ART USB Dual portable preamp as alternative to Beachtek/Juicedlink

J

jordy2324

Well-known member
Saw this posted on a blog. Some people are apparently using this ART portable preamp as a cheaper version of a Juicedlink/Beachtek.

Has anyone used this before? What are your thoughts? And how did you mount?
 
I saw this on CheesyCam myself. It's a shockingly low price when you compare it to the more popular pre-amps that people choose. I almost wish I had known about it before buying a Sound Devices pre-amp.

That said, I don't think there is any real comparison in quality. Here is a test someone posted in the comments on CheesyCam, which you may have already seen. The test is not ideal because he used a video camera with AGC, but what doesn't impress me is the hum/buzz produced when he touched the pre-amp while it was recording. To me, that isn't worth the bargain price if I'm going to use it anywhere but on my desk.
 
I saw that same post on Cheesycam and i was thinking about it.
Here is how i wanted to set it up
Boom operator wears this device like a belt pack. That way he runs the boom mic or the lavs or whatever into this device. Uses the headphone out to monitor it there. Then we take the monitor out and split it in two. One runs into the camera which is using magic lantern and has all of the amps in the camera turned to nothing. The other runs to a small recorder like my zoom h1. Then i can monitor off of the camera. My boom operator can monitor off of the amp and mix to some extent there. Then the camera has at the very least a good sync track or if needed a truely use-able track.

Thats what my idea for the device was.
 
treynolds said:
I saw that same post on Cheesycam and i was thinking about it.
Here is how i wanted to set it up
Boom operator wears this device like a belt pack. That way he runs the boom mic or the lavs or whatever into this device. Uses the headphone out to monitor it there. Then we take the monitor out and split it in two. One runs into the camera which is using magic lantern and has all of the amps in the camera turned to nothing. The other runs to a small recorder like my zoom h1. Then i can monitor off of the camera. My boom operator can monitor off of the amp and mix to some extent there. Then the camera has at the very least a good sync track or if needed a truely use-able track.

Thats what my idea for the device was.
Click to expand...

That's not bad, except your boom guy would be pretty constricted to how much he could move if he's tethered by a short cord to the camera. But I guess if it's very controlled shooting you do, it's not that big a deal.


I'm hoping someone here will have used this ART device....
It seems like a lightweight bracket that holds the preamp (maybe with a thread on top that could go into the bottom of the camera?) would make this a pretty good alternative for one-man bands and those on the cheap. Just a thought.
 
There is nothing sayiing you have to run a short cable from the art box to the camera. It can be a pair of quarter inch cables that you then combine into a stereo mini. As far as mounting grin what I've read its a pretty sturdy aluminum case. Maybe you could dripp a 1/4 hole and tap it to mount. Its weighs just under a pound so it could act nicely as part of a counterballance for a shoulder rig.
 
I just picked up a used one for $45! I like it and others are saying it has a lower noise floor than the juicedlink. It is way better than nothing!
 
I just ordered mine as well. Make sure you guys look at the used section there. i had a hard time finding it until i looked at that.
 
I have tried it with different mics and the best was a xlr sennheiser shotgun mic. I am not sure on the model. It was just one we had at work. I also tried it with a 1/8 min plug mic and it wasn't that great but that was due to the mic.
 
Heres a bit of an update for you guys.

I just got the box in yesterday and Tested it today

My test set up was pretty quick and dirty. The pre-amp was running off of the 9v battery. Running one XLR into the left channel and then running the monitor out lines mixed down to a stereo 1/8th cable with a small adapter. This was then sent into my Zoom h1 which was recording at 25% gain.
1st test is an MXL 990 with phantom running.
Here is it
Then i switched out the mic for my shotgun an Azden SGM-1x
Here is that file
And then I switched out the cable so it was going from the headphones out on a 1/8th stereo cable into the zoom h1 input
Here is the last test

I hope this helps somebody out.

The device seems great with both microphones. The MXL is obviously a cleaner sound because its a much nicer mic. I use that one a lot for voice over work and such.
 
treynolds said:
Heres a bit of an update for you guys.

I just got the box in yesterday and Tested it today

My test set up was pretty quick and dirty. The pre-amp was running off of the 9v battery. Running one XLR into the left channel and then running the monitor out lines mixed down to a stereo 1/8th cable with a small adapter. This was then sent into my Zoom h1 which was recording at 25% gain.
1st test is an MXL 990 with phantom running.
Here is it
Then i switched out the mic for my shotgun an Azden SGM-1x
Here is that file
And then I switched out the cable so it was going from the headphones out on a 1/8th stereo cable into the zoom h1 input
Here is the last test

I hope this helps somebody out.

The device seems great with both microphones. The MXL is obviously a cleaner sound because its a much nicer mic. I use that one a lot for voice over work and such.
Click to expand...

Have you tested it run directly into the camera?
 
No. I will go to the car and run a test for you right now. I will have a test video up for you in 45min ok?

slow day at work and all...
 
http://vimeo.com/19313092

There is the video. I didnt edit this at all. Just copied the file to my computer and re-encoded it in adobe media encoder to the vimeo hd standard.

The set up:
Azden smg 1x
xlr into the left of the dual pre with the gain on that channel at +30dB
Running Monitor out mixed down to stereo 1/8th
mix pushed all the way to the left
monitor level cranked all the way to the max
in camera amps set to +17dB digital and +12dB analog
 
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try the camera test again with both camera amp set to 0 then use the ART to give you the gain you need, might quiet it down considerably
 
recordingwhiz said:
try the camera test again with both camera amp set to 0 then use the ART to give you the gain you need, might quiet it down considerably
Click to expand...

Yeah, I read the description in your video and was a little confused. I think you're supposed to get your mic as hot as possible and cool everything else down. Having the gain levels set in the camera only introduces noise. Set everything to 0.
 
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