The bit record rate does not affect the "sensitivity" of the Tascam X8 recorder. It has nothing to do with the gain levels of the recorder. Recording in 32 bit will protect you from clipping your signal with very loud sounds. The Cloud Lifter is a sound signal amplifier. The Cloud Lifter amplifies the sound signal about 25 dB (as yo mentioned) gain that is a clean sound signal. The X8 has has it's own phantom power amplifier, and it produces very clean sound signal that will run most condenser mics. I own the Tascam X8 and I have been very pleased with how clean the phantom power amplification has been. I wish you success with your new channel.
Interesting video. BTW which channel did you plug the xlr cable? 3 or 4, 5, 6.... also what XLR cable do you use? standard normal priced ones or low noise expensive ones. Also have you tried a 2 person or more recording with all using SM7Bs.
I use channel 3. As for the XLRs, yeah I use the normal priced ones . I think I paid $15-20 for a 2pack. Yeah I do 2-3 person podcast for clients all the time using the sm7bs. No problems at all. Usually use channels 3,4&5.
Even professionals often have a misconception about "clean gain" - if your interface can power the SM7B - you do not need a cloudlifter or fathead. IF the mic is too quiet - then by all means get one. Otherwise - save the money. Well done Sir!! Julian Krause had a good video explaining the physics behind it.
An audio interface cannot “power” any dynamic microphone. With a dynamic microphone, you are relying on your interface’s mic pres for gain staging and cheap mic pres sound terrible and totally defeat the purpose of having a nice microphone in the first place. You want to hear the microphone, not the cheap preamps. Something like a cloudlifter will make it possible to nearly bypass the mic pres altogether. There’s a reason that the 7b is almost always used in a professional environment with a phantom powered clean gain amplifier or a dedicated high quality mic pre. It’s not snake oil.
@@TheTokyoAmducias yeah. Wrong wording. But if your device can provide enough gain to amplify the weak signal from the SM7B then it’s probably cleaner, even if at maximum gain setting, then using a cloud lifter and using lower gain settings of the pre-amps - reason being that higher gain settings are not noisier than lower ones. If you device provided noisy and bad gain, invest in a better device rather than a cloud lifter as the bad gain will be even worse in low gain settings even if you use the cloud lifter. Anyhow, JUlian explains it probably better than I ever will, so just watch his video on it with provided proof. Cheers!
Great video, sir! I've owned an X8 for about 6 mo now (which I LOVE--it's still the best recorder on the market, imo) and while I've used it to run a Rode NTG4+, that is a condenser which I use on a boom, NOT at my desk for voice overs, readings, maybe some podcasting in the future and so forth. I don't have a treated studio (only an echoey office with 2 dogs and 3 cats constantly under foot and jumping on my desk) so a condenser isn't really a good solution for my particular environment. I've decided to get a Rode Procaster mic for that kind of desk work, but since that is a dynamic mic, I was afraid I would need to buy a separate preamp interface. You've convinced me that my trusty X8 will be all the interface I need to plug into--I will use my X8's preamp lined directly into my M1 Max Mac Studio running Davinci Resolve Studio's Fairlight and I think I will have a great setup! Keep up the great work and I will subscribe to your channel to help push you forward. Cheers, sir!
Amazing man! Yeah I think that set up would work great for you! The X8 and X6 are beasts! Love it Really appreciate you checking out the video and giving me a sub! Much appreciated!🙏🏾
Great comparison and exactly the info I was looking for. Upgrading from the Podmic to the SM7B and running it thru the F6. Was always told I would need a cloudlifter, but with 32-bit I wanted to be sure before buying. Great info! 👌🏻
Did you do anything in post to remove background noise? I have the same combo with the portacapture and SM7B, getting a lot of background noise when bumping up the gain
I am interested in doing vlogging, podcasting , and ASMR. I was wondering if the Portacapture x8 would be great for this . Also I am wondering if you can recommend a couple of microphones that would be appropriate for the types of recordings that I am interesting in doing?
