Best bird recorders for field recording (2 Viewers)

[Jon.Bryant]

I don't know where you get that information, visit today the page about Mixpre 3-II and not a word about power consumption, only what you can use to power the recorder.

Found this Mix Pre 3 and Mix Pre 6 Maximizing battery runtime. Not the Mix-Pre II, but presumably the Mix-Pre and later Mix-Pre II are no that dissimilar. Looks like variable consumption depending on mic powering, number of channels etc. but less than 6W (which is the figure for the Mix-Pre 6, plus 4 phantom powered mics).

 

[MiddleRiver]

FWIW, we travelled 3 weeks in Himalayas with a small GoalZero panel and a power pack. I made sure everything we used was USB (camera, Kindle, headlamps...). Worked great, and I avoided the hassle/weight of individual batteries etc. If needed, I would charge while walking by hanging panel on pack, or just pull it out at every extended stop.

 

[Jon.Bryant]

I go by canoe for three to four weeks with all I need, so tent, food, clothing and so on.

Very nice, but I think this is a bit niche, and not what most of us get up to. I think that your recorder recommendations would all be about power consumption, as that will be a big factor given your specific requirements. A bit like I said at the beginning 'first think about how you want to use a recorder and what you want in to be'. In your case I am guessing 'pack light, hand-held, built-in mics and wind screen, and low power consumption'.

For most of us who just need a day or two's worth of recording juice, I wouldn't recommend the same things as required for your specific needs.

 

[Joop99]

Found this Mix Pre 3 and Mix Pre 6 Maximizing battery runtime. Not the Mix-Pre II, but presumably the Mix-Pre and later Mix-Pre II are no that dissimilar. Looks like variable consumption depending on mic powering, number of channels etc. but less than 6W (which is the figure for the Mix-Pre 6, plus 4 phantom powered mics).

This is the biggest mistake you can make, fill in the gaps of the manufacturer.

 

[Jon.Bryant]

This is the biggest mistake you can make, fill in the gaps of the manufacturer

As I say, in my case I don't find the power consumption a key issue. Interesting to note that the Tascam DR-60DKMKii and the DR-701D spec sheets say that maximum power consumption is 5.4 and 6.5W respectively, so neither of your field recorders of choice are really low energy models either. In fact pretty similar to the Mix-Pre 3 and 6 (at least the Mk 1) in the article provided.

Higher bit rates and sampling rates increase power consumption, so I understand that 32bit float is not for you, and that you would not recommend it for your circumstance (i.e a long time deployed in the field with no power source for recharging).

For someone who is not so constrained by powering their device, another reason I would recommend Sound Devices, is that I have found their customer service and help desk great. They have always been very informative and quick to respond to technical questions I have raised.

I am sure if anyone really wants more guidance on power consumption, they would do their best to assist - although or course, exact figures will vary on number of mics, mic type and power options, whether the device is driving headphones, recording sampling rates and bit rates, screen on/brighness etc. - and from the article I provided above even battery type.

 

[Borjam]

I don't know where you get that information, visit today the page about Mixpre 3-II and not a word about power consumption, only what you can use to power the recorder. The only wattage on this page is from the net adapter.

I saw it here, albeit in a somewhat oblique way.

https://www.sounddevices.com/mixpre-3-mixpre-6-powering-options/

They mention the USB-C power requirements and they give a figure of 7.5 W.

Also cell characteristics are very important. In particular, how voltage drops depending on current.

https://www.sounddevices.com/mixpre-3-mixpre-6-maxbatteryruntime/?_gl=1*1s016fd*_up*MQ..*_ga*MzgxMjA1Mjk0LjE2NzkyMzA2Mjc.*_ga_S18YMRS6X9*MTY3OTIzMDYyNi4xLjEuMTY3OTIzMDY2OC4wLjAuMA..

 

[Jon.Bryant]

Going back on to favorite "field" recorders, how about

Close mic work

• Zoom F2 with lavalier
  • Pros - 32bit float, USB C powering options for long deployment, small size.
  • Cons - Not very robust/plasticky, not particularly weatherproof (but recorder and battery can be placed in waterproof bag, with mic only at risk), very low set recording level (but not important for 32bit float).
• Tentacle Track E with lavalier
  • Pros - 32bit float, long battery life, USB powering for long deployments, small size.
  • Cons - 48KHz max sample rate, not particularly waterproof (see above solution).
• Instamic Pro
  • Pros - 32bit float, fully weatherproof, very small all-in-one devices (and easy to carry, but also loose [I somehow managed to find it in the dark!])
  • Cons - A bit noisy, as all-in-one, not as discrete as just a lavalier fixed near a song perch, short battery life (so no good for longer deployments), not that easy to fix in place as fixing clips designed to make the device wearable of fixed permanently, fixing clips very flimsy and break easily, recorder and accessories can only be purchased direct and are often unavailable.

