dual channel battery powered microphone preamp?

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Shadow_7

Shadow_7

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I've been targeting a sonosax sx-m2 for a while now. But I've come to realize that I really don't know anything about this preamp. Outside of it being two channels and battery powered. Anyone have a bigger clue than I do on this one or others like it. I'm looking at battery powered specifically. Two channels specifically. With phantom power. Limiter optional, but desired. Target budget $1K +/- $500 USD.

Maybe I waited too long, discontinued.

http://www.sonosax.ch/discontinued/sxm2m1/sxm2m1_index.html

I guess I'm open to suggestions then. High-er end preamps that are battery powered and at least 2 channels. But still on the low end $1K-ish. I'd rather not go full fledged battery plus inverter just yet. Something car stereo-ish in size, not that I really care as long as it does the job and has battery life in excess of 2 hours. I'm trying to best the preamps on the Korg MR-1000 so nothing equal / lower than that quality. Transparent / honest / NON-colored / what you hear is what you get. Target mics - Avenson STO-2 / Beyer MC910 / Senn. MKH 8020 (eventually)

Thanks in advance.
 
Hmmm...

Sound Devices - MP1 - x2

http://www.sounddevices.com/products/mp1master.htm

I suppose those are an option. And I guess cheaper at $300-ish per channel versus the was $1K sx-m2($500 per channel). Although I'd rather have a single unit. Beyer mv100? but discontinued as well. Cooper CSPA1? circa 1997 and probably out of manufacture too. I never thought that it'd be so rare.
 
It looks like the MP-1 sound devices thing could work. Rated for 5 hours on 2x AA's at full 48V phantom power(26 hours no phantom power). I'm still not sure about that much power draw from only 2x AA's. But the device itself appears to be of a spec I could live with.

The two big questions. Will the MP-1 prove the be an improvement over the preamps on the Korg MR-1000? And will two separate preamps make a matched pair of mics unmatched(even of the same make / model)?

Any battery powered preamp shootouts? I know, kind of a specialty thing, but it'd be nice if there was.
 
Yo Shadow! Instead of going at it that way, why not just get an automotive power supply with a built-in power invertor? They are about $100, give or take, and you can plug any preamp you want into it. Most pres don't draw that much power, so it is often helpful to use a smaller invertor which will plug into a 12 volt cigarette lighter plug, because the small ones (up to about 100 watts) have no fans, and therefore make no noise. Here are some examples:

http://www.ineedparts.com/tools-and...-compressor-400-watt-110v-power-inverter.html

What the hell? and you can even use it to jump your car or inflate tires!

If you need it to be real quiet, add something like this:

http://www.donrowe.com/inverters/voltec_80.html

Just plug that into the cigarette lighter plug on the big power supply, and look, Ma, no fan. That baby will run any preamp you got for many, many hours. Hell, I run a small PA with one. Good luck-Richie
 
I'm not yet ready for the battery plus inverter thing. I'd want a pure sine wave inverter anyway (analog audio). And those are $1,000 just for the inverter. And I'm wanting something a little more portable than a car / boat battery. One person, one trip. Right now I've got a tripod, camcorder, mic stand and mics, and a field recorder. It's amazing how much going from 25' cable to 15' has lightened that rig. I'll probably rig a monopod to the spider brace to make it even lighter / less bulky. Currently audio in one hand, video in the other. The field recorder and a bag of stuff around the neck. Quite portable considering. I'm almost to the point of putting the neck stuff in a school backpack. But I'm not to the point of a little red wagon or other wheeled solution / rack. And I'm not trying to get there by any means. It's kind of hard to get that into stadium seating and taking up less than two peoples worth of space. My bulky self accounting for 1.5 persons.
 
Check out the yard sale page on the Tapers forum. A used Lunatec can sometimes be had for @$1000. I've considered one to match up with an Edirol R44 for location recording. The Lunatec would be my choice of the available battery operated pres. In fact, I see one recently sold on e-bay for $899.
 
I sold one of my horns, so I guess the money was burning a hole in my pocket. I ended up getting 2x sound devices MM-1 units with consecutive serial numbers. So far I'm liking them. Lower noise, better clarity, and slightly better low end. I still need to do more testing to really get a feel for them. And it's not that much better overall. But taking some of the noise floor out made it worth it IMO. What / how much I've gained beyond that I guess I'll find out with use. But I'm liking what they do for my Avenson STO-2's. And having them opens up other options. Cheaper than an SX-M2 or lunatec as well. So I've still got some cash for cables and batteries.
 
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