GROUP TEST
SOUND DEVICES MIXPRE-6 £954 www.sounddevices.com
SPECIFICATIONS Built-inmicrophone: None Inputs: 4xbalancedXLR/balancedjack mic/line, 2x aux line Number of record tracks: 8 (6 inputs plus stereomix) Recordingmedium: SDHC/SDXC card Maximumsample rate/word size: Up to 192kHz/24-bit Power: 4 x AA batteries, optional 8x AA batteries, optional AC adapter, optional 2x Sony L-type Li-ion Features: 9/10 Offers pretty much everything you could want from a portable sound recorder Performance: 9/10 The unit has stunning mic preamps and limiter Handling: 10/10 Touch screen and rotary controls, small and lightweight Value for money: 9/10 The most expensive here, but by far the best PROMOVIEMAKER RATING: 9/10 Pros: Professional features, fantastic mic preamps Cons: Eats up AA batteries HOW IT RATES
batteries. Buy the li-ion option, as the unit munches its way through AAs quickly. Beneath the battery sled is the SD card slot and a hex key, which is used to push up and engage the 3/8in tripod screw embedded in the top panel, allowing the MixPro-6 to be mounted to the bottomof a camera – there is also a locating lug you can use. You thenmount the MixPre-6 onto a tripod using the threaded bush on the bottom. The front of the unit has a tiny colour touchscreen LCD for the menus, meters and so on, transport controls and four fader knobs. Pressing the faders brings up the input menu for that channel. Each fader has an LED ring around it that provides a simple but effective level meter. The MixPre-6 has fantastic mic- preamps, easily the best of the group – perhaps not surprising given the company’s heritage. The input limiters are equally astonishing, absorbing unexpected overs smoothly, and that tiny touchscreen, combined with the rotary encoder, makes it simple to navigate the many features. The unit also has Bluetooth, so you can control it using Sound Devices’ Wingman app if you have fingers too big for the touchscreen. As the most expensive unit in our test, the MixPre-6 has the most professional features. For instance, it stamps recordings with time code from the HDMI input, or LTC over one of the aux audio inputs. It really is a tiny but impressive version of the field recorders that have made Sound Devices’ reputation.
Sound Devices has an enviable reputation in the film and TV industries. Fromhumble beginnings makingmic preamps in 1998, you’ll now find their field recorders and mixers on every kind of production, from small documentaries to Hollywood blockbusters. The MixPre-6 looks like a toy version of a location recorder – it’s anything but. Its tiny metal frame packs in four hybrid XLR/jack balanced inputs and two auxiliary unbalanced line inputs on a 3.5mm jack. All six analogue inputs can be recorded individually, post input gain stage but pre- fader, whilst simultaneously recording a stereomix, making the diminutive MixPre-6 an eight-track recorder. The right side of the unit has the hybrid mic or line XLR/jacks for channels 1 and 2, a 3.5mm jack for stereo out, the power switch and a couple of USBs. The MixPre-6 can be used to stream the four inputs to a computer over USB, as well as being powered by the interface. Meanwhile, the left side has the other two hybrid XLRs for channels 3 and 4, the 3.5mm jack for the two aux inputs, a micro HDMI (which can receive both timecode and record/stop commands from a camera) and a 3.5mmheadphone jack. The headphone level is controlled by a rotary encoder below it, and this can also be used to navigate menus while pressing on it selects menu items. The rear features the battery sled for four AAs. There are options for eight AAs, and two hot-swappable Sony L-type li-ion
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SPRING 2018 PRO MOVIEMAKER
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