#DIY 500 SERIES MODULES SERIES#
In the past few years, many improvements have been made to 500 series racks and modules. My clients pay me for a reason and they deserve the best audio path I can give them. In my studio, I don't want to compromise. Due to cost and space concerns, I began to look more closely at 500 series. Not as big of a deal, but still something to consider. They also take up real estate in my rack. Even with good deals, these pres are quite the investment. I looked high and low for good deals on API, Focusrite, Manley and so many more. Thus began my search for outboard preamps. In some cases, the console is just too thick and makes everything take up too much space. I really wanted to be happy with just those preamps, but the more I record different kinds of bands, the more I realized I need some preamps with less noise (vocals), some preamps that are cleaner (some guitars) and some preamps that react faster (some drums). The console sounds great and I'm satisfied with my work. Long story short, I acquired a Yamaha PM-1000 and overhauled it to sound Neve-ish. I had also heard lots of negative things about 500 series racks and modules not having enough power, headroom and overall quality to compete with anything serious.
But it seemed so expensive to start with. 500 series always interested me because of their configuration versatility and honestly, it just looks cool. I fought with this decision for a long time. Let's get started! Why did you get into 500 series? In this article, I'll take you through why I decided to do this and what gear I have and am planning on getting. As a console and rack gear guy to the core, I decided to take a journey into the 500 series realm.