looking for a good pre-amp for the Mark III

[Michael Bendixen]

I'm looking at Juiced Link's RM333 riggy micro

--and--

Beachteks DXA-SLR PRO.

I've looked over the various features on each, but I was wondering if anyone has opinions or comments on each.

Best,
Michael

[Richard Crowley]

I have used other Beachtek units, but not the DXA-SLR PRO, so my comments are not based on first-hand experience.

Comparing the descriptions on the respective websites, the Beachtek product seems like TWICE the value of the JuicedLink box. To be sure, it looks like ~$100 higher price as well. The JuicedLink box seems pretty basic and almost clunky compared to that latest-generation Beachtek unit. Assuming that the Beachtek box'es 2 XLR inputs (vs 3 on the JuicedLink) is not a show-stopper for you.

[Bill Davis]

Everything I read still indicates that while the MkIII is much improved over the MkII - it's still no where near in the ballpark of high quality.

So if you see great video as your primary goal and audio is secondary - then go ahead.

If you see audio as equally (or even more!) important than video to your communication work - then you'll probably want to keep using double system at this point.

Personally, I think audio is typically much MORE important to successful communication than the visuals in my projects, something outboard like an H4n is certainly not ideal - but it's at least it's an acceptable quality solution for general work for me.

On-board DSLR audio just isn't - even with the nice improvements between the MkII and the MkIII

YMMV.

[Michael Bendixen]

Juiced link says they slimmed down the RM333 because with the new features of the Mark 111 you don't need the:
--AGC over-ride
--Headphone input
--audio monitoring

It sounds like it handles power very well. But I agree, it looks a bit awkward and an external metering system would be nice.


The beachtek has all the above features, one less XLR input, but a nice ergonomic build and I hear the pots are a bit easier to use.

What I'm really interested in though is the quality of sound when you compare the 2.

(yes, I understand double-system is preferred for most situations and I own a H4N, but there are some situations where the single system is adequate)

Thanks!
M

[Jon Fairhurst]

I haven't used the latest BeachTek, but I've got the DT454 and the quality is well beyond the 16-bit recording capability of the DSLR. Even with the weak 5D2 preamps, by running Magic Lantern, I can get near the 16-bit limit in terms of Signal to Noise.

Unfortunately, I haven't had a chance to test 5D3 audio quality. Hopefully, it's as clean or better than the 5D2 with ML.

Regarding sound quality, it's not just about how clean the preamp is, it's also about having enough gain. The RM333 has 30 dB of gain, which is enough to work well even with low-sensitivity mics under normal conditions. By contrast, the BT only has 15 dB of gain. That's less than what the juicedLink CX232 delivers, and I would regularly max out that preamp with a mid-sensitivity mic. With 15 dB more of clean gain, I'd definitely opt for the RM333.