Opens in a new window
ART Pro Audio
Tube MP/C PreAmplifier/Compressor
Additional Photos:
Limited stock available in select stores only
2 Available through Gear Hunter from $89
The Tube MP/C (PreAmplifier/Compressor) is a multi-purpose tool for audio engineering and recording. Two independent circuits featuring a tube-based analog preamplifier and a VCA-less compressor with optical gain reduction control are housed in one, convenient desk-top chassis. Used as a mic/line preamp or as a DI (direct) box, the Tube MP/C is designed to work seamlessly with any recording, sound-reinforcement, or electronic instrument setup. A R T's Tube MP/C circuitry is a hybrid design utilizing the latest, most advanced, solid-state and tube technology.
The preamplifier's active balanced solid-state input provides extremely low noise and excellent common mode rejection. The -inch high impedance input prevents loading of any connected device making the Tube MP/C perfect for DI or line level applications. The preamplifier's second stage 12AX7a tube runs on a regulated DC voltage providing an additional 20dB of gain.
The compression circuit features a VCA-less design and utilizes optical electronics (Vactrol) coupled with a 12AX7a vacuum tube gain stage for superior musical performance.
Features
• Tube-based mic/line preamplifier with up to 80 dB of gain
• Hand-selected 12AX7a tube
• Optical (VCA-less) compressor circuitry = transparent dynamics control
• -inch unbalanced inputs and outputs
• XLR balanced inputs and outputs
• Transformer isolated XLR output
• Selectable output range for Line/Instrument interface levels
• LED meters for Tube Warmth, Gain Reduction and Output level
• +48V phantom power
• Phase reversal switch
• Selectable release time settings
• > 90dB dynamic range
• Custom extruded aluminum chassis
Specifications
Frequency Response: 30 Hz 60 kHz +/- 1 dB balanced output, 20 Hz 60 kHz +/- 1dB 1/4" output
Total Harmonic Distortion: < 0.1% @ max gain
CMMR: > 60 dB @ max gain
Equivalent Input Noise: -128dBu typical ("A" wtd., Shorted XLR balanced input, gain @ max)
Input Impedance: 1M Ω 1/4" input, 5K Ω XLR input
Input/Output Connections:
• Input: XLR balanced or 1/4" balanced
• Output: 1/4" unbalanced XLR balanced, transformer isolated.
Maximum Gain: +80 dB (balanced in-out, +64dB (unbalanced input, balanced output)
Maximum Input Level: unbalanced (Inst): +15 dBu, balancd (mic): +10 dBu
Maximum Output Level: +19 dBu (Line mode)
Output Impedance: XLR: < 600 Ω / 1/4": < 300 Ω
Low Cut Filter: -3 dB @ 70 Hz, 6dB/Octave
Phantom Power: Switch selectable, +48Volts DC, filtered, current limited
Power Requirements: 9VAC @ 1000mA (external)
Attack Time: < 1 ms (limit), 20 ms (comp.)
Release Time: 150ms (fast), 20ms 3s Program dependant (Auto)
Tube Type: Hand selected 12AX7a
Compressor Slope: 2:1 (Comp.) / 11:1 (Limit)
The preamplifier's active balanced solid-state input provides extremely low noise and excellent common mode rejection. The -inch high impedance input prevents loading of any connected device making the Tube MP/C perfect for DI or line level applications. The preamplifier's second stage 12AX7a tube runs on a regulated DC voltage providing an additional 20dB of gain.
The compression circuit features a VCA-less design and utilizes optical electronics (Vactrol) coupled with a 12AX7a vacuum tube gain stage for superior musical performance.
Features
• Tube-based mic/line preamplifier with up to 80 dB of gain
• Hand-selected 12AX7a tube
• Optical (VCA-less) compressor circuitry = transparent dynamics control
• -inch unbalanced inputs and outputs
• XLR balanced inputs and outputs
• Transformer isolated XLR output
• Selectable output range for Line/Instrument interface levels
• LED meters for Tube Warmth, Gain Reduction and Output level
• +48V phantom power
• Phase reversal switch
• Selectable release time settings
• > 90dB dynamic range
• Custom extruded aluminum chassis
Specifications
Frequency Response: 30 Hz 60 kHz +/- 1 dB balanced output, 20 Hz 60 kHz +/- 1dB 1/4" output
Total Harmonic Distortion: < 0.1% @ max gain
CMMR: > 60 dB @ max gain
Equivalent Input Noise: -128dBu typical ("A" wtd., Shorted XLR balanced input, gain @ max)
Input Impedance: 1M Ω 1/4" input, 5K Ω XLR input
Input/Output Connections:
• Input: XLR balanced or 1/4" balanced
• Output: 1/4" unbalanced XLR balanced, transformer isolated.
