Q: I have a Bock Audio 195 microphone, and it seems like there is no output. The meters on my Daking Mic Pre One aren’t even moving. Is something defective?
A: Everything is probably okay. The Bock Audio 195 is designed to work in a wider variety of real studio applications, from screaming guitar amps to quiet vocalists. It is scaled for lower output to prevent it from distorting on loud sources. As a general rule, the 195 needs 45-50dB of gain, so turning a preamp all the way up if you are some distance from the mic isn’t unusual.
On the Daking Mic Pre One, the meter doesn’t start to indicate level until you get to -17 or so, so low input levels sometimes don’t show. It’s perfectly okay to turn up the level to max or near max. Daking Mic Pres offer 70dB of gain, more than enough for the Bock 195.
