#39

in the field i find i get through 4-5h (half a day) with one 48V supplied boom mic, with standard (white) eneloops
At home i use power it off the mains with a hirose-fitted power supply.

#40

Bit of a bump a few months later, but what are people using as mobile preamps with their norns?

Would be great to have a single channel high quality preamp that’s DIY-able.

3 Likes
#41

I bought a used ROLLS mini mic pre which seems to work really well. It’s not battery powered but provides full phantom.

1 Like
#42

Interesting.

How is it in terms of noise?

#43

Hard to say. I haven’t used it to record very quiet sounds or used any mics that require a ton of gain. But I haven’t had any noise issues so far.

#44

Did you get anywhere with this in the end?

I was also looking at something like this:

It’s a shame there doesn’t appear to be much between DIY/supercheap(/crappy) and the Sound Devices MP-1, which is crazy expensive, and pretty big for a mobile preamp.

#45

I spent an afternoon at the LOM Audio space a few months back and got into a conversation with Jonáš about the That 1512/1510 Preamp circuits, which he described as a pretty solid option (likely better than most ce field recorder preamps).

there’s some kits of that circuit floating around, although I haven’t found one yet that can run off USB or battery power. might be an interesting place to start though…

1 Like
#46

Ah cool. I hadn’t come across the 1512/1510 before. A quick googling led me to some schematics and such, but indeed, didn’t see anything for USB or battery power.

I guess that’s the bottleneck here, as there are plenty of DIY preamps out there, just not in this formfactor/featureset.

#47

not really. I think it all might have been fantasyland bullshit, ie, lots of things connected up on a circuit board that would probably be unusably noisy. analog electronics is not my strong point, and I was possibly just doodling on holiday for doodling’s sake.

#48

Its been mentioned a few times before, but the Zoom H5/H6 really pairs nicely. I use my H5 as a portable 4 channel mixer with preamps. My only regret is I kinda wish I’d gotten the H6 for the additional channels. H5 was $200ish used, I think.

1 Like
#49

Has anyone ever come across a Shure FP23? It looks identical (literally) to the Sound Devices MP-1, and although it’s discontinued might be an alternative as well.

edit:
I bit the bullet and ordered a used one off eBay and will report back.

On a side note, does anyone have any experience with rechargeable batteries in things like these? Do they hold up/work out well? Any specific brands? I remember my Zoom flying through rechargeable batteries like a decade ago, but I figure batteries have gotten better since then.

#50

Another potential candidate in this space graced my inbox today: https://centrance.com/store/MicPort-Pro-2-Mobile-Recording-Interface-p129318859

Their products are somewhat unique given the built in battery power.

I can’t vouch for quality or their ability to deliver but I figured others might be interested (I backed a successful kickstarter of theirs for a mobile battery powered pre which the company ultimately failed to bring to market)

#51

I stumbled on this. Anyone had any experience with it? I’ve not used piezo and contact mics before but I believe you can attach them to acoustic instruments and, with some good placement and attention, get a decent sound. This looks like a cheap and mobile solution. Would love to hear people’s thoughts
http://pulplogic.com/product/ctact-box/

#52

Ask @pulplogic :slight_smile:

#53

I’m sure you are looking for a less biased opinion, but I’ll give you my take. The CTACT box is a pretty good contact mic pre-amp given the the self imposed constraints for size and power consumption. I wanted something small enough to connect to the side of my field recorder when using a contact mic on the go.

CTACT
CTACT.jpg2000×1330 1.23 MB

The CTACT box runs from a CR-2032 coin cell so the headroom is limited and the current needed to be kept low for a long battery life. It uses a OPA2314 which has pretty great specs for a low power rail to rail op amp. AC coupling is done through film capacitors and the pot is an Alps RK09L. Here is the schematic in case someone wants to do something similar DIY.
CTACT Box sch.pdf (26.0 KB)

9 Likes
#54

Thanks @pulplogic. This helpful. Do you think it would work at the front end of Norns for use on a marimba or glock etc?

#55

Sure, I think it will.

#56

Hello everyone!

This is my first post here and I must confess that I’m not really shure on what’s this forum for exactly!(could anyone help me out? What lines?). However it looks nice (is it discourse running below it’s surface?).
I therefor hope that my question is at the right place (and in the right sub-space).

I’ll get a Sound Decies MM1 for a recording next week. Due to some reason we can’t use wireless (nor long cable runs), so I have to set up 3 remote spots with independent recording devices and sync later.

For the Sound Devices MM1 I’ll use my Sony PCM M10 recorder which has a 3.5mm line input.

The MM1 outputs via XLR, so I’m gonna solder an XLR to 3.5mm stereo plug cable.
However, two questions arise I’m not sure about and that I ask you to help clarify:

a) Would I need a padded line between the MM1 and the Sony? If I use my old Sound Devices MixPre I can barely use the normal output to feed the Sony because the signal is too hot (+22dDu max, +18dBu with engaged limiter). There is however a dedicated “tape out” which outputs a consumer-friendly line level (+8 dBu, 2.0 V RMS) and compliments the Sony’s input.
The MM1 is just equipped with a professional-line-level output (again +22/+17). I’m not super tech-savvy but I foresee some trouble here: If the signal needs to be padded, would you tell me which resistor value to use?

b) On soldering the XLR to 3.5mm cable. The MM1 manual says: “Both the microphone input and line output of the MM-1 can be balanced or unbalanced without problems. When unbalancing (either input or output) ground pin 3 to pin 1. There is no change in gain with an unbalanced connection into or out of the MM-1.”

This corresponds to the rane tech note on sound system interconnection. It’s a bit vague in the statement:

“CROSS-COUPLED OUTPUT ONLY: CONNECT PIN 1 TO PIN 3 AT THIS END AND SET GROUND LIFT SWITCH TO ‘GROUNDED’ (IF PRESENT).”

As the MM1 is transformer balanced, this just means bridging pin 1 & 3 and that’s it? So cross-coupled only refers to the ground lift right?

Thank you.
Chris

#57

https://www.jlmaudio.com/shop/talkback-compressor-kit.html?display_tax_prices=1

SSL talkback compressor or a very fine THAT1510 mic pre - but not both at once :slight_smile: - this dudes so good/ its like a candy store

And those with valuable currency this stuff must be the best value for quality around ATM

#58

Could someone help me out with something? Whats the difference between a pre-amp and a pre-amp guitar pedal like the JHS Clover?