Maximum Gain: +80 dB (balanced in-out, +64dB (unbalanced input, balanced output)
Maximum Input Level: unbalanced (Inst): +15 dBu, balancd (mic): +10 dBu
Maximum Output Level: +19 dBu (Line mode)
Output Impedance: XLR: < 600 Ω / 1/4": < 300 Ω
Low Cut Filter: -3 dB @ 70 Hz, 6dB/Octave
Phantom Power: Switch selectable, +48Volts DC, filtered, current limited
Power Requirements: 9VAC @ 1000mA (external)
Attack Time: < 1 ms (limit), 20 ms (comp.)
Release Time: 150ms (fast), 20ms 3s Program dependant (Auto)
Tube Type: Hand selected 12AX7a
Compressor Slope: 2:1 (Comp.) / 11:1 (Limit)
Q & A
There are currently no questions for this product.
Reviews
18.222.115.120
Mozilla/5.0 AppleWebKit/537.36 (KHTML, like Gecko; compatible; ClaudeBot/1.0; [email protected])
Swiss army knife 2 of 2 customers found this review helpful
Features
Quality
Value
Overall
Product Experience I own it
Closest Store Edmonton South, Alberta
I was finding my scarlett’s hi z lacking while tracking a bass, so I rented one of these to try out, and I ended up buying it. Gave me a great bass tone with very little effort. My guitars also sound much better through this unit with just a little bit of warmth dialed in.
The mic pre is surprisingly quiet, and gives good detail. The colour of the pre amp is pleasing to the ear, and a nice change from the sterile sound of my interface or the forward aggressive tone of my 312’s.
The opto compressor is great for shaving off a few db on the way in. Heavy gain reduction will induce distortion which is not unpleasant. Limited controls, but being opto it will ride your signal in a musical way.
Reamping!!! Just tried out this function with a previously recorded DI guitar through my series one 45. Sounded really good! Looking forward to experimenting.
Great DI, nice sounding mic pre, useful compressor, reamping capability all in a sturdy metal case with chassis mounted jacks for $150. Hard to find fault when the value is so good.
Posted by Ryan on Jul 3, 2021
Hidden Home Studio Gem 2 of 2 customers found this review helpful
Features
Quality
Value
Overall
Product Experience I own it
Closest Store Toronto (Bloor St.), Ontario
I can't compare this with upper tier pre-amps / compressors, however for a small home studio this is a hidden gem which I highly recommend.
Adds tube warmth and compression to your recordings. Made a major difference for vocals, over my interface's pre-amp. Saves you some hassle and cpu-bandwidth instead of using software limiters and compressors.
Tube can be swapped, I put in an NOS 5751 for some added tonal depth and quality and a little less gain. Plug in a guitar and now you have a great little DI tube preamp, crank the gain and get pure tube distortion.
Taking it apart and swapping the tube is fairly simple, though a little bit tricky to get the old tube out and the new one in. Not as simple as swapping guitar preamp tubes, but still simple enough.
All in all a quality, affordable piece of equipment for smaller home set ups.
Posted by Dan on Sep 4, 2020
Great amount of gain. Very nice compressor 2 of 2 customers found this review helpful
Features
Quality
Value
Overall
Product Experience I own it
Closest Store Kanata, Ontario
I got this to use as a mic preamp for a condensor mic. Wanting to have lots of gain added before my audio interface, and hardware compression.
My original use was for voice. But I found the preamp and compressor to be very useful for musical application. Like I can plug my bass guitar into this and then directly into my USB audio interface and record it, and have pretty descent sound. The hardware compressor sounds pleasing for the kinds of bass lines i was working on anyway.
I was happy with the stock tube sound. But I got a Sovtek tube. I find these to be somewhat "less" headroom and crunch up easier in my guitar amplifier. So using this in the ART Tube MP/C really brings out that "tube-y" sound. Even with less compression, when you drive up the tube gain knob you are able to hear that tube compression as your input signal is being squashed from the non linearity of the tube.
Though it did require a bit of fiddling and experimentation to learn the sweet spot settings for the knobs. But this is like any effect or preamp device with knobs. You need to be invested in trying to figure it out to get the most out of it.
Posted by anonymous on Aug 12, 2019
Great value 1 of 1 customers found this review helpful
Features
Quality
Value
Overall
Product Experience I own it
Closest Store Toronto (Bloor St.), Ontario
For less than $100 you get a good, noiseless preamp and a simple compressor that works very well with most instruments. This unit is most useful with passive pickups for acoustic instruments that have a weak signal (e.g. surface mount pickups), and also works well for recording electric guitar or bass without worrying about peak levels all the time. With a keyboard it can even out the tone and add color to the sound. Once again, a very good device for the price. The build quality is also very good, like all ART equipment.
Posted by François on May 14, 2017
Not bad 2 of 2 customers found this review helpful
Features
Quality
Value
Overall
Product Experience I own it
Closest Store St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador
It has some creative uses but if I had my time and money back I'd save it for a more versatile compressor worth investing in for the long haul. The preamp isn't really that special either, but it is usable.
