thanks guys. batteries are fresh (i use plural as i was trying three single-point mics, a sony, a jvc, and a realistic, which, btw, has better response IMO than the sony and jvc...go figure), and i believe all are low impedance, self-powered (damn, forgot to look at the documentation last night, sorry). the jvc and realistic have an on/off switch on them, the sony does not.
i bought the battery box when i first started taping, and pulled some decent shows going mics > batt box > MD, then mics > batt box > JB3 (line-in) after i ditched the MD. my testing scenario is...my car! (i have to do this otherwise i would wake my two kids up) It's a kick-ass car stereo system, gets very loud, and i've used it before to test stuff. Past tests with mics > batt box > JB3 have created very lively response, with levels maxing out just where i want them (link below will show you the batt box i'm using, it's pretty cool actually, but i don't trust all of the 1/8" connectors in the field as much as i would the UA5):
http://www.reactivesounds.com/spa2.phpthanks again guys. hey, i don't want to waste any more of your time, i've probably asked too many questions already, and i don't want to overstay my welcome. i was just hoping to use one of these single-points in a quick & dirty situation, like band practices, or in a dive bar, ie times when i don't feel like setting up my Josephson's. Was just hoping to run this thru the UA5, get some gain from it, as well as optical out into the JB3. Thanks again!