or CAPI) for snare. I have four and assign them to toms, and the other less critical drum mics like cymbal close mics and snare bottom. The frequency choices are well suited to toms, because you can high-pass at 50hz to reduce rumble and clear room for kick/sub. The low EQ band lets you get a tom out of the way of fundamental of a kick (60hz), fatten a floor tom at. You can boost or cut rack tom/snare shell to taste (at 120hz). The high-mid points box can reduce boxiness (400hz floor tom, 600hz rack). They're also good on electric guitar, because you can cut out sub/rumble and carve out low-end for the bass. And you can add body at 400hz, or reduce boxiness there. You can boost guitar presence at 4k or reduce harshness at 6k. The high-shelf is nice on guitar cab too, especially with ribbon mics, to draw out more sparkle at (8k).

@eduardocolon3125 9 months ago

I bought some sE mics when looking for reasonably priced mics to record a project with and ended up upgrading ALL of my mics to sE. I just love their stuff. The most recent convert is my lead singer. He forgot his super expensive wireless mic the other day and I had a V7 in my bag. He was so impressed that he ended up getting the capsule for his wireless mic. They're just insanely good.

@Chris_L_bunch-of-numbers 9 months ago

I appreciated the Goulet ref for what it’s worth.

@Tamajyn69 4 months ago (edited)

34:15 this is a pretty good use case for a line switcher pedal, you can have the delay and clean boost always on and just switch between which signal chain is going to the amp, i've found this as a great solution for one tap switching between a chorusey clean signal to a dry fuzzy gain signal too without having to tap dance on the pedal board. I use a Boss LS-2 and input one is my clean chain and input 2 is my dirty chain both going to a shared output, but it can also go to different amps too

@daviddavis9835 9 months ago

I think he said something very important; equipment and mics all sound different, use what speaks to you depending on the job at hand. The only mics that I have more than one of by brand outside of stereo pairs is my Miktek drum mics and SM 57's. That and your pres give you flavor to mix.

@matthewwolf1793 9 months ago

Thanks for the vid. Always good to watch. Just quickly on the 416, it’s actually the MKH 50 that’s far more common on the ADR stages, as it’s essentially an indoor dialogue mic, whereas the 416 is essentially an outdoor mic.

@chrisdover8507 9 months ago

Those old silver focusrite octo pre are actually really great. They’re rounder than I imagined they’d be. From memory they were used for live acts on the letterman tonight show. I’m sure I saw that somewhere. I should buy one again.

@stuffnuns 6 months ago (edited)

sE designed and built the HB52 harmonica mic for Hohner, and it is one great mic for the Harp player. Their V7 vocal mics are giving Shure a run for their lead in the live sound.