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Ladies and Gentlemen..the MIC MATE!

J

jefflaurence

Okay all you portable recorders..laptop DAW folks et al. Here is what I knew would come along. Our freinds at MXL who have been making those USB based condenser mics the 006, and 006 etc..have finally come up with what I was waiting for. All hail the MXL MIC MATE! It is an in-line AD converter and preamp that plugs directly into the USB port. NOW we can use the mic of our choice with virtually nothing more than the mic cable. It even provides switchable 48VDC for condensers. It looks like an impedance matching plug..just plugs into the USB port and now we can use ANY mic we like in the backseat of a car, or a hotel room etc. Naw I haven't tried it yet..but it would cut out having to mess around with the USBPre, or the Edirol UA25, and the associated space they take up. Now the whole enchilada fits in one small laptop case.

Ordered one tonight 79 bucks. I'll fill you in.

SLAP me I am such a sucker for this stuff!
 
Jeff Laurence said:
Ordered one tonight 79 bucks. I'll fill you in.
Click to expand...
Keep us posted. It sounds like something I've been looking for.


Jeff Laurence said:
SLAP me I am such a sucker for this stuff!
Click to expand...
I'm not sure which I like better, mics or consoles, but mics are a heck of a lot easier to carry around. Because of guys like us, an entire industry has flourished. I think you have lots of company.
 
Sounds cool. Of course, for $80, I worry about the quality, but when don't I? ;D

I will be interest to hear it. Being so tiny, I can't imagine pristine quality. But if the preamp and ADC are at least quiet, I'd say it definately has a place in the market. And with stuff like this, it will only improve.

Emmett
 
I have a similar device, called "MicPortPro" by CEntrance -- $124 BSW. It came in the other day (1 week backorder) just in time to try out at my part-time/hobby gig as radio station "Spec-Boy."

Result? SUCCESS! At least as good quality as anything else at the station.

It offers Phantom Power, adjustable input and headphone output. I think the headphone output could use a little more juice, but it wasn't bad - it just seemed like I had to crank it pretty good.

Basically, i brought in my laptop and a condenser mic (AT2020), typed up my crappy spec-spot scripts, picked some music, and layed down the vocal track on my laptop. Then, I took it into the station DAW (CEP), made my spots, and they sounded just as good - even better in some cases - than anything else running. A couple of the spots are on the air already. It worked out alright!

Very convenient device for me, because the production room is often occupied when I'm in. I can lay down my scripts in the old newsbooth until the production room opens up, and just transfer everything over via jumpdrive and finish the mixdown in there.

Also, the salespeople never think to look for me (or anyone else) in the unused newsbooth, so there is peace, quiet, and un-interruption for me until they leave!

Spec-Boy's life is much easier thanks to MicPortPro!
 
Hey Sean that looks a lot better than the MXL unit..plus it has a headset output. I think the MXL version just uses the laptop's sound card for the headhone. PLUS it tracks at 96khz..VERY cool Say can you send me one of those spots so we can hear it? You can upload audio to me directly here:

www.spotshuttle.com/upload.html

I'll post the URL for the rest of us to listen in if that's ok
thanks

JL
 
Well I'm a little intimidated exposing everyone to my small-market cheeziness, but since you asked...

Straight off the 'ole laptop, I uploaded the dry audio before any post CEP effecting/music, which will probably give you a better idea about the device anyway. Also note -- my computer is set for 16 / 44.1, not 96khz (sorry!)
 
Happy Labor Day!

Here's a little more about the MicPortPro device:

The headphone out, the TINY 48v button, and the USB connection are very, very close together at the end of the device. I almost needed a pen to push in the 48v button, and all connectors touch when plugged in.

I'm occasionally getting a wierd noise that is a little bit like what you would hear after bulk-erasing an old reel-to-reel tape, then playing it back -- kind of like a digital version of that, a really fast "wump-wump-wump." It comes up every 5 - 10 minutes or so, lasts about a split-second, and can only really be heard if you're recording silence. It DID (barely) measure on the waveform when I caught it. Not really sure what that's all about.

How will it hold up over time? I've only had it about a week or so, and only really used it once. But it is cool the direction these new devices are going. My '85 Nissan has always had pretty good acoustics, and I kind of dig the echo in my shower. Now, I can conveniently test these environments out!
 
