FYI all - I just checked a couple of sites for price...looks like you can get it new for between appx $550 - $600 (US Dollars) E-Bay had a used one today listed for $250.00. Thanks Mike.
I've been a fan of the MM-1 for years. I used one on set with a wireless transmitter for my boom operator when I was a production sound mixer. Back when the Mbox Mini was the portable interface of choice, I used these in portable VO2GO kits I built for actors. Now, the built-in pres of interfaces are good enough for most folks. I DO like the high-pass and limiter features a lot, though.
Other Sound Devices products are available with similar preamp(s). The Mix-pre is a two channel mixer with 2 xlr mic inputs and preamps, Mix-pre D which is is a two channel mixer with a digital usb out so you can plug into your pc for the analog to digital interface, The 302 which has 3 preamps but only 2 xlr outs-left and right channel, and the MP1 which is the same as the Shure FP23 and has no external power option or a headphone jack. Check the battery tube for corrosion in case you buy a used one that someone left the batteries inside during storage. Any of them will do the same job and likely one or more are available used on ebay.
just found this video and have to add something about the 12V feature. I also didn´t know it before but out of good luck I was in contact with somebody whos was going to sell his Sennheiser MKH416 T. This "T" is for "Tonanagel" it´s a german word which means Boompole! And it is created to make a longer shooting possible with such a batterie driven preamp. And this guy told me that his MKH416 has a slighty better/different sound than the 48V version. This guy was selling his gear as a professional sound guy since he will retire. So looks like this may be a nice thing to catch as vintage mic to test :-)
Hello. T Power is 12volts. Some microphones used it. Phantom power has replaced it nowadays. But you could use good old microphones with this option in your preamp. More about it: www.sounddevices.com/t-powering-basics/
Not many people talk about this pre. I used it with a canon xa25 camera and Sennhisher K6 and Rode NTG-2 for documentary video productions. Also use it to line into a 18i8 interface for vocal recording. Nice bit of gear.
I may pick one of these up in order to have an analog limiter available for sound effects work. At the moment I’m using a Zoom F8n Pro 32-bit recorder (I know, I really should have at least an 833-but the production budget has gone mostly into cameras so far), which does an immediate A/D conversion on the input with the internal limiter coming later in the chain. Under many circumstances, this will be fine. The A/D can handle up to +4 dBu for mic level input, and I think +24 dBu for line level, but in those worst case situations when dealing with extremely dynamic and loud sources, having an analog limiter help attenuate the signal before it hits the recorder can make a huge difference.
Thank you for another great video. I have been a big fan of Sound Devices for years and their products are worth every single penny! I have the Mixpre-D and USBPre 2 and considering the Mixpre 6 now :) I mainly use them for voice over and video production. Couldn't find anything that can provide anything cleaner then these monsters!
I use a couple of EV RE20 into the Rodecaster pro which has enough gain for the EV but having a MM1 in my location bag I thought I'd dig it out and put to the test, on the output I used a Shure inline XLR db stepdown, set at -25db then run it into the Rodecaster pro with the input level set at 15, and it sound great 👍
That looks like a fun little device. It's certainly not cheap, but if someone wanted professional sound in a portable format, it looks like a decent option. Though for me, if I was going to spend that much on a preamp I would just get something from GAP or Warm Audio.
Hi Mike. Interesting review and very well done as usual. You should check our the Sound Devices MixPre 3. That would make for an interesting review. It is a 4 ch recorder, USB audio interface with very high end Mic Preamps. It is on my wish list. Goes for about $650
Hey man! Thank you so much for putting this content out there so we can reference it even 5 years later! Great stuff. I am wondering whether this is a better or comparable alternative to the preamps on the Mixpre3 by Sound Devices as well... Do you know how they all compare to the preamps of the USBPre2 interface? I am setting up a small podcast rig in my desk and I'd like quality. Back int he day I used to have a studio with CraneSong, api, dangerous music, etc... It's been a while but I'd like an interface and/or preamp that would be of good/great quality especially for recording podcasts and maybe some acoustic guitars/vocals, but mainly podcasting. Thanks!
