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Post by rowmat on May 9, 2024 14:56:54 GMT -6
I have few but ended up rarely using them.
Granted if you have a low output mic and a pre with not a lot of gain that needed maxing out that could make the case for one.
However I found with a decent quality high gain pre (Twin Servo etc) and something like a Coles 4038 I preferred it without the Cloudlifter.
If anything the CL increased the noise slightly and definitely altered the sound.
A crazy long cable run between a low output mic and pre ‘may’ also benefit from a CL but I would compare with and without first.
If it sounds better with it, use it, if it doesn’t, don’t.
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Post by hadaja on May 9, 2024 16:06:35 GMT -6
The cheap Klark Teknik (Behringer) works fine. 7K input Z. There's a Polsen and Triton that are 22K input Z. I bought that one too but I thought it imparted a slightly undesirable sound. But I cant discount that that might be psychological with just the dirty feeling of buying a Klark Teknik (BEhringer) product. |
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Post by geoff738 on May 9, 2024 16:16:20 GMT -6
The cheap Klark Teknik (Behringer) works fine. 7K input Z. There's a Polsen and Triton that are 22K input Z. I bought that one too but I thought it imparted a slightly undesirable sound. But I cant discount that that might be psychological with just the dirty feeling of buying a Klark Teknik (BEhringer) product. Yeah. There is that. Cheers, Geoff |
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Post by EmRR on May 9, 2024 23:17:13 GMT -6
The cheap Klark Teknik (Behringer) works fine. 7K input Z. There's a Polsen and Triton that are 22K input Z. I bought that one too but I thought it imparted a slightly undesirable sound. But I cant discount that that might be psychological with just the dirty feeling of buying a Klark Teknik (BEhringer) product. Sure, but there's very little if any difference in these devices, they are pretty basic. Build/Fit/Finish/Perception is definitely the larger factor. |
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Post by ironinthepath on May 10, 2024 14:30:05 GMT -6
I have a pair of the cloudlifter z units to use with my ribbons: they’re definitely not bad and they’re useful tools…but I still prefer just using mic pre with compatible input impedance and low noise.
My favorite is Gordon model 5, but Buzz Audio Elixir has been great and I also found the RND511 pres to be decent (and the variable HPF useful for handling proximity effect in some cases).
The cloudlifter has always been usable but the best sonics from them are slightly bested, to my ears, by the sonics of a dedicated pre meant to handle the job from the outset. Having said that, they’re good tools for use with high quality pres having non optimal input impedance, in my opinion.
-Chris
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Post by geoff738 on May 20, 2024 14:38:18 GMT -6
Well the Cathedral pipes one arrived a couple days ago, and tried the R84 with and without it through a Daking pre. And the noise floor was definitely lower with it than without it. So, I think I’m going to find it useful.
Cheers,
Geoff
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Post by spacecowboy on May 21, 2024 10:49:00 GMT -6
that's pretty interesting. every gain stage adds noise, and the gain stages that come after amplify that noise and add their own...Would kinda suggest the daking is noisy. can you check it with other pres?
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Post by jacobamerritt on May 21, 2024 10:57:25 GMT -6
I'll be honest - I don't understand the purposes of these devices. It seems to me to be guaranteed worse noise performance than a mic pre with sufficient gain and the correct input impedance.
In my case, using an RE-16 on a delicately fingerpicked classical guitar... Noise floor was awful. Triton Fathead was the solution. Even when using my collection of boutique and high end preamps. |
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Post by EmRR on May 21, 2024 11:25:53 GMT -6
Internal power supply noise is where it will win
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Post by geoff738 on May 21, 2024 15:17:55 GMT -6
that's pretty interesting. every gain stage adds noise, and the gain stages that come after amplify that noise and add their own...Would kinda suggest the daking is noisy. can you check it with other pres? To be fair I just set the Daking so that it was just tickling the yellow on the meters in both cases. I had to turn it almost all the way up to get it there without the booster inline. I could have run it a bit lower and boosted in the Daw. I haven’t tried the interface pres. Well ever. And there’s a Gap one gathering dust and the cheapo Art one in a drawer somewhere. Plus the Syteks. So yeah there are a few other pres I can and should try. Cheers, Geoff |
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ericn
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Balance Engineer
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Post by ericn on May 21, 2024 16:13:10 GMT -6
Internal power supply noise is where it will win I do wonder how many issues with these things is crappy phantom power. People don’t even think in terms of the basics ( voltage and current) when dealing with phantom. |
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Post by EmRR on May 21, 2024 17:52:12 GMT -6
Internal power supply noise is where it will win I do wonder how many issues with these things is crappy phantom power. People don’t even think in terms of the basics ( voltage and current) when dealing with phantom. Hmm, yeah there’s that. I was thinking about Sytek as an example. Channels 3-4 have increasing audible hum at max gain since they’re closest to the PSU. One of these things takes the gain outside and away from. If the noise is hum or buzz, that’s your source. Same as why condensers seem quieter than dynamics or ribbons - gain is outside the preamp. It’s really tough to evaluate close noise differences since gain has to be matched EXACTLY. Test tone source for calibration on a mic you haven’t moved, in a super quiet room, no HVAC running or cars going by. Get all those conditions right, these devices will show more noise with a preamp having a quiet PSU. |
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Post by stratboy on May 21, 2024 18:28:33 GMT -6
Well I went and ordered the Cathedral Pipes one. Because other than the KT one it was cheapest. I guess we’ll see when it gets here whether I think it’s an improvement over just using the pres I have. If not I will move it along. Cheers, Geoff I have had a Durham for a while. I use it on my AEA R84 or my SM7b when the source is quiet. The Durham is very quiet, IMO. Doesn’t add any noticeable noise to the track. It just amplifies the character of the mic. |
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Post by chessparov on May 21, 2024 18:50:57 GMT -6
Guess I'll keep messing around a bit with my OG Launcher...
