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Sound Devices Mix Pre-3 and Mix Pre-6


afewmoreyears

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1 hour ago, chrismedr said:

thanks for clearing that up, here's a follow up feature request:

an option to switch the input knobs to trim gain (instead of faders) in advanced mode. this would be great for those of us that only need ISOs and don't record a mix (in which case the fader knobs are completely without use) which I could imagine there's quite a few.

chris

ps: is it possible to change the thread title to something like "Sound Devices MixPre-3 and MixPre-6" ?

+1

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2 hours ago, yophoto91 said:

I kindly second this request. Given my workflow I'm often only concerned about adjusting the trim grain quickly and this would be a crucial feature for me. Would love to see this implemented. Thanks, Mark

Yeah, me too. Most of my dual-system-gigs I record Isos post fade and no mix track. I guess this Mixer-series might not be able to do Post fader isos, even in the future, but at least being able to control the trims would make it much more interesting.

Still, great work as usual, Sound Devices :).

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On 21 Apr 2017 at 5:12 AM, Paul Isaacs said:

Folks - you can use channel knobs to adjust your ISO levels. To do this, you would select Custom mode and set Record to Advanced and leave Channel set to Basic. When Channel is set to Basic, ISO levels are post channel knob and when Record is set to Advanced, ISOs can be armed.

thanks, was a bit worried because the original reply was not very clear on that.

price in europe seems to be around 800-900EUR (excl tax) (edit: some online shop lists the MixPre-3 as 649EUR+VAT already, so prices look good : ) for the MixPre-3, still a nice price but a bit annoying that Sound Devices products are always about 20% more expensive over here then in the US.

chris

 

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Question about powering the device through USB: I know it can be powered via USB through a laptop or USB Wall Adaptor, but can it powered via a portable USB Battery charger like an Anker battery pack?  What's the minimum power required via USB for it to fully function?  Thanks, Mark

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I have a question about the File format.  Not mentioned in the manual of either machine.   When recording ISOs  are the ISOs part of a multi-channel  Poly BWF file?  Or are the ISOs recorded as separate BWF Mono Files 1 File for each channel?  When you arm a track is it just an added channel to the LR Mix FIle?   Can the MixPre 3/6 record a Stereo LR mix and a separate  3 to 6 Channel Poly BWF for the ISOs?  If not, that would be a feature request for me for future updates.   I plan on picking up an MixPre 3 as soon as they are available.   Looks like a great thing for the podcasting/ Live Video streaming market.

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7 hours ago, cmgoodin said:

I have a question about the File format.  Not mentioned in the manual of either machine.   When recording ISOs  are the ISOs part of a multi-channel  Poly BWF file?  Or are the ISOs recorded as separate BWF Mono Files 1 File for each channel?  When you arm a track is it just an added channel to the LR Mix FIle?   Can the MixPre 3/6 record a Stereo LR mix and a separate  3 to 6 Channel Poly BWF for the ISOs?  If not, that would be a feature request for me for future updates.   I plan on picking up an MixPre 3 as soon as they are available.   Looks like a great thing for the podcasting/ Live Video streaming market.

All ISOs and mix tracks are recorded into one polyphonic file.

10 hours ago, yophoto91 said:

Question about powering the device through USB: I know it can be powered via USB through a laptop or USB Wall Adaptor, but can it powered via a portable USB Battery charger like an Anker battery pack?  What's the minimum power required via USB for it to fully function?  Thanks, Mark

Yes it can. 1.5A USB power source required for full functionality. The MixPre will tell you if the source is underpowered.

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I guess I´ll have to wait until EU prices are getting announced but the MixPre-6 seems like the perfect piece of gear for my first kit. The only relevant downside I can see for my work would be the lack of symmetrical outputs.

Question to all of you: would it theoretically be possible to go from the 3,5mm stereo out through a 2-channel-DI-box (inside my bag) and from there into the camera? For the return audio, I´d use the aux input. All in all I´d have the same kind of security that I´m used to working with. Would it work? Would you recommend it or not and if not why?