@Sound Speeds: Wow that would be great! I'm considering the MixPre-6 myself, so it would be nice to hear what someone like Mike thinks of it. Be careful though - he might like it so much that you wont get it back ;-) JK
@HJD Mike is a good guy. Before I sent him anything, I checked him out and went back and forth with him a bunch. I've sent him many things to test and every single thing has been returned and all is well. I plan to send him more things in the future. BTW, this MM1 is mine.
@Sound Speeds: I know :-) I hope you noticed the winking smiley face and JK for "just kidding" after my post?? Mike has made a very good impression on me, and I would also trust him. I'm very happy you and others are sending him equipment to review, as it benefits all of us, who follow his channel. If he lived in Europe, I would offer to send him a few things myself, if he were interested in them. Thanks for sending him your MM1, it sounds very nice in my opinion. Good luck with your channel as well, Sound Speeds, I just had a look at a few of your videos.
I have the Mixpre D, which sound the same as this one. Sounds great but I wouldn't pay 600 dollars/euros for it (new). Rather save a bit more and buy a Zoom F4 which preamps sound the same (I made a vid comparig both preamps yesterday but it's not in English). I don't thik the limiter is so imprtant for voiceovers. But if you can find a used one for 250$ it's not a bad deal at all.
This seems to be a solution for my needs. I have a vox mini5 rhythm, battery powered, 2 input guitar (modeling) amp. I want to run my Shure Wh-20 headset mic through it, however the signal is quite weak and all I have on the input is an add (reverb) trim knob and a gain (volume) knob. I was hoping to put this inline to the amp from my headset and boost my vocal to a more than adequate signal. Would this be the one? Most of the mic preamps I've looked at require either phantom power or need to plug in the wall. I need something that I can battery power in the field to jam and practice away from my constraints, and hear the best mix possible out of a 5 watt situation, which I think is more than enough to get a decent sound.
Again, awesome video :) this might sound dumb, but I will try to explain my question :) If I use a device such as this, shall I try to use the pre amp on the Zoom H5 as little as possible? meaning how shall I set the pre amp on the Zoom? I believe that the one on MM-1 is better? And I believe I can't bypass or send in on the Zoom? All the Best!
Gunnar Hamberg The H5 pre-amp is satisfactory under most circumstances. If you need a lot of gain and need to crank it nearly all the way up, you can introduce more noise quicker on Zoom products than Sound Devices products. The question I'd ask myself is if the slight extra clean signal I'd get is worth the extra $450.
Hey !! will this work with a passive piezo acoustic guitar setup ??, considering a 19ft long cable, although the circuit is compensated with a capacitor to avoid losing too much tone, but, will this work properly for that application ?? PD: love your videos, I have learned a lot :D
hey I am just starting, found your videos, you are my mentor now...I just signed on to voices.com ...I am utilizing a tascam dr40 to record and using ocenaudio to get experience editing...is that enough for competent results? I also have the rode nt1a kit you showcased in one vid (bought it before I saw your channel so I felt great about that) and was going to run that through the dr40 until I got an audio interface. ...is that adequate? thank you in advance for your reply...
Franklin Blankenship It's a great start. You can also download Audacity, a free audio workstation software that has many advanced features you could use in editing.
Sound Speeds yeah I'm noticing I can't do a music bed in ocenaudio unless I overdub one of the stereo channels with the music then convert it to mono, which is a real task...but it's good to play with and get my feet wet...
Hey Mike, I have an sm7b, and an MM1, Ive listened in tuned the gain to 62 and the phones turned to 1 oclock to get as close to the settings on your video. I started to hear the hiss/noise floor from the mic. Did you get that too? Is that norm without a bigger pre amp? Thanks!
