Vintech model 273 Reviews

Matt
from Florida
February 12, 2013Music Background:
Producer, Audio Engineer, Musician, Songwriter

An updated review - 5 years later

Its been almost 5 years since I added my Vintech 273 to my rack. I made a small modification to it a year or two ago at the recommendation of Dallas @ Vintech, so it is sonically the same as those shipping today. I gotta say, 5 years and countless tracks later, this did in fact turn out to be my go-to preamp.

My "budget" and mid-priced preamps have all been sold. My Focusrite Liquid Channel, while still being very cool, wasn't seeing a lot of action so it was sold also. The Vintech 273 is hands down one of the better investments I've ever made into my studio.

I've used add a little life to sterile keyboard tracks and loops, made good use of it as a DI for both bass and guitar, and have put countless amps, acoustic guitars, vocalists, and drums in front of this baby. I even had a thin and cold sounding mix that i MASTERED in part by running through this baby and hitting the output transformers hard while using the EQ to add a little meat to the low end and tame the high end a bit. (crazy huh?!?!)

My only regret is that I don't have at least 6 more channels. Most of my tracks run out of the Vintech and into an Empirical Labs FATSO and then through Apogee converters. The sound is fantastic. Warm enough to add some meat, clean enough to record light acoustic material. I have been recommending them to my friends for years and will continue to do so.

Shane D. Grush
from Fenton, MI
October 19, 2011Music Background:
Producer, Composer, Mixer, Musician

Nice & Smooth

Well this is my entry into the world of high end pre's and this unit is pretty stellar. Everything I've recorded thus far has just completely has been taken up a level. The picture is becoming more clear to me. If you want to make records that sound on par with the greats you've got to do it with quality gear. If you're looking to get a lot for your money this is a great piece of gear.

Highly endorsed. If you're stuck, talk to Kurt Martin. He'll help you figure out what solution is best for your studio and workflow. He's really great to work with.

Jay M.
from Chapel Hill, NC
June 29, 2010Music Background:
musician, recording engineer, producer

great dual preamp

Big, dimensional sound like we've heard all our lives! I use it for tracking most anything. Useful hi and low pass filters. People needn't worry here about this preamp being too colored. This is the kind of colored your DAW needs. A beautiful pre that can be described with a combination of adjectives that would normally contradict one another: punchy/shimmery/smooth/aggressive/fat/airy/warm/clear. It does all this. The 273 has improved the quality of my recordings tenfold.

Bruce Sokolovic
from NYC
June 28, 2009Music Background:
guitarist, dabbler, yada yada

your guitars NEED this!

wow. just wow. If you record guitars and dont have a high end pre, do your mics a favor: buy this! There really is no way around a good pre. they arent cheap, but you will hear a day and night difference in the tracks.

Wil Key
from Denver, CO
August 25, 2009Music Background:
23+ mixing, writing and performing. Clients include JIVE Records and Merv Griffin Productions.

Versatile and Phat on Drums

I just bought this unit after trying it out for a week in my studio. I hit it with
guitar, vocals, drums and bass and it did a really nice job on all. I own the LA-610, Grace m201 and Focusrite 428, but what the Vintech brings is a huge personality - not quite as colored as the 610.

Be aware that there are no input or output meters on this thing ( I was surprised). Also, even though it has an instrument in, Dallas Upton at Vintech recommends using a DI for instruments and going thru the Mic input as the 1/4" instrument input is not true "HI-Z." I tired this and got a much cleaner signal. I do recommend this pre for drums, guitar and vocals.

Jim B.
from New York
June 11, 2008Music Background:
Producer/Engineer/Composer

Great Pre!

I picked up this after hearing gushes of praise for the classic Neve sound. First, I love this thing's quarter-inch front panel inputs for synths. EQ to taste and you've got as good a synth sound as you'll ever get. My secret synth weapon! I've had great results with guitars, as well -- especially acoustics miked in stereo. It's wonderful to have 2 input channels of fantastic high quality. A great choice. I use it all the time, and after a year of knob twiddling, I've only started to explore its available sound colors.

Matt
from Georgia
April 9, 2008Music Background:
Recording, Mixing, and Mastering Engineer, musician

Love it!

Wow. Absolutely blown away with the sound. Its exactly what I like about the typical Neve style sound. I personally spoke with Dallas at Vintech before purchasing this as I seriously considered getting the X73i instead. I disagree with the last review in that I don't consider this to be too dark at all - the 1272 would be much darker, this sounds great. It has a meaty low end and low mids and sweet high end, yet still sounds balanced. The EQ is perfect for rolling off a little lowend on a boomy guitar, or adding a hint of "air" on a vocal. This will most likely become my go-to preamp for tracking.

Fletcher's Boy
from WA
March 9, 2008Music Background:
Recording/Mixing Engineer, Producer, Musician

Vintech Fan but not this product

I own and love both Vintech's X81 and X73i. I bought and returned a 273. I did not like the sound of the pre's as much. Dallas Upton at Vintech told me that the pre amps in the 273/473 closer resemble the Neve 1073 than the X73i/X73/X81. The 273/473 sounds a bit darker, less definition in the 8-12 KHz range, mids not as snappy and lows not well defined in my ear compared to the X series pre's. I wanted to love the 273 but didn't. I prefer Vintech's X series and Great River's ME-NV1 to the 273 /473 pre's considerably.

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