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1 hour ago, Janik Hampe said:

I guess I´ll have to wait until EU prices are getting announced but the MixPre-6 seems like the perfect piece of gear for my first kit.

there are some online shops which already show prices (pink noise, nagrit) - the nice thing is looks I was wrong in my earlier post, seems to be pretty much on par with the US prices (650EUR for the -3 and 900EUR for the -6 at nagrit)

1 hour ago, Janik Hampe said:

The only relevant downside I can see for my work would be the lack of symmetrical outputs.
Question to all of you: would it theoretically be possible to go from the 3,5mm stereo out through a 2-channel-DI-box (inside my bag) and from there into the camera? For the return audio, I´d use the aux input. All in all I´d have the same kind of security that I´m used to working with. Would it work? Would you recommend it or not and if not why?

would be helpful to know what is your line of work, but you could go from the unbalanced 3.5mm output to two unbalanced XLR and feed that into the camera - you need to be careful that the 3.5mm doesn't get unplugged and that you don't get noise in longer cable runs, plus you'll need to deal with the lower output when matching to camera, but for scratch it should generally be fine. 

If it's for production audio, you'd likely be better off with a mixer/recorder with balanced outputs.

 

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25 minutes ago, chrismedr said:

would be helpful to know what is your line of work, but you could go from the unbalanced 3.5mm output to two unbalanced XLR and feed that into the camera - you need to be careful that the 3.5mm doesn't get unplugged and that you don't get noise in longer cable runs, plus you'll need to deal with the lower output when matching to camera, but for scratch it should generally be fine. 

If it's for production audio, you'd likely be better off with a mixer/recorder with balanced outputs.

... or indeed an F4 / F8 ?

I was interested when I first glanced at the spec in using it as an interface for Nuendo and Protools, then saw the '4 out' would be through a stereo 3.5 and presumably a headphone amp. So not so suitable a feed for the Genelecs...

Still, for folks wanting an essentially 4 track FX recorder, well built with nice preamps, with additional feed for DSLR and a TC in, metadata etc, it is a contender.

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Totally forgot to say hi - hi all of you! I´m a new member to this forum and I´m very thankful for so many professionals sharing their experience. :-)

 

1 hour ago, chrismedr said:

would be helpful to know what is your line of work

I´m doing ENG, reality tv, documentaries and sometimes some industrial work. I´d like to slowly move away from ENG and reality tv towards musical recordings & scenic film. But at the moment the single system work still makes for my main income. So ideally the kit I´m planning enables me to work double system while mainaining the option to go single system and maintain a professional workflow (balanced signals), although it is not completely built for that.

1 hour ago, chrismedr said:

you could go from the unbalanced 3.5mm output to two unbalanced XLR and feed that into the camera - you need to be careful that the 3.5mm doesn't get unplugged and that you don't get noise in longer cable runs, [...]

Yeah, the 3,5mm has to be secured to not unplug in some way. But I´m not planning to do any unbalanced cable runs longer than 30cm.

1 hour ago, chrismedr said:

[...] plus you'll need to deal with the lower output when matching to camera, but for scratch it should generally be fine.

Why would the output be lower? According to the sounddevices website the stereo out outputs +7,8dBu, that´s professional line level.

1 hour ago, chrismedr said:

If it's for production audio, you'd likely be better off with a mixer/recorder with balanced outputs.

Which is why I´m thinking about balancing the signal by using a two channel DI box. Probably an active one to maintain the levels.

 

 

1 hour ago, The Immoral Mr Teas said:

... or indeed an F4 / F8 ?

I´ve been using a F8 for a documentary and while it worked out I don´t quite like using it. It´s things like the fader knobs beeing small and unpleasant to use. Or the headphone preamp beeing way to noisy. So before the announcment of the MixPre-6 the F4 was top of my list - but not anymore.

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4 hours ago, al mcguire said:

all things come to those who wait

I'll probably wait for the balanced outputs and the digital in then. Then wait a little longer for two sets of balanced outputs to interface quad speakers. I'm sure I can think of other things I can be waiting on ...

J x

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55 minutes ago, The Immoral Mr Teas said:

I'll probably wait for the balanced outputs and the digital in then. Then wait a little longer for two sets of balanced outputs to interface quad speakers. I'm sure I can think of other things I can be waiting on ...

J x

Very droll. 

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2 hours ago, The Immoral Mr Teas said:

I'll probably wait for the balanced outputs and the digital in then. Then wait a little longer for two sets of balanced outputs to interface quad speakers. I'm sure I can think of other things I can be waiting on ...

<grin> ... It won't be long before you figure out this isn't the tool for you.

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