Topic: Power Adapter and Rechargeable Battery Adapter for Sonosax SX-M2?

[Scuzzi]

Anyone have a link or recommendation on how to power the sax via plugging in and also any external rechargeable battery options?  I'm getting tired of spending a fortune on 9volt batteries.  Thanks.

[dennisrtyler]

http://www.batteryspace.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=2056

[Scuzzi]

That will do the trick?  Any idea what the full runtime is?

[it-goes-to-eleven]

I always wonder how clean the power is from batteries that employ regulator circuits to tweak the voltage.  Obviously, it depends on the regulator.  And fwiw, my 9v wally battery is regulated.  The lion's that power the 7xx recorders are not (voltage drops with discharge).

Of course some gear will be more sensitive to power variations.. But what gear?

I posted noise floor FFT's comparing a 110 volt powered pre-amp running on wall a/c vs. a cheapo inverter, and the difference was dramatic.  It'd be interesting to see more analysis like that.

[dennisrtyler]

That will do the trick?  Any idea what the full runtime is?

i believe sonosax quoted 42-50 hours depending on whether you run the batt on 16 or 19v

[dennisrtyler]

Question to Sonosax:
What is the draw of the SX-M2 and SX-M2/LS when providing 48V phantom power?  I am using them both with Schoeps.
 
I was reading the specs on the unit and this is what I concluded:
 
External
 :
12V DC to 24V DC, minimum 30mA, maximum 80mA - I guess this means that the the max it will consume is 80mA at 24V, so if this is the case, and the external battery I orderd is 4000mAh (19V or 16V). then 4000mAh/80mA = 50hours of run time on the external battery.
I am planning on running it at 19V but what would the run time be if I changed it to 16V? Would 16V affect the sound at all?

Their answer:

thank you for your message
Effectively the SX-M2 will draw max 80mA under 24V, however allow a short slightly higher current draw at power-up.
The average draw is aprox 50 to 60mA
You calculation is correct, but bear in mind that it is a purely theoretical value and may vary according the effective battery capacity.
The Schoeps microphone are usually drawing around 4mA under 48V => aprox 190mWatt => roughly said 400mW for a pair of Schoeps.
This represent aprox 25mA under 19V if we consider aprox 85% efficiency in the DC/DC converter that produce the 48V Phantom.
The efficiency in the SX-M2 is higher but I take this figure for safety.

If you change from 19Volts to 16 Volts the theoretical running time should be around 16% shorter => 42 hours instead of 50hours
Reducing the voltage does not affect the sonic performance at all, in fact it will sound excatly the same
but you will get a slightly lower headroom as the overall dynamic will be reduced by aprox 1,5 dB to 2 dB max
...somehow negligible as this is less than 2% of the max dynamic range of the SX-M2

I hope this answer your questions
Kind regards

Pierre Blanc
SONOSAX
Sales and Customer Support

[NOLAfishwater]

http://taperssection.com/index.php/topic,115919.0.html

[Scuzzi]

After successfully using the BatterySpace Powerizer mentioned in this thread for the last year it died on me a week ago.

I spoke to BatterySpace and they told me they couldn't service the unit and also indicated that if I purchased another one that it was pretty old technology.

I'm wondering if anyone has seen anything newer that might work, or is this unit still the best option?

[hammerhorror]

After successfully using the BatterySpace Powerizer mentioned in this thread for the last year it died on me a week ago.

I spoke to BatterySpace and they told me they couldn't service the unit and also indicated that if I purchased another one that it was pretty old technology.

I'm wondering if anyone has seen anything newer that might work, or is this unit still the best option?

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/503090-REG/Tekkeon_MP3450_MP3450_myPower_ALL_Universal.html

I use this battery with my Sonosax and it works great! It is very well made and worth the price in my opinion.

[brianp]

After successfully using the BatterySpace Powerizer mentioned in this thread for the last year it died on me a week ago.

I spoke to BatterySpace and they told me they couldn't service the unit and also indicated that if I purchased another one that it was pretty old technology.

I'm wondering if anyone has seen anything newer that might work, or is this unit still the best option?

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/503090-REG/Tekkeon_MP3450_MP3450_myPower_ALL_Universal.html

I use this battery with my Sonosax and it works great! It is very well made and worth the price in my opinion.

Are you able to use the cable that came with it, or did you have to have a custom cable made?

[johnw]

I have 8 of these Powerex 9.6V rechargeable batteries and love them. I would think they would work well on the Sonosax if you don't mind using internal bats.

http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=125761.0

[brianp]

I have 8 of these Powerex 9.6V rechargeable batteries and love them. I would think they would work well on the Sonosax if you don't mind using internal bats.

http://taperssection.com/index.php?topic=125761.0

I tried them in 2004 when they originally came out and had bad luck with them in the SX-M2. Some shows they would make it through, other times they would fail after about an hour. I sold them on ebay shortly after.

[johnw]

Are you sure those were the same batteries as these? I think these are fairly new and have a measured voltage when fully charged of around 11. The "9V" rechargeable batteries that people had tried actually measured around 8.4V and dropped off from there. These ones last around 3.5-4 hours in my Nbox, same as a standard 9V.

[hammerhorror]

After successfully using the BatterySpace Powerizer mentioned in this thread for the last year it died on me a week ago.

