DR-40 and Rode Reporter.

C

CustomerGH4

Well-known member
Already posted in the DSLR forum but then realised I might get faster help from here:


So Im gonna use Rode Reporter tomorrow for interviews with the DR40. Problem is that Im getting hiss when levels all put higher. Is the problem because the preamps in DR40 are not that good? Does the hiss dissapear with DR100MKII?

Another question is that the mic is omnidirectional, Im using Stereo mode, but it only records onto the left channel. I think its because I have no mic in the right channel. Anyway how can I use the rode reporter that I hold it between me and the person being interviewed and then when he speaks its in the right channel and I speak in the left???
I have done this without the rode reporter mic and just with the internal mics of the tascam, but how can I get the same effect with the Rode reporter?

Please, any advice is helpful.
 
CustomerGH4 said:
So Im gonna use Rode Reporter tomorrow for interviews with the DR40. Problem is that Im getting hiss when levels all put higher. Is the problem because the preamps in DR40 are not that good? Does the hiss dissapear with DR100MKII?
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The pre-amps in most any chep recorder are notoriously weak when it comes to clean gain. I have a Reporter and a DR-40. Unfortunately, I'm away from home and only have the recorder with me, so I cannot give that combo a run through, but my guess is that this is the heart of the issue. The Reporter is a dynamic mic and will have a lower nominal output.

CustomerGH4 said:
Another question is that the mic is omnidirectional, Im using Stereo mode, but it only records onto the left channel. I think its because I have no mic in the right channel. Anyway how can I use the rode reporter that I hold it between me and the person being interviewed and then when he speaks its in the right channel and I speak in the left???
Click to expand...

Omnidirectional means that the capsule has a more even response from all angles, rather than rejecting sound from any one direction. This is a single mic, meaning it has only one capsule. In other words, it's a mono sound source and thus has no way to determine or separate the directions of multiple sound sources.

It is, as you have stated, connected to only one of the two available inputs. For two record channels with separate sources, you'll need a second mic. The Reporter, however, like any omnidirectional ENG interview mic, is designed for handheld use between a interviewer and interviewee.

Think about this:

CustomerGH4 said:
I have done this without the rode reporter mic and just with the internal mics of the tascam, but how can I get the same effect with the Rode reporter?
Click to expand...

The DR-40 has two microphones built in. So, of course, it feeds both left and right record channels.

You cannot get the same result from a single mic as you can get with two mics. That said, the built-in stereo pair on the DR-40 is not as ideal a choice as the Reporter for an interview... clean gain issues notwithstanding.
 
Thank you for the fast response!
So the best choice is to use mono then with the Reporter.
What recorder would you personally recommend? Right now I am eyeing the DR100MKII, does it have better preamps than DR40?

EDIT: Would be grateful if you had the time to try out the DR40 and Reporter combo someday as well, to see if the DR40 is the problem or maybe its user generated error. Just in case.
 
Basically, yes. Mono recording is recommended.

I won't be able to give this stuff a run-through until Sunday night at the earliest. Not sure that any other handheld recorder will avoid the clean gain issue, if this really is the issue. You'd need to move up to a much higher-end recorder to get pristine pre-amps (think Sound Devices), though some of the mid-range recorders in bag-friendly format can do a decent job.
 
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Just a thought - are you feeding phantom power to the mic? If so, turn it off, the Reporter can't use it and that might be the cause of your problems. You could also try a 1>2 XLR short cable adapter to feed into the two inputs.
 
Rainer said:
Just a thought - are you feeding phantom power to the mic? If so, turn it off, the Reporter can't use it and that might be the cause of your problems. You could also try a 1>2 XLR short cable adapter to feed into the two inputs.
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Nope, not feeding any phantom power. I know its a dynamic mic, some sites say that the DR40 has that problem with all the dynamic mics.
 
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The 680s preamp are somewhat better, but I would recommend looking into one of the new Tascams, which has an 'additional' high-gain setting to address this issue. I would not recommend the 680 for your type of work .. 8-tracks; larger/heavier; eats batteries.. eight at a time; designed primarily for recording ISO tracks and/or with an external mixer.

Most all 'budget' recorders have this noise issue with low-output mics (in low SPL instances).
 
Why on earth would you put any stock in that video. First you are listening to a compressed and processed file so god knows how close to the original it is and B that is not anywhere close to a decent test. The only "shoot out" videos that are really any use are ones done by folks who know what they are doing and they can kind of show you what they are talking about but really you are going off their opinions. They will also do tests that are at least close to controlled. For instance I'm pretty sure I was hearing proximity effects between different setups, which means he wasn't even staying the same distance from the mic.

If you want to spend money I would probably recommend something like a Sound Devices MixPre, which has quiet mic pres and feed line level to your recorder.
 
What about Rick's suggestion to use the newer Tascams like the DR-60Dmkii and DR-70D - they have a setting for extra gain... now I also ask because I have the DR-70D and wonder what kind of limitations I'm going to have with which mics.
 