Drop Rig

• WildLife Acoustics SM4
  • Pros - pseudo stereo, waterproof, very long battery life, can be locked in place with a 8mm cable lock.
  • Cons - 16 bit only, SM4 quite expensive, not really a proper drop rig setup - a passive recorder designed for survey work, making a reasonable attempt at being a drop rig option, box is not vandal/animal proof (metal protection available but very expensive for a metal box, and becomes a home for creepy crawlies on long deployments).
• Wildlife Acoustics SM Mini with additional mic.
  • Pros - pseudo stereo, waterproof, very long battery life, can be locked in place with a 5mm cable lock.
  • Cons - Not really a proper drop rig setup - a passive recorder designed for survey work, making a reasonable attempt at being a drop rig option, box is not vandal/animal proof (metal clamp available but only designed to prevent tampering/opening of box, and not protection against willful damage), two mics impact achievable bit rate - the bit rate apparently is 14.5 when recording stereo at 48Khz.

NocMig

• WildLife Acoustics SM4 with additional external SMM-A2 mic house in parabola
  • Pros - waterproof, very long battery life, capture of omni sound in one channel and focused sound in the other, recorder can be locked in pace with a 8mm wide cable lock.
  • Cons - 16 bit only, DIY job required to house mic in parabola, quite expensive.
• WildLife Acoustics SM Mini (can be mounted in parabola)
  • Pros - waterproof, very long battery life, recorder can be locked in place with 5mm cable lock.
  • Cons - single mic picking up omni and focussed signal, DIY job to mount in parabola (see SM Mini NocMig Setup).
• WildLife Acoutics SM Micro (can be mounted in parabola)
  • Pros - waterproof, long batter life, coloured pickup (with greatest sensitivity at circa 6KHz - peak in sensitivity matches many passerine calls), recorder can be locked in place with 5mm cable lock.
  • Cons - Humidity control not as good as the mini of SM4 (recommended that deployed with a desiccant pack inside the recorder box), poor sensitivity at lower frequencies (not so easy to capture owl hoots etc. - but migrating owls are not that common, and I doubt if they hoot in any case!).
• Zoom F3 and Parabola.
  • Pros - 32 bit float.
  • Cons - vulnerable to weather (recorder and power bank can be placed in weather-tight case or bag, but mic still exposed to the elements and not necessarily designed for all weather use), cannot be secured in place, no option for PiP Parabola.

Travel Light

• Tentacle Track E with camera shotgun (Sennheisser MKE400 or similar)
  • Pros - 32bit float, better quality than most other handhelds, less handling noise than handhelds as 'separate' mic comes with suspension and better wind shielding, small footprint, can be dissambled for easy transportation.
  • Cons - 48KHz max sampling rate, need to buy a pistol grip or similar to mount the mic and recorder (not a single solution), not as directional and not as good quality as a proper shotgun.

Classic Shotgun and Parabola Work

• Sound Devices Mix Pre 3II
  • Pros - 32bit float, phantom power, classic bag recorder (easy to operate in a standard shoulder bag), lots of powering options, great audio quality, 2 XLR Inputs.
  • Cons - eats AA's (as per supplied standard battery sled option).

Shotgun and Parabola (Light?)

• Zoom F3
  • Pros - 32bit float, phantom power, 2 XLR Inputs, smallest recorder with XLR inputs, makes mounting on dish or shotgun handles possible.
  • Cons - battery compartment hard to access, really designed to be mounted using two rails on back - not that obvious how you would hold or use the device otherwise, no mini-jack input for PIP Parabolas.

Stereo Work

• Again Sound Devices Mix Pre 3II with two omni or cardional mics, or a MS mic
  • Pros - as per all separates (as opposed to all-in-one stereo recorders with built in mics), infinite control over stereo width, other pros as above for shotgun/parabola work.
  • Cons - battery consumption again.

Binaural

• Sound Devices Mix Pre 6II with ambio mic and ambisonic plug-in
  • Pros - Does what it is meant to and not many alternatives.
  • Cons - very expensive, max 24 bit, need a DAW capable of converting ambisonics to binaural, 3D effect only works with headphones.

