Golden Age Project Pre-73 Jr Microphone Preamp Reviews

This mic pre added the extra dynamic range my vocals needed. It went from tinny to warm and and super clear. If you know how to EQ your vocals really well you'll get the most out of this mic pre, and your current budget priced microphone will sound like a way more expensive mic. A definite great purchase.

Golden Age Project has taken my recordings to a new level at an affordable price, thanks guys!

The GAP 73 Jr. Preamp is, for lack of better words, simply outstanding. My mic is the Warm Audio 47 Jr., fed into the Pre 73 Jr, which is going into the Audient EVO 4 interface. Now, don't get me wrong -- the EVO 4 preamps are good...but the sound of the 73 Jr. runs circles around them. There is no way to describe how much cleaner the sound is, coming from the GAP, with the Output turned up and the Gain turned all the way down...and how much "rounder" the 47 Jr. sounds with the Gain nudged to about 30. Yes, the 73 Jr. is just a basic little preamp, and it's big brother has more bells and whistles...but, for voiceovers and podcasting, the GAP Pre 73 Jr. is one impressive little unit.

I was in the market for a good mic pre-amp and my sales rep helped guide me through that vast array mic pre-amps. The Pre-73 is a fantastic mic pre-amp. It's quiet, easy to use and works well with my DAW. It's an affordable piece of equipment that is capable of pro quality recordings.

I needed a quality backup for my UA La-610 MKII, but didn't want to break the bank.
The GAC Pre-73 delivers a detailed and warm sound you would expect to find with a much more expensive mic pre.
I expected that the GAC Pre-73 would only be used when my main mic pre was down, but I like it so much that I use it to record my podcast. Whether you are on a budget or not, this is a great addition to any studio.
Easy to use, great sound, and priced modestly you can't go wrong with the GAC Pre-73!

I got 2 of these preamps and they are great! They give just enough color. They do over saturate at high gain to the point where it's unusable, but under normal gain, great tone, easy to use.

Great unit, just started to put it through paces with a bluebird condenser, wow! I plan on buying another 7.

I needed quality, mobility, and affordability. I found it with this mic-pre. It has been sounding great when tracking banjo, acoustic guitar, and female vocals. I have been using it with an AKG 414.

I love these little guys. Super easy to use and easy to get a great sound out of them. The fact that they have an insert in the back is also great. It's great to chain these with some compression and EQ. I have used Neve 1073s several times and these give a very similar kind of coloration. No, they are not as "heavenly" as the classic 1073s, BUT for the price, I haven't found a preamp that beats them. Dialing in the gain on these gives such great character to vocals, and I especially love them on toms. Not to mental, they feel legit. These are built like tanks, nice and heavy and the dials click with that same 1073 "uumf."

Definitely recommend.

There are better preamps, yes, I know. And heck, I'd love to splurge! Who wouldn't? But for what I am doing, there's something immensely satisfying about this preamp that pulls me out of feeling like I'm only recording into a impersonal computer by way of a sleek high-tech audio interface and transporting myself backwards through the decades and competing with Sir Paul and company for the next big hit. "HANDS across the water...." Oh, yeah? Check this out; then reach over to adjust the level only to find more satisfaction: that incremental GAIN knob that takes the fidgety guess work out of the adjustment and puts me in the ballpark so I can get back to recording. Metal. Mid-20th century space-age tech. Fun! But hands-on experience aside, the GAP's sound is real. Really nice. Full of character and musicality. Since I'm not in a professional studio, this is good enough for me to make music that, so far as I can tell, sonically stacks up to all the music I grew up with and still love. Whether or not I'll ever produce anything as rewarding as John Barleycorn Must Die or Ram or Mississippi Queen or etc. etc. etc. doesn't really matter. I'm still inspired to make music, into which sometimes a good piece of gear or two can re-inject enthusiasm.

A reasonably priced mic preamp that delivers a pleasing, noise-free, with or without warm coloration of the sound -depending on how you set the input gain and output gain. With upto 75 dB input gain, it can handle almost any vocal recording situation. A must for a budget-conscious musician with a home recording studio.

I have loved the Electro Voice RE20 mic since I first used it in 2004. When I built my own home recording studio a few years ago I knew it would be in my studio. What I didn"t realize was how hard I would struggle to get a sufficient signal from the mic in pro tools. On board mixer preamps are not enough. I went through 2. Unless you are ok with the sound quality where the gain is 3/4 up or maxed entirely. I don"t consider that quality sound on a vocal and having the noise floor that much louder. The cloud lifter is not enough either. You need a ton of gain for that mic and this is the preamp for it. You won"t be disappointed. I bought 3. One for each mic. Yes, having a all in one unit with multiple channels would be great for ease of space and studio layout but it works and works beautifully, at a cost that doesn"t really break the bank.

As my mentor says...
To me, these old design pre's have a natural compression and smoothness to them.
But they still have a lot of mid-range detail.

And as for me...
For the money you can't go wrong, and of course Sweetwater's support is second to none.

I've been in the voice over business for three years, and I never knew how important this piece of tech really was. I am blown away by what this pre-amp and a Tascam UH-7000 can do. I went with the JR to save space in my booth, and it's one power house of an amp for its compact size1

I've only used it on vocals thus far, but I immediately noticed that it provides that warmth, depth, character and liveliness that you'd want from an analogue pre. I've never used a 1073, but the Pre-73 Jr sounds great to me. It has plenty of gain, even for mics like the SM7B. Haven't tried it with my passive ribbons yet, though. It's not the cleanest - it is a TAD noisy when the gain and output are cranked, but it's a nice analogue hiss, which I suppose is desired from something like this. For the price and the sound...I want 3 more!

We own several 2 in/2 out USB interfaces for mobile recording rigs, with my favorite being the Audient iD14, which allows 8 more inputs via ADAT. The next best is one that I would never have bet on for being so transparent, a Mackie Producer 2-2 with ONYX pre's. The headroom provided by the ONYX preamps allows me to use a wide variety of microphones, providing phantom power and XLR, Hi-Z, and line inputs. Sometimes I desire a bit of color on my vocal tracks but those ONYX pre's are too clean. I borrowed a Golden Age Pre-73 Jr to see if it would give me a bit o' spice along the way and boy, did it ever! The Mackie interface provides a line-in option and when I plugged the 73 Jr in, my ears screamed NEVE. Amazing preamp for the $$, and now I would rather use the Producer 2-2's ONYX pre's, and add the Golden Age when needed. The Golden Age Pre-73 Jr allows me to adjust the gain and output knobs to add exactly what I need for just about any mic. The best under 500 spending gitas rig I have ever used. While the iD14 has the best headphone amp of all USB interfaces I have used, the Mackie Producer 2-2's many options and ability to add in the 73 Jr is by far a better rig for me. I am totally blown away by the quality of the GAP 73 Jr; my only gripe is I wish it had a a different power source. The DI is awesome,too. For this price-point, this is The One. Buy one. Or two..or four!

I've used all the big pre's, consoles, after 30 years as a full-time musician, engineer, stage manger, FOH, what ever paid the bills.

I use this one, with a DBX 160A on Kick with a Beta 52 just inside the sound hole. Records great. Does it sound just like a Neve 1073? No. Does it matter after mixing, mastering, MP3 compression, iTunes? No.

Great Value.

Jason