Will the DR-60MKII work perfectly with Rode Reporter and Rode NTG2? I mean no hiss, and you can get the most of the mic.
Right now the DR-40 is not able to do that. I don´t want to end up getting DR-60MKII and get the same results. If someone can confirm that the preamps in DR-60MKII work with both mentioned Rode mics then I would get that one instead of DR-680.
 
You could look into a higher sensitivity mic, for instance the EV RE50 N/DYM (@ 2.2 mV) has twice the output of the Rode, or an omni condenser would have more. Whether that's enough for your workflow I don't know. A high quality external preamp would be recommended in any case.
 
Rick R said:
You could look into a higher sensitivity mic, for instance the EV RE50 N/DYM (@ 2.2 mV) has twice the output of the Rode, or an omni condenser would have more. Whether that's enough for your workflow I don't know. A high quality external preamp would be recommended in any case.
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So if I get Juicedlink for example for DR40 I should be fine ?
 
Just wanted to follow up, as I did get time to check out the DR-40/Reporter combo. Set to mono recording, 24/48 WAV, no phantom power. It's bad. The input gain setting crosses 75 just to get close to nominal recoring level, and there's an abundance of hiss in the signal.

I use the Reporter with a Sennheiser SKE-300 plug-on transmitter with no troubles, but that transmitter offers plenty of clean gain (and I actually have to attenuate the input gain quite a bit). The DR-40's pre-amps simply are not strong enough for lower-output mics.

As for Juicedlink, this is not the way to go for the DR-40. Most of their pre-amps offer only an unbalanced, 1/8" output intended for camcorders. The DR-40 has no input to match. The only Juicedlink that comes close is the BMC388 which offers two balanced, 1/8" outputs, so adapter cables could make this a possible solution. The price, though, gets into the territory of a recorder with better form factor and better pre-amps.

Your better bet may be to look for a good deal on a used Sound Devices MixPre, or Shure FP24 (same mixer, different logo). The DR-40 is designed to accept true, professional line-level inputs (balanced, +4dB) via 1/4" TRS, so a mixer on the front end is the ideal solution here. Plus, having a good field mixer means the recorder can be upgraded later without the mixer becoming obsolete.

At the very least, the Sound Devices MM-1, which is in the same price neighborhood as the Juicedlink BMC388, gives you a single pre-amp for the Reporter.
 
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The DR-40 is designed to accept true, professional line-level inputs (balanced, +4dB) via 1/4" TRS.
> To elaborate, the DR-40 mic or line mode is selected via a hard switch and the XLR ~ 1/4 TRS 'combo' connector is paralleled, so either an XLR or 1/4" plug can be used.

FWIW, this is not the case with the H4n combo connector.
 
Alex H. said:
Just wanted to follow up, as I did get time to check out the DR-40/Reporter combo. Set to mono recording, 24/48 WAV, no phantom power. It's bad. The input gain setting crosses 75 just to get close to nominal recoring level, and there's an abundance of hiss in the signal.

I use the Reporter with a Sennheiser SKE-300 plug-on transmitter with no troubles, but that transmitter offers plenty of clean gain (and I actually have to attenuate the input gain quite a bit). The DR-40's pre-amps simply are not strong enough for lower-output mics.

As for Juicedlink, this is not the way to go for the DR-40. Most of their pre-amps offer only an unbalanced, 1/8" output intended for camcorders. The DR-40 has no input to match. The only Juicedlink that comes close is the BMC388 which offers two balanced, 1/8" outputs, so adapter cables could make this a possible solution. The price, though, gets into the territory of a recorder with better form factor and better pre-amps.

Your better bet may be to look for a good deal on a used Sound Devices MixPre, or Shure FP24 (same mixer, different logo). The DR-40 is designed to accept true, professional line-level inputs (balanced, +4dB) via 1/4" TRS, so a mixer on the front end is the ideal solution here. Plus, having a good field mixer means the recorder can be upgraded later without the mixer becoming obsolete.

At the very least, the Sound Devices MM-1, which is in the same price neighborhood as the Juicedlink BMC388, gives you a single pre-amp for the Reporter.
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Wow, thanks a bunch! You know what stuns me is that I used lvl 75 with Reporter as well. So now it is confirmed, DR40 is just too weak. I have one plan though, I ordered a Fethead and Im gonna try and see if that makes DR40 more usable.
 
CustomerGH4 said:
So now it is confirmed, DR40 is just too weak. I have one plan though, I ordered a Fethead and Im gonna try and see if that makes DR40 more usable.
Click to expand...

The DR-40 is actually a great deal in the price range, and one of the best values out there in low-cost recorders. It's not a weak device but, like any (especially cheaper) piece of gear, it has its limitations (the better device, the fewer the limitations). Simply put, you are trying to work outside its capacity.

I love my DR-40, but I also know what it can and cannot do and I apply its usage accordingly. To use it effectively with its own mic pre-amps, one needs to have a mic with a relatively hot output. To use it with line-level sources or an external pre-amp bypasses this issue entirely.
 
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