Hello from CEntrance. I noticed the thread and wanted to respond to seanmoore:

MicPort Pro works with pretty much every Mac and PC, but we have discovered one incompatibility. If your PC has an SiS 7001/7002 USB host controller (the USB chip on the motherboard with which MicPort communicates directly) then there may be occasional clicks in the audio. This is a known clocking bug in the SiS chip, which found its way into some laptops in 2006. There is a work around. Use a USB 2.0 hub between the computer and MicPort. This will clean up the clock, and correspondingly the sound. We have updated our FAQ to list this issue.

Michael
 
Here's Sean's audio using the MicPort Pro..BTW it sounds really good man..Thanks for sharing that..Added some music and processed the track for my own fun, and it sounded awesome!

www.spotshuttle.com/uploads/MCPROTEST.wav


AND..Hi Michael..thanks for chiming in. We all love new gadgets around here, and I am one of the biggest addicts. Is there a way to identify which laptop has the chipset that the MicPort Pro dislikes? i.e. Any tips as to where to find that info? The addition of a 2.0 hub would make ONE more thing that needs to be toted around..defeating the purpose of products like this. If you would be so kind as to send me a demo version (which I will return to you) I would be glad to put it through it's paces with several mics, and post not only results, but an honest opinion of what looks to be a really great offering from CEntrance.

Let me know via PM via Radio Info
 
Which USB Controller?

You can find out which USB controller you have by right-clicking on "My Computer", then selecting "Properties". That will bring up your "System Properties". Select the "Hardware" tab, then click on the "Device Manager" button. Down near the bottom will be the Universal Serial Bus Controllers. Click on the + sign, and you'll see a listing of the USB controllers on your system. If it says "SiS 7001/7002", you have a problem. Otherwise, just click on the X in the upper right-hand corner to close the Device Manager.

Don't play. There's serious stuff here.
 
Jeff,

I doubt that Apple would put an SiS chipset in a Mac, so you Applophiles wouldn't have to contend with that particular problem.

Regards,

Rox
 
Wow, learning a lot here --

The laptop I'm using for this is a Dell Inspiron E1505. I fell for one of those "Free Memory Upgrade" deals, and in my hastiness was rewarded with...VISTA!!! (Insert Screams of Terror)

Following SirRoxalot's instructions, all I could find was this: Intel(R) 82801G (ICH7 family)

The audio program is the free "Audacity." System is 32-bit Vista Home Premium.

CEntrance is still working like a charm, very convenient, and I'm the only person who can hear the glitch listening critically with headphones on. I'm very appreciative of a quality device that is Vista-ready...'cuz there ain't much!

I'll try that hub-thing out...while dreaming of Mac Book Pro. HA!
 
A Dell flyer arrived in my mail box today. Just about every computer offered was available with either XP or Vista. I'll bet there is a reason. I understand that some Dell models can even be factory equipped with Ubuntu which is a Linux Operating System.

Having been burned by Vista once (I had to return the computer after a month of compatibility issues) it will be a while before I stick my toe in the Vista pool again. Maybe when Service Pack 2 comes out, but not sooner.
 
Where can I get a MicPort Pro ?!

Where can I get a MicPort Pro ?!

They're not selling on the website - can't find a retailer that has it yet..

Travelling to Germany in two weeks, would love to NOT have to bring the bulky M-Box.
 
OK found it, BSW has the MicPort Pro. Placed an order.

When it comes in, I'll post results ruthlessly.
My portable recording setups so far:

M-Audio MicroTrack (not great for VO - good for stereo field recordings)
Digidesign M-Box 2 ( this works well, but the box is the size of a Harry Potter novel)
Metric Halo Mobile I/O ULN2 (this box is amazing, but is the size of a laptop, and has become so intregrated into my studio so that I'm reluctant to yank it out and travel with it).
 
Just Got my MIC PORT PRO !

I LOVE THIS THING !!

It has a sweet, rich sound - voice tracks immediately more usable than what I was able to get with an M-Box alone.

Only problem so far - can't figure out how to record at 44.1K.. it wants to do 24/96. But the test tracks I got tonight I would totally send to a client from the road !
 
Hey signpost. Did you get your Voice Port from BSW? I ordered mine a couple of weeks ago and they said it was backordered (a total bummer because I paid for express shipping).
 
Mic Mate, or MicPort Pro?

Is there any difference in audio quality or supported audio formats between the Mic Mate and the MicPort Pro?

It sounds like they both support phantom power, but the MicPort Pro offers a headphone out which may not have enough level for some headphones - or some semi-deaf users.

Do they allow you to record 44.1Kbit/sec / 16bit audio? Or, are you essentially upconverting to that from a lower-quality format?

How does the same mic compare with an analog recording through some of the better sound cards or some of the external audio devices?
 
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