Can I use a Cloudlifter with my MKH 416?

[Jarred Jones]

Currently, my ZOOM H6 gets WAY too noisy past the 7 notch mark on the gain dial.

Up till 1-6, it's great! But once it hits 7 and above, it gets so darn noisy it's almost unusable.

Would getting the Cloudlifter, plugging it into my MKH 416 and ZOOM H6 work? Or would it not be compatible?

Thank you for reading.

 

[Marc Wielage]

What is a Cloudlifter?

The preamps in the Zoom H6 are noisy because it's a cheap, crappy $399 recorder. If you want good preamps, unfortunately those cost real money. One good mic preamp could easily cost $399 just by itself.

 

[Brian F Kobylarz]

What is a Cloudlifter?

Believe this is what he is referring to: http://cloudmicrophones.com/cloud12/?page_id=222

Since I have never used one, I cannot contribute to the op's inquiry...

The preamps in the Zoom H6 are noisy because it's a cheap, crappy $399 recorder. If you want good preamps, unfortunately those cost real money. One good mic preamp could easily cost $399 just by itself.

However, on this point, I can agree.
If location audio is part of the final product, it should not be the weak link. One should match the quality of the audio acquisition to the capabilities of the camera. While we are there - same for the lighting, same for the selection and use/execution of all of the tools.


Edit: To the op - The MKH416 is an excellent mic - just need to complement it's capabilities with an equivalent recorder.
In the meantime, how are you powering it?

 

[ericyoung]

From reading the Cloudlifter spec, it's not suitable for the 416 as it's designed for passive mics - it does not pass phantom power.

 

[Jarred Jones]

However, on this point, I can agree.
If location audio is part of the final product, it should not be the weak link. One should match the quality of the audio acquisition to the capabilities of the camera. While we are there - same for the lighting, same for the selection and use/execution of all of the tools.

The H6 actually sounds great up till 6 like I said. I love it.

So it looks like I'll have to get a preamp for it. What's a good preamp that can plug directly into my H6 with 1 or 2 channels?

 

[Brian F Kobylarz]

Look at Sound Devices gear.

The MP-1 will give you up to 66dB of gain in 11 steps (mic to line). Single channel. Provides phantom power at 48V or 12V.

If you want to add headphone monitoring and a few more features (such as 12V T Power), look at the MM-1. As with the MP-1, single channel, 66dB gain is mic to line.

You might consider the MIXPRE-D. Is more of a swiss army knife for a situation like yours. Has the phantom power needed (48 &12). Great preamps, adds a second channel, plenty of output choices (from AES all the way to prosumer connections). Plus, you can select mic to line with up to 66dB of gain or mic to mic with 26dB of gain.

As mentioned earlier, you get what you pay for - any of these products are a solid investment.

 

[Tom Visser]

I second the MixPre-D as being a godsend of a flexible unit. Another one to consider is the Sound Device MM-1 which would be appropriate to utilize if you use a boom operator, since the boom op can wear it on the belt, have controllable gain at the mic end, and also get a monitoring and communications return feed all-in-one. I own a cloudlifter - I use it for a pair of ribbon mics to give them a little boost, since the output is low. Technically you could use the cloud lifter with the 416 as long as you put a phantom power supply after the device so that mic keeps powered. I don't think that the noise performance will be as good as adding a Sound Devices preamp though. The H6 is a wonderful recorder for the price. It just has poor preamps though, so anyway you can bypass them will be an improvement to the sound. You might think they sound good up to 6, but the problem you have been hearing up to now has just been a noise floor issue. Use a better preamp and everything else that you haven't been hearing will improve too. Equalization (or linearity), slew rate (speed), dynamic range, etc.

 

[D Fuller]

I second the MixPre-D as being a godsend of a flexible unit. Another one to consider is the Sound Device MM-1 which would be appropriate to utilize if you use a boom operator, since the boom op can wear it on the belt, have controllable gain at the mic end, and also get a monitoring and communications return feed all-in-one. I own a cloudlifter - I use it for a pair of ribbon mics to give them a little boost, since the output is low. Technically you could use the cloud lifter with the 416 as long as you put a phantom power supply after the device so that mic keeps powered. I don't think that the noise performance will be as good as adding a Sound Devices preamp though. The H6 is a wonderful recorder for the price. It just has poor preamps though, so anyway you can bypass them will be an improvement to the sound. You might think they sound good up to 6, but the problem you have been hearing up to now has just been a noise floor issue. Use a better preamp and everything else that you haven't been hearing will improve too. Equalization (or linearity), slew rate (speed), dynamic range, etc.

--

+1

 

[Tom Van]

When using the MM-1 or MixPre-D, which devices are you guys using to record the audio? Zoom?