April 21, 2025 I Anniversary
ART Celebrates 30 Years of the Tube MP
Applied Research and Technology (ART) is commemorating the 30th anniversary of the Tube MP. Since ART’s founding in 1984, it has been committed to designing great-sounding products that are reliable, easy to use and accessible to the average musician. In 1995, that mission produced the Tube MP: a compact, affordable tube microphone preamp.
Despite its small stature and modest price tag, the Tube MP was recognized at the 1996 TEC Awards, where it was nominated for Outstanding Technical Achievement in the Mic Preamplifier Technology category.
Today, the Tube MP remains in production and has fostered a full lineup with additional features like compressors, reamping, and presets.
“What’s truly remarkable about the Tube MP is how it’s stayed relevant through three decades of massive progress in recording technology,” said Jeff Cowling, vice president of sales and marketing at Yorkville Sound, one of ART’s original distributors, which ultimately acquired the brand in 1999.
The Tube MP launched at a time when tube mic preamps would typically cost hundreds or thousands of dollars, and made that classic sound affordable for project studios. As new formats started to emerge, it provided an affordable tube front-end for digital tape and hard disc recorders.
Today, as more music is mixed in the box with plugins, a Tube MP is a convenient character preamp that can complement any audio interface. With thousands upon thousands of units sold over the past 30 years, the Tube MP is ART’s best-known product.