Thank you. Wondering how much difference there is between the audio on the built-in mics of the X8 vs the SM7b? I currently use the X8 built-in mics for my podcast but thinking about adding the SM7B for interviews.
Honestly, I’ve only used the onboard mic once while being out in there field. And it didn’t sound all that bad. I was actually surprised how god it sounded but I did notice that when using the SM7b the sound was much clearer and richer. It definitely gives you a more professional sound without having to do much in post. Both options are solid though
Thank you! And although I’ve never tested the X6, I can’t imagine there would be a difference between the 2. They should both sound exactly the same. I’ll try to get my hands on one to do a test!
Hey man, I have one more question. I don't know what to do right now. I bought the PortaCapture X8, but as soon as I connect my FetHead for the Shure SM57, I don't see any sound on the waveform. When I unplug the FetHead, I can see the waveform again and get sound out of it. Is there anything I need to do in the menu first to get sound out of it with the FetHead? Thank you so much.
If you’re connecting a mic directly to your camera you wouldn’t need a recorder. Audio recorders are its own recording devices. When using a recorder you’ll need to sync the separate audio track in post.
Okay then yeah! Sorry I kinda misunderstood the question. You definitely can you’ll just need an xlr cable going from your mic to your recorder and a 3.5mm cable going from the recorder (OUT) to the 3.5mm slot of your camera.
The bit record rate does not affect the "sensitivity" of the Tascam X8 recorder. It has nothing to do with the gain levels of the recorder. Recording in 32 bit will protect you from clipping your signal with very loud sounds. The Cloud Lifter is a sound signal amplifier. The Cloud Lifter amplifies the sound signal about 25 dB (as yo mentioned) gain that is a clean sound signal. The X8 has has it's own phantom power amplifier, and it produces very clean sound signal that will run most condenser mics. I own the Tascam X8 and I have been very pleased with how clean the phantom power amplification has been. I wish you success with your new channel.
Interesting video. BTW which channel did you plug the xlr cable? 3 or 4, 5, 6.... also what XLR cable do you use? standard normal priced ones or low noise expensive ones. Also have you tried a 2 person or more recording with all using SM7Bs.
I use channel 3.
As for the XLRs, yeah I use the normal priced ones . I think I paid $15-20 for a 2pack.
Yeah I do 2-3 person podcast for clients all the time using the sm7bs. No problems at all. Usually use channels 3,4&5.
Even professionals often have a misconception about "clean gain" - if your interface can power the SM7B - you do not need a cloudlifter or fathead. IF the mic is too quiet - then by all means get one. Otherwise - save the money. Well done Sir!! Julian Krause had a good video explaining the physics behind it.
I appreciate that man ! 🙏🏾
An audio interface cannot “power” any dynamic microphone. With a dynamic microphone, you are relying on your interface’s mic pres for gain staging and cheap mic pres sound terrible and totally defeat the purpose of having a nice microphone in the first place. You want to hear the microphone, not the cheap preamps.
Something like a cloudlifter will make it possible to nearly bypass the mic pres altogether. There’s a reason that the 7b is almost always used in a professional environment with a phantom powered clean gain amplifier or a dedicated high quality mic pre. It’s not snake oil.
@@TheTokyoAmducias yeah. Wrong wording. But if your device can provide enough gain to amplify the weak signal from the SM7B then it’s probably cleaner, even if at maximum gain setting, then using a cloud lifter and using lower gain settings of the pre-amps - reason being that higher gain settings are not noisier than lower ones. If you device provided noisy and bad gain, invest in a better device rather than a cloud lifter as the bad gain will be even worse in low gain settings even if you use the cloud lifter. Anyhow, JUlian explains it probably better than I ever will, so just watch his video on it with provided proof. Cheers!