The above is just a brain dump based on my research and a few purchases. If anyone with better experience can correct the above info, or add their recommendations it would be good.

 

[Lerxst]

• Zoom F3
  • Pros - 32bit float, phantom power, 2 XLR Inputs, smallest recorder with XLR inputs, makes mounting on dish or shotgun handles possible.
  • Cons - battery compartment hard to access, really designed to be mounted using two rails on back - not that obvious how you would hold of use the device otherwise

I use a simple binocular strap as shown. When the XLR cable is attached, it helps keep it flat against my chest. If I want to look at the display I have to grab it and tilt it up, but there isn't much need to look at it...

 

[Joop99]

Thanks for the link about power options and the link https://www.sounddevices.com/mixpre-3-mixpre-6-maxbatteryruntime for the Mixpre. The pdf with battery runtime is for the Mixpre mkI and the difference between mkI and mkII is huge, so not "presumably the Mix-Pre and later Mix-Pre II are no that dissimilar (Jon.Bryant)" by far. You can find yourself the difference, but the mkII does have a different chipset. The 32bit float and 192kHz is not a tweak on the chipset from the mkI. So probably uses more power. Also in the battery runtime they do give useage, but if you look sharp it is a recorder in almost idle state, they don't use phantom power for instance which is a huge load for the batteries. As said before, don't fill in the caps from the manufacturer.

 

[Joop99]

Jon.Bryant : "If anyone with better experience can correct the above info, or add their recommendations it would be good."
I did visit the sites from Tentacle and Instamic. Both mono and both uses the mobile phone. Tentacle uses lavalier from any manufacturer, that's nice, but the mobile connections can interfere. Its not symmetric and mono, so short cable have probably to be used. Again, don't fill in the gaps of the manufacturer.

 

[Jon.Bryant]

I did visit the sites from Tentacle and Instamic. Both mono and both uses the mobile phone. Tentacle uses lavalier from any manufacturer, that's nice, but the mobile connections can interfere. Its not symmetric and mono, so short cable have probably to be used. Again, don't fill in the gaps of the manufacturer.

Yep the Tentacle and Zoom F2 are both mono, but then with close mic work your are focusing on a single vocal, so I dont think it really matters. The recorders are designed to work with standard lavaliers, so a shortish cables is OK (circa 1.5m). Banging on about 32bit float, you don't need a long cable as you don't need to adjust the recording level in real time - just tape the lavalier in place, run out the short length of cable to the recorder (perhaps with power pack) that are then placed in a waterproof bag, press record, tie up the bag and step away - then either sit at distance and watch, or come back later (providing you have the nerves and don't worry about things getting stolen).

I have not experienced any interference caused by paring with a phone - but to be honest you only need to pair for initial setup. I wouldn't recommend trying to operate the Tentacle from the phone as then you need to be within bluetooth range.

I did buy an Instamic Pro Mono 24bit recorder which suffers from interference - They actually sent me a stereo device and I sometimes get interference when recording stereo and also use the magnetic fixing (with the magnet placed wither side of a leaf) - Instamic suggested that they may have sent out a stereo device that failed quality control, as they had run out of mono devices (and that the solution is to not use the magnet or just record in mono!).

 

[Jon.Bryant]

I use a simple binocular strap as shown. When the XLR cable is attached, it helps keep it flat against my chest. If I want to look at the display I have to grab it and tilt it up, but there isn't much need to look at it...

Interesting - do you suffer any noise issues? As the connection is XLR, I am not concerned about a poor connection and twisting of the cable. I just thought that you might get some 'handling noise' carrying down the cable to the mic.

My setup with the F3 has been to fix the recorder on a clamp attached to the parabola handle - cables are then kept tidy with ties, and as the recorder and mic are 'one unit' there is no risk of me knocking or bumping either (unless I bash the dish against something or have a over tense grip on the handle!).

 

[Borjam]

Thanks for the link about power options and the link https://www.sounddevices.com/mixpre-3-mixpre-6-maxbatteryruntime for the Mixpre. The pdf with battery runtime is for the Mixpre mkI and the difference between mkI and mkII is huge, so not "presumably the Mix-Pre and later Mix-Pre II are no that dissimilar (Jon.Bryant)" by far. You can find yourself the difference, but the mkII does have a different chipset. The 32bit float and 192kHz is not a tweak on the chipset from the mkI. So probably uses more power. Also in the battery runtime they do give useage, but if you look sharp it is a recorder in almost idle state, they don't use phantom power for instance which is a huge load for the batteries. As said before, don't fill in the caps from the manufacturer.

