Similar Best Sellers

Great River ME-1NV Desktop Microphone Preamp

Name: Great River ME-1NV Desktop Microphone Preamp
Brand: Great River
Rating: 5 (26 reviews)

Mono Mic Preamp with 20Hz-75kHz Frequency Response, 70dB Gain, and hi-Z Input

Write your review

Item ID: ME1NV

Great River ME-1NV Desktop Microphone Preamp

Backordered - More On The Way!

We expect more from Great River in just a few days. Order today to reserve yours now, risk-free. Estimated by May 10.

Notify me when in stock

Add to Cart

Ask An Expert

Our expertly trained Sales Engineers are ready to help!

(800) 222-4700

What is a Sales Engineer?

Have one to sell?
Check out Sweetwater's Gear Exchange!
Learn More

Great River ME-1NV Desktop Microphone Preamp

Backordered - More On The Way! – Notify me

Add to Cart

Add to list

Most Popular Accessories & Related Items

Back to navigation

This article was Written By

Our Product Research Team

Get to know them!

Classic "Tunable" Vintage Sound with Modern Sonic Fidelity

The ME-1NV is a single channel mic preamp that is designed to take the classic sound of the all-time studio-standard 1073 preamp and bring it to a new level of modern sonic fiedelity. Does it meet its design goals? Absolutely, with accuracy, transparency and vintage "tunable" sound! The circuitry allows for brilliant transformer saturation or the soft distortions of a single-ended amplifier. Extreme pushing of the unit will augment the sound of electric guitars, sound modules, and drums to add vitality, presence, and real punch.

Related Videos: ME-1NV Desktop Microphone Preamp

Vintage Sound

The Great River ME-1NV features iron in the signal path for that big vintage sound. Its no-latency output monitoring provides a buffered sound feed to your DAW workstation. The ME-1NV's hi-Z input is ideal to shape the sound for bass, electric guitar, and sound modules. Dual metering provides visual monitoring of gain staging. The ultra-quiet noise floor delivers "stealth" performance for rich, textured vocal sounds. The Great River MP-2NV is a stereo version of the ME-1NV that will add an enhanced image to your recordings. The Great River ME-1NV also has a full +70dB of input gain so you can take that prized ribbon mic out of the cabinet for a rich, creamy sound with all the detail and no muddiness.

Here's the bottom line. The Great River ME-1NV is a golden channel priced for the project studio and equally at home in a world class facility. This preamp has the ability to enhance the sound of high-end mics as well as being able to make inexpensive mics sound better. Just place your trusty SM57 in front of your guitar amp and run it through the ME-1NV, and you'll hear what we mean.

Great River ME-1NV Features:

XLR balanced in and out connections
1/4" -10dbV output for 'no-latency' DAW monitoring
hi-Z input on front panel
Adjustable gain in 5db steps to 60db
Output gain from -25 to +10db; maximum overall gain 70db
Frequency response: 20Hz to 75kHz
Input and output monitor meters on each channel
2 or 3 stages of single ended solid state amplifier gain blocks
Gold plated switching contacts
Front panel polarity, phantom power, input impedance, and output loading switches
High quality, custom wound Sowter transformers
Output transistor and transformer with heavy 70ma Class A bias
Local regulating of each channel
Long service life components
TRS insert patch ahead of the output amplifier
110, 220 volts, either 50 or 60Hz operation with external switching
2 year warranty with registration
Iron in the signal path for that 'Big Vintage Sound'
Zero-latency output monitoring provides a buffered sound feed to a DAW workstation
hi-Z input is ideal to shape the sound for bass, electric guitar, and sound modules
Dual metering provides visual monitoring of gain staging
Ultra quiet noise floor with 'stealth' performance for rich, textured vocal sounds
2-year warranty

The Great River ME-1NV is a world class preamp designed to capture world class performances at a project studio price!

Resources

Studio Preamp Buying Guide

Why Do Boutique Preamps Cost So Much?

Jul 10, 2020

Best Preamps for Snare Drum

Jul 17, 2017

Best Mics and Preamps for Acoustic Guitar

Apr 7, 2017

Great River Electronics

Dec 13, 2005

Warranty Info

Sweetwater's FREE 2-Year Total Confidence Coverage Warranty

Extra peace of mind at no extra cost.

