Demeter VTMP-2c

The Demeter VTMP-2C is a high-end tube-based stereo preamp made for musical recording. Demeter has been making high-end preamps for several decades and this is certainly their best effort yet.

I became interested in this pre after having good luck with other Demeter products including their Compulator and their Fat Overdrive pedals which I highly recommend.

This preamp is easy to use. Simply connect a mic to the input, and a recording device to the output and you are in business. Included are switches for phantom power, bass rolloff, phase reversal, and pad. Two volume controls are provided that allow you to fine tune whether the output is to sound fat or thin. The learning curve is low and all features of the box are easily mastered within a half hour of using it, even without reading the instructions.

The VTMP-2C is quiet and has no noise, hum, or buzzes. The sound is noticably colored and is certainly on the dark side though not muddy. It is smooth and detailed as well, but perhaps not as detailed as some high-end solid state preamps I've used. I tried it with a number a microphones including an AKG 414B, a Neumann TLM-103, and a Shure SM7B, and each sounded good, but again dark.

I am only rating this preamp a seven due to it's dark character. I have several other other preamps including a tube-based Avalon Vt737SP and a solid state A-Designs Pacifica that I find to be more versatile only because they are slightly brighter. But if a dark sound is what you are looking for than this pre is for you. Dark is not necessarily bad and it all depends what you like.

To brighten this unit I finally popped the lid and completely upgraded the pre with brighter capacitors including high-end MultiCap Polystyrene coupling caps made by Relcap as well as Blackgate Electrolytics. That did the trick! The darkness is gone and the sound now has even better clarity with better spectral balance. I love this preamp now.

I am not recommending this procedure because it violates the warranty and should only be done by a qualified professional. My only intention here is to tell you what I did to brighten things a bit and not to convince you to modify your unit.

Interestingly, the unmodified version of this preamp sounded great as an electric guitar direct box. Probably the best I've ever used. As a DI I would rate it a ten without any hesitation. It even blew my Avalon U5 away, it was that good.

This unit is actually a fine piece of gear just as it comes from the factory. James Demeter has proven to consistently make fine high-end products. I only modified this pre because I am a bit extreme and demand every last ounce of purity I can get. But you'll probably like this preamp just the way it comes from the factory. It's a nice unit.

Great reliability. No problems yet.

No opinion. Never had to deal with the company directly.

In sum, it's a nice unit that has that great tube sound that imparts a high degree of smoothness to your digital recordings. That's why I bought it. But it is also a bit dark sounding.