I spoke to BatterySpace and they told me they couldn't service the unit and also indicated that if I purchased another one that it was pretty old technology.

I'm wondering if anyone has seen anything newer that might work, or is this unit still the best option?

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/503090-REG/Tekkeon_MP3450_MP3450_myPower_ALL_Universal.html

I use this battery with my Sonosax and it works great! It is very well made and worth the price in my opinion.

Are you able to use the cable that came with it, or did you have to have a custom cable made?

I'm able to use the cable that comes with the Tekkeon battery, but none of the included tips fit the power input of the Sonosax so you will need to buy one of these tips from Radio Shack. The tip below will fit the cable that comes with the Tekkeon battery, no modification is required.

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3807939

[brianp]

Hammerhorror: thanks for the info, I'm gonna buy one of those batteries. I'm sick of buying and adding 9 volts to the landfill.

Johnw: You're right, those probably are a little stronger than the ones I bought back in 2004.

[lastubbe]

After successfully using the BatterySpace Powerizer mentioned in this thread for the last year it died on me a week ago.

I spoke to BatterySpace and they told me they couldn't service the unit and also indicated that if I purchased another one that it was pretty old technology.

I'm wondering if anyone has seen anything newer that might work, or is this unit still the best option?

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/503090-REG/Tekkeon_MP3450_MP3450_myPower_ALL_Universal.html

I use this battery with my Sonosax and it works great! It is very well made and worth the price in my opinion.

Thought I'd chime in on this topic to fluff this battery....

I took John's advice and picked one of these up.  Only had to use 9 volts the first two times I used the Sax, and am now loving the Tekkeon.  Fits perfectly in the Sonicase, is simple to use/quick to setup, and works like a charm with no power worries.

Since I've been out with it, I've noticed other tapers using it as well.  Highly recommended.

[Scuzzi]

I've been using this battery as well and it has been working great so far.  My only gripe is the cable plug from Radio Shack mentioned in this thread doesn't fit quite as snugly as I would like..  I've had it slip out once or twice while I'm still setting everything set up.

[lastubbe]

I've been using this battery as well and it has been working great so far.  My only gripe is the cable plug from Radio Shack mentioned in this thread doesn't fit quite as snugly as I would like..  I've had it slip out once or twice while I'm still setting everything set up.

I agree.  I was going to search for another adapter when I had the time.  I only had it slip out once during setup when I actually tugged the cord, but I agree it does not fit real snug.

I've made it the last thing I connect before firing everything up now, and the last show to be safe I used a small piece of tape for less worry.

[F.O.Bean]

So what are the runtimes using that battery, Lenny? And how long do 2xalkaline 9vs last running Schoeps

[page]

So what are the runtimes using that battery, Lenny? And how long do 2xalkaline 9vs last running Schoeps

the tekkeons have between 2600 and 3000mah. Looking at around 25-30 hours or so at 19v using p48, not sure with the lemo editions.

If you're looking for 40 hours, you've got to go with somewhere in the 4000mah range. The problem with that is finding high voltage packs. Yes, the sax runs anywhere from 12-24, and yes it matters what voltage it's fed (the more the better as long as it's under 24v). For battery packs, you either have to get a regulated pack, or get one where the peak voltage after charge isn't over 24 (which gives you a nominal voltage of around 19-20v or there abouts).

[lastubbe]

So what are the runtimes using that battery, Lenny? And how long do 2xalkaline 9vs last running Schoeps

You would burn through 2x 9v with each set.

CK and I were having this conversation at the Glen. 

I was told when I got picked one up, that it'd pretty much run the Sax for hours, no worries.  But I always worry, so I recharged.  Took less than a minute to recharge, so basically I didn't need to.

I couldn't be happie with the Tekkeon.  No better way to go.  Ted made my power cable as well.

[page]

I couldn't be happie with the Tekkeon.  No better way to go.  Ted made my power cable as well.

Yeah, the only improvement is getting above 19v for headroom since the sax's upper limit is based on that, but I'm not sure its worth the trade off. The powering solution would have to be significantly cheaper then a 3450 to make it in my eyes. The only catch is don't get a tekkon that auto-locks on it's voltage, gotta set it manually.

At MPP and Raleigh>Ptown I would set the 722's timer (so it would start recording about 10-15 minutes before the estimated set start), turn the machine on, set a gain estimate, and lock the keys. That enabled my small bag to be placed under the tree stand early on where it was hard to get at (safe) and I'd just walk back to my seat or whatever. Come back at the end of the show and turn everything off and walk out. Nobody had to run my rig or anything, just make sure the stand didn't get trampled since my stuff was underneath it. *** I'd just leave the sax running for 6-7hrs or so each day. I figured out that if I recharged my 722 each night, I could easily run a weekend of Phish off of a single tekkeon 3450i charge. Actually, a number of times, I even used the usb port and set my phone to airplane mode and put it in the bag to charge while the show was going on.

*** This message was brought to you by Team Lazy Taper.

[F.O.Bean]

Cool, thanks for the info guys

[lastubbe]

Interesting page.  Thanks for sharing that scenario.

Yea more headroom would be nice, but I've always run the Sax at 19v and have been happy with my results, so I agree it's not worth any trade off to go higher imo.

[F.O.Bean]

Thanks for the info Lenny. Looks like I need to purchase a few of those Tekkeon batts for festy time