Great video, sir! I've owned an X8 for about 6 mo now (which I LOVE--it's still the best recorder on the market, imo) and while I've used it to run a Rode NTG4+, that is a condenser which I use on a boom, NOT at my desk for voice overs, readings, maybe some podcasting in the future and so forth. I don't have a treated studio (only an echoey office with 2 dogs and 3 cats constantly under foot and jumping on my desk) so a condenser isn't really a good solution for my particular environment. I've decided to get a Rode Procaster mic for that kind of desk work, but since that is a dynamic mic, I was afraid I would need to buy a separate preamp interface. You've convinced me that my trusty X8 will be all the interface I need to plug into--I will use my X8's preamp lined directly into my M1 Max Mac Studio running Davinci Resolve Studio's Fairlight and I think I will have a great setup! Keep up the great work and I will subscribe to your channel to help push you forward. Cheers, sir!
Amazing man! Yeah I think that set up would work great for you! The X8 and X6 are beasts! Love it
Really appreciate you checking out the video and giving me a sub! Much appreciated!🙏🏾
Great comparison and exactly the info I was looking for. Upgrading from the Podmic to the SM7B and running it thru the F6. Was always told I would need a cloudlifter, but with 32-bit I wanted to be sure before buying. Great info! 👌🏻
No problem man. Glad this helped
Did you do anything in post to remove background noise? I have the same combo with the portacapture and SM7B, getting a lot of background noise when bumping up the gain
I am interested in doing vlogging, podcasting , and ASMR. I was wondering if the Portacapture x8 would be great for this . Also I am wondering if you can recommend a couple of microphones that would be appropriate for the types of recordings that I am interesting in doing?
Hi Quay, what software do you use to edit the audio after recording the audio on the X8? Thanks
I just use adobe. Basic editing tools in premiere pro
Thank you. Wondering how much difference there is between the audio on the built-in mics of the X8 vs the SM7b? I currently use the X8 built-in mics for my podcast but thinking about adding the SM7B for interviews.
Honestly, I’ve only used the onboard mic once while being out in there field. And it didn’t sound all that bad. I was actually surprised how god it sounded but I did notice that when using the SM7b the sound was much clearer and richer. It definitely gives you a more professional sound without having to do much in post. Both options are solid though
@QUAYVISION thanks man.
Of course !
Great video! Is there a difference from the audio quality with the Portacapture X8 compared to the X6?
Thank you!
And although I’ve never tested the X6, I can’t imagine there would be a difference between the 2. They should both sound exactly the same. I’ll try to get my hands on one to do a test!
@@quayvision Thanks a lot for the response. Really appreciate it :)
Of course man! Appreciate you reaching out and watching the vid! 🙏🏾
Great vid, very informative 👍🏾
Appreciate that man! Thanks for checking out the video.
Why am I hearing hissing noise when turning up the gain? Is that hissing noise only appears in monitoring? I'm sure the 32bit float in on.
Hey man, I have one more question. I don't know what to do right now. I bought the PortaCapture X8, but as soon as I connect my FetHead for the Shure SM57, I don't see any sound on the waveform. When I unplug the FetHead, I can see the waveform again and get sound out of it. Is there anything I need to do in the menu first to get sound out of it with the FetHead? Thank you so much.
What’s up man! I’ve never used a get gear with mine but I can’t imagine it having a problem with it.
Did you make sure phantom power was turned on?
@QUAYVISION Yeah the phantom power is on +48V. Without the Fethead it works perfectly but with it it doesn't recognize the audio.
I know this is an old comment but - I found out some of my cheap XLR cables wouldn't take phantom power. Took me a while to figure that out.
I am learning and I am on the market to purchase my first recorder. Can you connect this set directly to a camera?
If you’re connecting a mic directly to your camera you wouldn’t need a recorder. Audio recorders are its own recording devices. When using a recorder you’ll need to sync the separate audio track in post.
@@quayvision Thank you! I guess I am trying to do both video and podcast with minimal editing and syncing.
Okay then yeah! Sorry I kinda misunderstood the question. You definitely can you’ll just need an xlr cable going from your mic to your recorder and a 3.5mm cable going from the recorder (OUT) to the 3.5mm slot of your camera.
it sounds better to me without
انت رائع شكرا لك
🙏🏾🙏🏾 my pleasure