Sound Devices MM-1 + Tascam DR-40 or Tascam DR-701D

H

Heezzi

Active member
Hello. I am looking to upgrade my audio setup in the future. I currently have a Tascam DR-40 and I am looking at getting a Sound Devices MM-1 (MM1) is it better for me to get a Tascam DR-701D?


I need great pres for when I do boom audio. At this point in time, I am usually only using one track but I would like flexibility.

Current Setup

MKE 600 Microphone
DR-40 Recorder.
Rode Blimp

If I am not using lavs, are having the other channels worth it?


Thanks in advance.
 
The MM-1 will work great with your DR-40 recorder. SD make great mic preamps, and the DR-40 will keep your audio package compact for the boom-op to use.

The DR-701D serves a different purpose, when you need a 4 channel audio recorder that sits underneath your camera. ( you can bag it, but I don't know if you can ride the gain on the DR-701 )
 
Yes, you can ride the gain on the DR-701D, and, apparently, it does not exhibit the stepped gain as found on the DR-60D etc. The MM-1 is excellent, of course, but a Mixpre-D gives so much more flexibility (great metering, two channels etc.): combined with a DR-701D (or, much more cheaply, the similarly styled DR-70D) it makes a good lightweight combination in a bag, but, of course, this may exceed the OP's budget.

Cheers,

Roland
 
The MM-1 is a graeat piece of gear, however it does not have meters, so if there is no PSM (production sound mixer), adjusting levels could be challenging. The DR-40 is not particularly bag friendly, so reading the recorder's meters would be difficult. The SD MixPre or 302 may be a better companion for the DR40.
 
Also for a tight budget SD can often be found used at places like Trew etc. at good prices and SD boxes are so sturdy I wouldn't be very worried about buying used. I have seen the original MixPre's going for $300 - $400 used.
 
Skip the DR701D unless you're in the niche which really needs that HDMI input for triggering, otherwise a DR70D will be waaaaay better value.
If you're sticking a good pre amp from Sound Devices in front of your DR40 then the better newer pre amps of the DR70D or DR60D mk2 doesn't really matter, so you can skip that. Although.... a DR70D / DR60D mk2 would be much friendlier in a bag than a DR40.

However, while I think for years and years it was good solid advice to recommend a Sound Devices mixer in front of a cheaper recorder as a low budget approach (is what I do myself! Sound Devices 552 + Tascam DR680 http://ironfilm.co.nz/sound/ ), I think now the Zoom F8 is out that it offers such crazy good value and quality at a very low price that it becomes a tougher decision to buy (even secondhand) an expensive Sound Devices mixer such as a MixPre-D / 302 / 442 / etc when for very similar money you could get a Zoom F8.
 
For me the biggest catch with not having a decent pre in front of the F8 is that it's limiters are digital and won't really save you. For me it's probably not so bad since probably my MixPre is all I need for the F8 since most likley I would have wireless on anything past the first two, at least for production, so limiters are not that much of an issue at the recorder. And most of the time I would be using a bunch of wired mics I would be in a more controlled situation.

There isn't a lot of reason to go to a MixPre D for the F8 since there aren't any digital ins, the original MixPre would be fine at a fraction of the cost.
 
I'm not buying a F8 for $999. My budget is $600 max.


From what I have read here, A MixPre + DR-40 and that I already have would be best bet?
 
Thanks for these informations, Oscuro.
Question : How do you connect the Mixpre-D's AES output to the PMD661's S/PDIF ?
Special cable ? Adaptor ?
 
Supposedly, you can connect AES to S/PDIF with a straight cable if it is for shorter distances. But to be technically correct, you need a small (fits within a XLR connector) electronic circuit to make the conversion. I would recommend searching for AES to S/PDIF cables over at www.taperssection.com where a few people have crafted the correct cables between SD mixers and Marantz PMD 661's. If you want someone to make a cable for you, I recommend DigiGal.
 
Very informative, thanx a lot, Oscuro (and Kevin) !
As I own a Sony PCM-D100 recorder (optical input), I could be interested by the HOSA box.
A second-hand USBpre2 would be another option, but difficult to find (I live in Japan).
 
Last edited:
OSCURO said:
This 9W AC adapter is good to keep in your bag as a backup power supply. No need to drop more $ on the Sound Devices XL-WPH3 adapter since that one is designed to power up to 8 active inputs, which is overkill for your needs.

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/885531-REG/remote_audio_pssd_ac_adapter_for_sound.html
Click to expand...

It looks like that MixPre has the original coax power connector so it wouldn't work with the power supply your linking unless you send the MixPre back to SD and have them change the connector.
 
Yes. The MixPre originally shipped with the coax power connector and the battery holder that doesn't work well with NiMh batteries. They switched to the Hirose connector and changed the battery holder. They used to and may still offer to swap out on existing MixPre's for the cost of postage.
The original also came with a locking (screw on) coax bare plug so you could make up an external power supply.
 
I have a MixPre and various recorders, DR100 MkII, DR70D, DR40. I like the MixPre DR40 combo. I use the tone generator on the MixPre to set the level on the DR 40, and since you can lock the setting and there are no dials that can get bumped in the bag, I only need to look for the RED light on the recorder and then focus on the meters on the MixPre and know that all is well!
 
That is generally what I do also, though on a more bag friendly recorder. If you set the limiters and set your recorder inputs correctly you basically can lock the recorder down (I use board tape) and deal with levels on the MixPre and be "clip proof". Only time that doesn't work is when you are recording really quiet FX and need the extra gain on the recorder.

I would pick up another MixPre for a second system, but I think my next main recorder is going to have more tracks so I will hold off till that day rolls around and see what is available then.

RE: old version of the MixPre. I think it was made that way for a number of years. I don't think a lot of people used external power with the MixPre since it gets pretty good battery life. I used rechargeable (for FX work where there isn't really an issue with a wonky battery connection (I have never had it turn off just sometimes need a repositioning of the batteries)) and alkaline's when I need to be 100% hassle free and both get somewhere around 5 hours with two mics and phantom power. Which is also about what the recorder does on it's batteries and an hour more than what a 4gig CF card holds so I just change everything at about 4 hrs. In actual practice four hours is often a full day of recording since there is always a fair amount of down time and logistics. I kept intending to send in the MixPre for an update but it's in use most of the time so...
 
Thanks everyone. Now another question... Does the MixPre-D camera mounting bracket fit onto the MixPre? I would connect my DR-40 to the MixPre via this mount since the DR-40 has a screw hole on the bottom.
 
Probably the same preamps as the F8 (decent according to trusted opinions), though the lack of input stage limiters is still a serious issue..
 
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