Hi. I'm getting very close to a decision on what to do, I *think*. Here's an
email I got back from Rode's Tech Support...

"The NT4 Stereo mic is a High output mic.
You may not need a preamp but only to control the input level.
With high quality alkiline batteries the mic can last up to 400 hours.

Thank you,

Daniel Weber
Customer Support
RODE Microphones, LLC
Ph: 877 328 7456
Fax: 310 328 7180
Email: "

Soooo.... I will try the Nomad Jukebox 3 on it's own with the NT-4 first. If
the quality is not high enough for me, I will buy a portable preamp. The
Denecke/Core-Sound AD-20 is available WITHOUT phantom power ($310). I also
saw their portable phantom power unit (dual channel)also ($150). Both boxes
are very small and use a 9v battery.
The AD-20 looks very solid. Well built and portable. How does this thing
stack up as far as sound quality goes? I talked to Len Moskowitz, who owns
Core-Sound, and he said the Denecke would be my best bet for using a Nomad
Jukebox 3. They even have the optical cable I would need to send to the
optical input on the Nomad. Thanks again. This forum is proving itself to be
an invaluable resource for hard to find information!

Mike

In article tnlVa.4011$YN5.5156@sccrnsc01 writes:

"The NT4 Stereo mic is a High output mic.
You may not need a preamp but only to control the input level.
With high quality alkiline batteries the mic can last up to 400 hours.

Soooo.... I will try the Nomad Jukebox 3 on it's own with the NT-4 first.

Please report on your results. "High output" is of course a function
of input. If you're recording a rock band in a club, then I expect
that you'll get pretty good results. If you're recording a piano and
violin duet in a nice church, it's going to be noisy.



--
I'm really Mike Rivers - )

Thanks, I will surely post my results. This is an area in Pro Audio that
seems to have a massive gap. Not too many options that are portable and
"affordable". I need to record alot of sounds that will be quite distant,
such as thunder and rain. There will probably be noise issues, but I'm not
whipping out $300+ on a preamp if I do not think the noise is unbearable, or
audible to the casual listener. I'm writing music and sound effects for an
upcoming PC game. The sounds will be heard over cheesy low-fi speakers,
mostly. But there's always that magazine review crew with a really nice 5.1
setup to critique your sound quality...
"Mike Rivers" wrote in message
news:znr1059510623k@trad...

In article tnlVa.4011$YN5.5156@sccrnsc01 writes:

"The NT4 Stereo mic is a High output mic.
You may not need a preamp but only to control the input level.
With high quality alkiline batteries the mic can last up to 400 hours.

Soooo.... I will try the Nomad Jukebox 3 on it's own with the NT-4
first.

Please report on your results. "High output" is of course a function
of input. If you're recording a rock band in a club, then I expect
that you'll get pretty good results. If you're recording a piano and
violin duet in a nice church, it's going to be noisy.



--
I'm really Mike Rivers - )