It can add a different character to your audio but I find it a little too much colour. I do like experimenting with it to drive a guitar. The compressor is not so impressive in my experience - but play with it and find an application for it. It's not an all around tool that can be used on everything, as far as I'm concerned.
I like the tube tone, it's not bad - just not great. I didn't expect a miracle, and was still underwhelmed.
Posted by anonymous on Aug 20, 2015
Available In Gear Hunter
Sale Price: $89.00
Store Location: New Brunswick, Fredericton, 981 Prospect Street, E3B 2T7
Email: [email protected]
Phone: (506) 458-5858
Sale Price: $129.00
Store Location: Ontario, Gravenhurst, 1170 Muskoka Road South, P1P 1K9
Email: [email protected]
Phone: (249) 300-0888
Rental rates
This product is normally available for rental. Please contact your preferred location for further information.
1 Day from $3.00
1 Week $5.00
1 Month $9.00
Protect your investment with the Long & McQuade Performance Warranty
A warranty can be a very important factor when making a buying decision. Because repairs can be very expensive in terms of parts and labour costs, manufacturers usually only provide one year limited warranties that generally only cover items that malfunction due to a manufacturer’s defect. With an important purchase such as a musical
instrument or piece of studio gear, however, many people want to have the peace of mind in knowing that their investment will be protected should the product no longer be performing at 100%.
Because of this, Long & McQuade provides our customers with a FREE one-year Performance Warranty on most of our products. The Long & McQuade Performance Warranty supplements the manufacturer’s warranty to ensure that our customers receive complete “no hassle” warranty coverage within their first year.
How does the Long & McQuade Performance Warranty differ from most manufacturers' warranties?
- Performance Guarantee: Normal wear and tear is covered, so your product will be performing as well as the day you purchased it for the entire duration of the coverage. Band and Orchestral Performance Warranty does not include replacing pads or cleaning for woodwind instruments, unless deemed necessary by our repair staff. Ultrasonic cleaning for brass instruments will be provided if deemed necessary by our repair staff, but is not routinely offered under the Performance Warranty.
- Product Replacement: If your product cannot be fixed or costs too much to fix, we will replace it with the equivalent model for no additional charge. If this is not possible, a full refund will be provided.
- No Lemon Policy: Your product will be replaced should the same problem occur multiple times.
- Convenient: Easy drop off and pick up of the product at any Long & McQuade location.
- Guitar Setup: Guitars purchased at Long & McQuade come with 1 free setup, to be redeemed within 1 year for new guitars and 90 days for used guitars.
- Loaners Available: A loaner product may be given while the product is being repaired.
- Power Surge Protection: Your product is covered even if damaged from a power surge.
- Accessory Coverage: Any peripheral devices or accessories that come with your product (i.e. foot pedal, case) are also covered.
- Commercial Use Coverage: Music and recording professionals who purchase gear for “heavy-use” commercial purposes will still be covered.
Long & McQuade reserves the right to restrict the purchase of additional years of Performance Warranty. Used products come with a 3-month Long & McQuade Performance Warranty. Some products (i.e. computers, software, cymbals and other items) are covered only by the manufacturer‘s warranty. Consumables (i.e. strings, reeds, drum sticks, batteries, tubes, cross faders) are excluded as they are designed to be replaced. Cosmetic Damage, Accidental Damage, or problems caused by Humidity or Temperature Issues are not covered. Speakers damaged by overpowering are generally not covered. Our coverage does not provide compensation for loss of use. As of June 2018 the Performance Warranty is no longer transferable. The warranty is only valid in Canada.
Purchasing additional years of coverage
Some manufacturers provide warranties for longer than 1 year; however, these are usually limited warranties that do not provide the same coverage as the Long & McQuade Performance Warranty. Customers interested in more complete and convenient (but not necessarily longer) coverage are still able to purchase additional years of the Performance Warranty.
If you are interested in receiving this coverage for longer than one year, you have the option of purchasing additional years of the Performance Warranty. The pricing is as follows:
- NEW products: 4% of the current new selling price to double the warranty from 1 year to 2 years. 4% for each additional year.
- USED products: 4% of the current new selling price to increase the warranty from 3 months to 1 year. 4% for each additional year.
- GUITARS: 4% of the current new selling price to double the warranty from 1 year to 2 years. 4% for each additional year. $45 maximum. An additional free setup is not included with additional purchased years of Performance Warranty.
- BAND and ORCHESTRAL instruments: 4% of the current new selling price to double the warranty from 1 year to 2 years. 4% for each additional year.
Great Additions
Reserve in Store
| Product | SKU | Qty |
|---|---|---|
| Tube MP/C PreAmplifier/Compressor | 359396 |
