Art Tube MP Studio

Excellent DI / Mic pre, with dial in valve warmth/saturation. Great for Re-amping techniques and Di signal from Bass / guitar, or providing phantom power. Ground lift, 20db pad, phase reverse switches. jack i/o, xlr i/o, simultainiously. 12AX7 tube [which can be seen through the vent slots, glowing orange] dialed in via a pot. Good gain structure with extra 20db present if needed. However supplying the phantom power from a desk is a more stable alternative to battery power. The powersupply wallwart handles phantom requirements adequately if no mixer connected.
Low self-noise and a set-and-forget item. excellent.
Often use as Bass Di for added harmonics, boosting hi-mid presence whilst allowing all the bass through.
Incredible for it's price, about 45€.
Recommended as a cheap capable mic pre [with optional color added to taste].

Analog tube technology, jack and XLR connectors, not rack-mountable.

USE

It's child's play to use, the manual is almost useless

SOUND QUALITY

It improves sound, that's undeniable, and it doesn't produce any noise. The preamps are much better than those of my Alesis 16 FW or my 32-channel Behringer SL3232. The tube adds a nice coloration! Not like the mic 100 or 200.

OVERALL OPINION

I've been using it for five months.
Pros: Sound, look, price, warmth
Cons: Slight buzz if you crank it all the way up (but who does that anyway?), and it's single-channel

If I needed a single channel preamp, I would buy it again, otherwise I'd go for multi-channel preamps.

Everything has been said already

USE

Über-easy to use
You get good sounds right away

SOUND QUALITY

At first, I bought it to amplify a dynamic mic.
The result is excellent! With a very nice coloration, nicer and warmer than that of my Yamaha mixer's built-in preamp.

And then I tested it with other instruments...
With guitar it's not striking
With piano it's nothing to write home about either
With bass guitar it's astounding! A very clean and warm sound! I use it currently for bass and I have ordered a second one for the mic!

OVERALL OPINION

Unbeatable value for money!

What I like best is its sound :D ! Try it on everything you can and see how it performs...

What I like least is it's design. It's not too big, but it's not too practical to place other things on top. The cables are on the front and the controls on the top, I would've preferred the cables behind and the controls on the front But it ain't that bad!

I have already ordered another one!

* Which technology is used? (analog, digital, tube, ...)
- Tube (12AX7) of very poor quality, surely

* Which effects or effect types are available?
- No effects

* What connection options does it provide?
- One jack and one XLR input
- The same for the outputs

* Is it a rack-mountable?
It's not rack-mountable because the indicators and controls are on the top, not the front panel

I give it 9/10 due to the fragility of the flat cable that connects the tube's receptacle. You'd better not need to replace it or you'd better learn how to solder.

USE

* Is it easy to make settings?
- Well, yes, you make connections depending on the cables you have (Jack or XLR)

* Is it easy to edit sounds or effects?
- You need to turn the controls and make a test recording. You can easily tell if you've gone too far.

* Is the user's manual clear and comprehensive? ...
I haven't read it much, except maybe to understand what the OPL was all about.

SOUND QUALITY

* Is the sound of your instruments or mics faithfully reproduced? Does the preamp sound transparent or does it color sound?
- No special remarks. It does what you expect from it (I connect to it my Shure PG52 to amplify the lows of my cajon)



OVERALL OPINION

* How long have you been using the product?
- Since September 2010

* Which feature do you like the most / the least?
+ It's compact
- Having the buttons on top and not on the front panel, which doesn't allow me to place a second one on top, that's not very cool

* Did you try any other models before buying it?
- I already had a Presonus Tubepre

* How would you rate its value for money?
- It was relatively expensive in the store where I bought it

* Based on your experience, would you buy this product again? ...
- No. But careful... not because it's a bad product! I love to have everything consistent, so I wanted a 2nd tubepre, but they didn't have another one, and I didn't want to wait for it to arrive.