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UA LA 610, Anyone use it? Live?

Les Izmor

Les Izmor

Mar 10, 2008
221
60
Western Mass
#1
I'm interested in using the Universal Audio LA 610 to record various instruments and vocals with garage band, and maybe even as a pre for live bass playing as well. I've not heard one, so I was wondering if anyone here has any experience using this in the studio or live. Seems natural for bass use. I'm just starting my project studio and it seems like this could be worth the money if I can use it as much as it seems I'd be able to. Any reason why I couldn't use it live?
 
#3
the 610 is not a great pre for bass, its a tad wooly sounding because of the tube, its better suited to vocals, you see a lot of them for sale by folks figuring that out.
it would be one of the last I would choose for what you are attempting, but it might work well if you find the right power amp to match up to it and for the right style of music

the concept is not new, thats basically what jonas hellborg's new amp is all about, taking a discrete neve like mic pre as a front end and then matching it with a specific type of power amp, combining studio and live style electronics

if you must use the 610 you might get better results with a sold state power amp to get some of the snap back that the 610 takes away.
 
#5
i disagree that it'd be a bad investment.

If you have a nice condenser mic and like to record, I'd like into a summt audio pre or a millenia pre. They both offer incredibly flexible single channel pres.

For me and my situations, I would never use a pre like that with a live set up. Too expensive/risky.

You'd have to buy a nice power amp too. That becomes heavy and cumbersome.
 
#7
the 610 circuit has a very old school warm sound, it has a slow attack and a soft tone.

it is not punchy like and API or a Chandler TG, or clear like like some of the non colored pres. For a tube pre it is not as big sounding as some others, but for the price point and with the LA built in as a portable module, it is a nice idea. There has been talk of a higher end 610 in the works.

best way to go is to get one on a trial basis and see first hand how it works for your application.
 
#8
The UA dual 610 was used on the "Java Men" cuts on the soundclips page of my website. I really liked the sound for DB. The engineer ran a large diaphragm condenser through one channel and a small diaphragm condenser through the other. It's a great pre, but it has its own sonic character and is kind of pricey unless you know you want that color.
 
#9
I have one and use it sometimes live.
I only bring it when I know it's gonna be good conditions , and "I" do the transportation :smug:
Else , I use a TD-100 as preamp.

It IS colored but I like that color very much. With a Jazz bass , you can have that B15"Ish tubey sound that I'm very found of.
It's an emulation of the 610 pre and LA2A comp.

(I use a RCF 310A and a Mackie SRM450 as amps )

In the studio , I find it very nice on everything low end ; kick , bass , floor etc and vocals.
 
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#10
lambro said:
the 610 is not a great pre for bass, its a tad wooly sounding because of the tube, its better suited to vocals, you see a lot of them for sale by folks figuring that out.
it would be one of the last I would choose for what you are attempting, but it might work well if you find the right power amp to match up to it and for the right style of music

the concept is not new, thats basically what jonas hellborg's new amp is all about, taking a discrete neve like mic pre as a front end and then matching it with a specific type of power amp, combining studio and live style electronics

if you must use the 610 you might get better results with a sold state power amp to get some of the snap back that the 610 takes away.
Click to expand...


For what it's worth, I completely disagree with all of this. I have the LA 610 and love the way it sounds on bass as well as certain vocals. The opto- compressor is not really supposed to be an LA-2A, but it' somewhat in that neighborhood sound- wise. Most importantly, it has a purple light and big knobs. These will both help your tone immensely.
 
#11
corinpills said:
For what it's worth, I completely disagree with all of this. I have the LA 610 and love the way it sounds on bass as well as certain vocals. The opto- compressor is not really supposed to be an LA-2A, but it' somewhat in that neighborhood sound- wise. Most importantly, it has a purple light and big knobs. These will both help your tone immensely.
Click to expand...

Actually,..... Universal Audio claims that the LA-610 compressor section "...was carefully designed to deliver the essence of the “LA” sound but without the costs..."
For what it's worth. I do agree, however, that the LA-610 doesn't sound exactly like a vintage LA-2A.

I used to use the LA-610 for bass. I ended up selling it because it often sounded too "soft". The tone it imparts to bass is really cool, but not for every situation in my opinion. It's still a viable choice as a bass pre, but I've found that more engineers prefer it for vocals than bass.
 
#12
I see my LA610 as a tool , depending on the needs I'll use different preamps to get different sounds . My Bryston BMP2 is Ultra transparent and the LA610 is not, neither is my TD-100.
All depends on the sound I'm looking for andI'm very happy to have a 610 under my hand.

If you like that sound , buy it, if you're looking for a transparent tone , not the right tool....
 
#13
I just now realized the sort of wooly low end effect it can have.

I've been using one for years as my recording preamp for (mainly) Fender basses, and thought it sounded great.

I got a Rickenbacker 4003 last year, and especially the neck pickup solo'd, just sounded wooly all the time. I thought maybe the pickup was really sensitive, or very particular about string type or something.

It finally dawned on me that it was the LA-610. It does still sound perfectly fine on my Fender Jazz Bass, but on the Rickenbacker, the low end just gets too muddy, wooly, muffled, whatever.

This, of course, completely invalidates all of the string choice test recordings I've done with the Rickenbacker over the past months. :-(
 
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