Save money with FREE parts and labor
Get back to making music with the industry's fastest turnaround time
Fix it the first time with our award-winning, factory-certified Service Department

Learn More about Total Confidence Coverage

Back to navigation

Tech Specs

Preamp Type: Solid State
Number of Channels: 1
Phantom Power: Yes
Analog Inputs: 1 x XLR, 1 x 1/4" (Hi-Z)
Analog Outputs: 1 x XLR, 1 x 1/4"
Channel Inserts: Yes
Rack Spaces: Half (1U)
Height: 1.75"
Depth: 10"
Width: 8.6"
Weight: 6.5 lbs.
Manufacturer Part Number: ME1NV

What Makes Our Sales Engineers Great?

Sweetwater Sales Engineers are a world-class team of experts dedicated to you. Hand selected from across the globe, each brings a wealth of experience and expertise in the world of music gear to provide you with unparalleled service completely free of charge. Friendly relationships, real trust, and the right gear are only a call or a click away!

(800) 222-4700

Contact Your Sales Engineer

Back to navigation

Reviews

4.9

Customer Photos & Videos

This product doesn't have any review media yet!

I've done various sound effects, sound design and audio work so I'm fairly picky on audio gear. When I decided to ditch the typical audio setups I've been using during the pandemic for online calls, I went through intense research. I know I needed a high gain preamp to work with the Shure SM7B I was getting.

Didn't want super clean like a Grace or Millenia, instead I wanted a just little bit of character, and this thing absolutely delivers. Every review I ever read about the Great River mic pres had something good to say, even if someone preferred another unit for a specific purpose. What am I using it for? Sales calls...literally, all day long. How do I know it helps me? Because I work with audio software developers and they always take note of how good I sound. I give credit where it's due, and that's the Shure SM7B and Great River ME-1NV. It's cranked on the gain (almost all the way) and going into SPL Creon, and sounds amazing. Don't wait, get it now.

I've owned the NV1 pre for over five years now and recently had the opportunity to pick up another or an Avalon VT737-SP ...easy choice! *(I've owned two 737's in past for several years as well so well equipped w both units)

The NV1 can easily achieve the Sonics of the 737 wo any tubes (now the 737 does have extra eq and opto compressor but the compressor is idealistically useless ,to me). The 737 could make 7/10 vocalist sound crystal clear and we'll rounded (we will say smooth but i do not like that word ), but not the warmest preamp and again the compressor doesn't make it easier and the eq still won't give you as rich as a sound than hitting that creamy iron at around 35dB ! While the NV1 will sound terrific on 10/10 artist , if you can't get a good sound from an NV1 I'd move on to another project as no preamp will make that artist sound good.

If you want "clean" or "crystal clear" w the NV1 simply turn your gain down and crank the output to taste ...it also has a great impedance section for different mics and it works great for added sonic features for condenser mics ....tube and SOlid state based...

The DI section is also second to none ,though I have only needed to use it a handful of times, it's never failed to give a huge vintage tone or clean gain for say keys ....

I would recommend this preamp to any beginner level engineer as well as any seasoned veteran and that's no lie...on top of being portable (also rackmountable if desired, for about 35$) and built like a freaking tank that's going to fly through the Astro Belt! Oh the metering is very useful too when wanting to dial and sculpt your Sonics.

My first real preamp, this thing blows my mind! Turns something as simple as an SM57 into a delicious cream machine. Never record bass or vocals without it. Honestly basically use it for everything because if you turn the input gain down it's super clean. If I could marry this thing I would.

I've read reviews of pres over the years where people say things like "The first time I used it, it was like the fog lifted," or "the clouds finally dissipated." For me, the ME-1NV is the pre that gave me that experience. The sound is clear, rich, musical, and textured. My other main preamp experience is with the Grace M101, which I also like, but to my ears, the Great River is quite a few steps up the quality ladder. I've also used the Focusrite ISA Two, which I like, but yields a kind of crisp, almost digital sound. That's great for some uses, but lacks the dynamism of the Great River. The ME-1NV has a bit more "character" than either of those pres, which I think of as a gentle warmth and resonance in all registers of the voice.

My use case is primarily narration and storytelling for radio and podcast, and the Great River paired with a U87 is as close as I've ever come to the elusive Golden Channel. Highly recommended if it's in your price range!

Sounds sooo good! best mic pre for the money.

Hear from a Sales Engineer

What Do Our In-house Gear Experts Think?

David Snyder

I have achieved a whole new level of professionalism in my home studio since I started using the Great River ME-1NV. I've worked with some pretty high-end singers, and they expect great-sounding vocals. With Class-A iron inside, and a simple but comprehensive set of controls outside, this is the vintage sound I've always looked for. I love being able to adjust both the front end and output level to hit my DAW at just the right saturation, and man, is it quiet! Nothing but pure tone, that even rivals the Neve 1073's I used to rent!

See also: Stu Preamp, Great River, Great River Preamps