The MixPre II has a different SoC, certainly. It is much more powerful than the one in the first series. But being several years more recent I wouldn´t be surprised if the power consumption was comparable.

Also, the first series MixPre uses two converters in parallel for each input in order to improve S/N.

I can make measurements with a first series MixPre 3 but I don't have access to the second series.

 

[Borjam]

Jon.Bryant : "If anyone with better experience can correct the above info, or add their recommendations it would be good."
I did visit the sites from Tentacle and Instamic. Both mono and both uses the mobile phone. Tentacle uses lavalier from any manufacturer, that's nice, but the mobile connections can interfere. Its not symmetric and mono, so short cable have probably to be used. Again, don't fill in the gaps of the manufacturer.

The Tentaclesync Track E is a somewhat special kind of mono recorder. Its mobile phone sync is used for time code. The idea is, instead of transmitting the audio as you would do with a wireless transmitter, you record to a microSD card but the time code has been set up wirelessly from a phone.

So it's almost "radio silent" I presume unless it receives a query from an iPhone running the app. And anyway Bluetooth is very low power and lot likely to cause interference.

TentacleSync units are not constantly "syncing actively", they jam to a single timecode source simultaneously when instructed.

 

[Jon.Bryant]

Again, don't fill in the gaps of the manufacturer.

A valid comment. I have thought for a long time that understanding the physics of sound and how sound equipment works is rather daunting (especially when you take your first plunge into sound recording). It is not even like buying a camera - at least then you generally know how a camera will work with a lens from the same manufacturer. With sound equipment you are generally pairing a recorder, cables, mic and headphones and even the power source from different companies.

However, I am not sure that reading specs is the real or only answer to the problem. For example there has been the recent thread on the incompatibility of a Rode mic with the Zoom F3 (when 'on paper' there shouldn't be a problem).

Perhaps the best way forward is to build on the experience of what works for others. I have always thought that a website with tried and proven kit combinations for recording bird acoustics would be great - perhaps one day I will start something off!

 

[Lerxst]

Interesting - do you suffer any noise issues? As the connection is XLR, I am not concerned about a poor connection and twisting of the cable. I just thought that you might get some 'handling noise' carrying down the cable to the mic.

My setup with the F3 has been to fix the recorder on a clamp attached to the parabola handle - cables are then kept tidy with ties, and as the recorder and mic are 'one unit' there is no risk of me knocking or bumping either (unless I bash the dish against something or have a over tense grip on the handle!).

I can certainly get noise moving the cable about but I am generally something of a statue once I get on a bird, and it has not been a problem, yet... but I have not been using this for very long.

I would prefer something similar to what you described, and I am looking at ways to rig that up.

 

[Jon.Bryant]

I am looking at ways to rig that up.

I just bought a SmallRig cheeseplate - the one with the screws in the end, so that I can screw it to the Telinga tripod attachment plate (which then slides into the handle. See Small but Good (part 5)

SmallRig do loads of bits and bobs, which normally can be combined to make an appropriate solution. Just a bit expensive if you need multiple components.

 

[Vollmeise]

Is the run time estimate then

• Rechargeable AA batteries - 3.6Wh/7.5W = circa 29 mins?
• L-Type - 63.2Wh/7.5W = 8.42 hours?
• 20000mAh power bank = 100Wh/7.5W = 13.3 Hours?

If so, this demonstrates why power banks and L Type batteries are the best option for powering the Mix-Pre.

Jon, the Mixpre II runs about 2 hours w/ 4x rechargeable AA inserted (2x 48V phantom powered mics attached).
With the 8x AA battery pack around 4 hours respectively.

Cheers)

 

[Jon.Bryant]

Jon, the Mixpre II runs about 2 hours w/ 4x rechargeable AA inserted (2x 48V phantom powered mics attached).
With the 8x AA battery pack around 4 hours respectively.

Thanks for this. When I looked at the info from SoundDevices I realised my maths was wrong and way to simplistic. The type of AA and the battery resistance play a big part.

Reading the info, for those willing to pay the extra, the Lithium AAs would provide even longer recording times. But 2 hours on 4 rechargebles isn’t an awful problem (at least in my opinion).

 

[Lerxst]

I use a simple binocular strap as shown. When the XLR cable is attached, it helps keep it flat against my chest. If I want to look at the display I have to grab it and tilt it up, but there isn't much need to look at it...

I now use a small adapter that lets me mount the F3 on the pistol grip.

Photos here: My Recording Rig