Hello, I currently have two Echo Audiofire 12 interfaces which gives me 24 in/24 out. They have 1/4" inputs with no built in preamps.
I currently have several Behringer MIC2200's that I use and I've been generally happy with them, but I've had a couple of channels die and instead of replacing the units, I'm considering going in a bit of a different direction and seeing if there is a way to do this better but still be affordable.
I currently have an SM Audio PR8 which is decent, but it only has a single volume knob, not volume and gain which I want. I would also like switchable phantom power for each channel, but that's not a deal breaker.
I would also prefer for the XLR inputs to be in the rear of the unit if it's rackmounted, just to try to keep uncluttered and for appearance, but that's not essential.
ADAT is not important. My interface doesn't support it.
I'm looking at the ART TubeOpto 8 and it seems very nice. I would need 3 of them, which definitely gets expensive.
http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/TubeOpto8/
Is there a better way to get 24 channels of quality pres in another way, perhaps with a mixer that has direct outs for each channel?
Thanks!!