Marantz vs MixPreD vs directly in HPX

[Douglas Bischoff]

Hi, Duane!

It’s important to understand that the MixPreD and the PMD-661 are primarily made for different purposes. The MixPreD is a mixer, and the 661 is a recorder. While you can mix on the 661 and send a signal out of it, that’s not what it’s made for and it is not as good at it as the MixPreD.

I’ve owned and used both of these pieces of gear, and both are very good at what they do. My opinion is that the MixPreD is probably your better bet, and here’s why:

[Duane Cabot]

Thank you for your response,

Yes I know that a mixer and a recorder are not the same thing.
But if the marantz has better sound quality than what my camcorder records, I think I would be better with this option…because then I could use it with my GH2 as well.

Do you think that I would get good sound with the mixpreD going directly in the GH2?
The thing is that I don’t want to buy a mixer and a recorder…too much stuff for a one man crew (myself). But I also want good sound.
There’s also the Fostex DC-R302, it’s a mixer and a recorder…waht you think about that?

[Douglas Bischoff]

Hi again Duane!

If you are cool with the post-production side of doing a separate audio workflow then yes: the 661 is probably the best thing in its price range. I would point out that the MixPreD can output unbalanced stereo to a DSLR (and, I believe, the GH2 though I personally have not done it with that model) at line level which helps overcome the sound issues that DSLRs/cameras have.

I haven’t used the Fostex: it does look pretty good, though! If you are going to sync audio in post, then that may be the way to go (though it’s more expensive than the PMD-661, it also has more channels).

Douglas Bischoff
http://www.ceridwenproductions.com

[Brian Keairns]

Duane,

I have a couple of GH3’s and the Marantz PMD 661 that I use with a Rode NTG3 and the Audio-Technica AT4053b. I’m also often a one man band and I find this setup works well.

The Marantz has better pre-amps than other recorders in it’s price range and it’s simple and reliable to operate. The GH3’s have surprisingly good sound quality themselves so even though I almost always use the track from the recorder the dual audio setup usually gives me a viable backup track if needed.

I haven’t used the MixPreD but I think you could get great results with the Marantz PMD 661.

-Brian

[Duane Cabot]

Thank you very much Brian!

[Al Bergstein]

I own a 5Dmkiii, a mixpre-d and a Marantz. PMD-661. I am usually a one man band. I use all three in many occasions, but not always. Just the other day, I shot a community meeting, and used the PMD to take high quality sound “off the mixing board”. I shot the meeting with the 5D and the mixpre-d, partially so I could do interviews if needed. So having the Marantz is worth the purchase for getting that professional sounding mix that will set your work apart, and you can set it up, turn it on, and forget it. But don’t use it to feed the camera, just to have the backup sound. I throw them all on the timeline and can easily find the sync points without using PluralEyes, which I sometimes do use.

The Mixpre-d is not absolutely necessary, as the 5D and the GH3 both have very good sound in, with very little hiss. (the hiss is more a function of the mic than the preamps on these two cameras. But your HPX might be a different bag, as I have owned an HMC150 and now own a xf305 and 105. These camcorders usually have more hiss in their preamps than I’d like, and yes, running any mic through the Mixpre-d into the line in will give you a much cleaner signal. It’s sort of silly that a still camera like the 5D would have cleaner sound from the mic input than the xlr based camcorders. I sometimes wonder what these engineers are thinking.

Al

[Duane Cabot]

I just received my MixPreD. Done some tests with a Audix SCX1/HC. I must say that I’m a little disappointed regarding the preamps. I did a test with my Audix directly in to my HPX250 and a second test going through the MixPreD and in (line) my HPX250.I don’t ear any difference. The preamps seems to be quite equal. I monitored my test with a pair of M-Audio BS5a speakers…not the best but quite good for this test. I really don’t ear any difference. In fact, the test was equal between the two when I engaged the HighPassFilter (because of a pc fan noise in the background) on mixPre-D. With no HPF, the sound was better running directly in the HPX250. Now for the good part…The sound coming from the headphone jack on the MixPre-D is WAY better than the one on my HPX. The led meter is awesome. Also, the limiters work great, a lot better than the HPX. But I really thought I would end up with better sound (floor noise wise) with the SD MixPre-D. Hum…