Joe Meek 3Q vs M-Audio Tampa

[dickiefunk]

Hi. I'm looking for a preamp with compressor to add to compliment DMP3. I've been offered a M-Audio Tampa for £99 2nd hand which is the same price as the 3Q new.
Which of these pres has the best audio quality? I noticed the Tampa has a few more features than the 3Q which I won't need so I'd purely like to base this on sound.
I mainly need pres for Vocals. I also sometimes record Acou/Elec Guitar and Acou/Elec Bass. All the rest of my sounds are VSTi's (eZdrummer etc.)

[morelia]

I wish I could be of more help but all I can say is do some searching on the 3Q. It may be the greatest bang for buck pre out there but...I nearly bought one because of the name and price, but after looking and reading all the reviews I could find it was not all positive. I think the extra cost and some variation in user opinions made me go for a cheaper (Studio Projects VTB-1) which is fine for my needs.

Here are some opinions I found.

ive got one, and i must say, it is a very colored pre. All of the little extra goodies suck, but the pre is really nice.

http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/feb05/a ... threeq.htm

[Muzik 4 Machines]

i have a threeQ, nice preamp, the opto compressor tends to click on really transient-y material like a snare but it does a decent job for vocals
the eq is a tad noisy withh all controls to full but less than say a behringer simili tube things
I didnt know the tampa had a compressor

[Nonplus]

the tampa has no character whatsoever so there really is no comparison as joe meek stuff oozes character. pick according to your taste, not specs or features.

[Van Greco]

I agree. The compressor on the Tampa is effective, but transparent. The opto comp on the 3Q is much more colored. That may or may not be something you want. They are both about equal to me on pre quality.