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Post by peterhess on May 23, 2024 18:35:25 GMT -6
Last week was in a session w/ 4 Melodium ribbons on the floor: couple of them were going to small Extinct Audio transformer pass-throughs, 30ohm input->600ohm output. Unsure what the impedance was on the modern Neve desk. This is not the same kind of operation as a Cloudlifter or Launcher, right?
With and without the Extinct boxes, those Melodiums sounded outrageous.
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Post by ironinthepath on May 23, 2024 22:30:47 GMT -6
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Post by EmRR on May 24, 2024 3:39:15 GMT -6
The Crimson devices are transformer coupled. Think it’s step up for gain with transistor drive.
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Post by chessparov on May 24, 2024 13:07:30 GMT -6
Where's the Clover switch?
("Over and Over")
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Post by brenta on May 24, 2024 13:24:28 GMT -6
I would assume that the Royer dBooster is the same as the phantom powered preamp that’s in the Royer 122. I could be totally wrong about that but that would make a lot of sense. If so, then a Royer 121 + dBooster = Royer 122. In my experience the 122 typically sounds a little more open than the 121 and has a more consistent sound with different preamps. I have a dBooster but haven’t compared to any of these other devices.
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Post by EmRR on May 24, 2024 14:07:32 GMT -6
I would assume that the Royer dBooster is the same as the phantom powered preamp that’s in the Royer 122. I could be totally wrong about that but that would make a lot of sense. If so, then a Royer 121 + dBooster = Royer 122. In my experience the 122 typically sounds a little more open than the 121 and has a more consistent sound with different preamps. I have a dBooster but haven’t compared to any of these other devices. Probably different, probably has a different transformer ratio, likely more gain than the passive since it's directly feeding an onboard buffer amp. |
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Post by chessparov on May 24, 2024 17:39:40 GMT -6
EV635a/Launcher combo here. On this informal MP3 vocal clip. |
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ericn
Temp
Balance Engineer
Posts: 16,083
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Post by ericn on May 24, 2024 18:26:47 GMT -6
Where's the Clover switch? ("Over and Over") “don’t waist our time tell me now” ( Over and Over, by Fleetwood Mac ) |
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Post by gravesnumber9 on Aug 19, 2024 14:13:40 GMT -6
Was doing an organization of a utility drawer and came across my Cloudlifter. I'm trying to think of why I wouldn't just sell this for like $100. I have a whole bunch of other random utility items that I rarely use but that I do SOMETIMES use and, you know, when you need it you need it.
So I pulled it out and am doing all kinds of noise testing and stuff with my interface preamps (MOTU 828es which I never use anyway) and you have to crank it so loud before you can hear anything with or without the Cloudlifter that... I don't know. What am I missing?
(This with an SM7b btw).
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Post by gwlee7 on Aug 19, 2024 15:10:25 GMT -6
Just gonna ask… did you have the phantom power on the channel? Cloudlifters need phantom power.
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Post by gravesnumber9 on Aug 19, 2024 16:16:32 GMT -6
Just gonna ask… did you have the phantom power on the channel? Cloudlifters need phantom power. Maybe I didn't explain very well. What I mean that in recording white noise to see if the cloudlifter improves the noise floor there's so much headroom anyway that by the time you can hear the noise floor the track is outrageously loud. So doing a test with and without the cloud lifter, I can't really tell a difference, there's a ton of headroom either way. |
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