Mixer Question...?

Question

Hi,

When going from multiple XLR mics to my camcorder, would it be best to go with a little Beachtek mixer/preamp that hooks up to the camcorder, or should I go with a $100 behringer mixer. If the Behringer, what is a good model to use for video?

I am not sure what to do because if I get more than two mics, I will not be able to use the beachtek, but I don't know how hauling around the behringer all the time is going to work. What are the pros/cons of each?

Thanks much

Answer 1

It depends how many mics you need to connect, how portable you need to be and what you are shooting. Otherwise, you hit the issues...

For the most part...

The field mixer (I suggest looking at juicedLink - though the newer BeachTeks look good with the pre-amps) are powered with a battery. If you need more than 2 mics, juicedLink has a 4-channel version. (I have an older non "HD" BeachTek DXA-6 and a new juicedLink CX231.)

The Behringer mixer needs wall power - and while you will get more mics (depending on the model you get), you will have very limited portability.

The juicedLink and BeachTek mount to the tripod mount of the camcorder. There is another tripod mount in the bottom of them so you can still mount to a tripod.

Of course, with all this, there is an issue of the mics if they need to be camera mounted. Since you did not specify the camcorder, it is a bit tough... many consumer camcorders do not have an accessory shoe, or in the case of certain Sony's, their proprietary "Active Interface Shoe" is smaller than a standard accessory cold shoe. So you you need a camera bracket like

http://www.amazon.com/Bower-Shoe-Video-L...

Note that this bracket has two accessory shoes (1 for mic, 1 for video light)

If you are filming a movie/short, you may want to capture the audio separately (and not necessarily use the camcorder audio for the final... but I would not use a Behringer mixer for that external capture. Ideally, a DigiDesign ProTools set up would be best - but for smaller budgets, a multi-track Tascam unit might be all you need.