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D.
M-S AND X-Y STEREO RECORDING
The PSC AlphaMix can be used to make stereo recordings in both the mid-side
and X-Y stereo techniques. The AlphaMix is equipped with an input channel-
ganging switch designed to allow the ganging of input channels 3 and 4. This
switch is located on the bottom panel of the mixer.
When switched to the
"ganged" position, both input channels 3 and 4 are controlled by pot 4. All
microphone powering and attenuation settings remain independent. X-Y stereo
recordings are accomplished by plugging in two identical microphones into
channels 3 and 4. The channel 3 pan pot is set to the extreme left and the
channel 4 pan pot is set to the extreme right. The headphone monitor mode
switch is set to "stereo".
If M-S stereo recordings are desired, the "M" or middle microphone (cardiod
pattern) is plugged into channel 3. The "S" or side microphone (Figure 8 pattern)
is plugged into channel 4. As with the X-Y setup, pan pot 3 is panned to the
extreme left and pan pot 4 to the extreme right. In this case, the headphone
mode switch is set to "MS". In the MS mode, the headphone amplifiers are fed
MS decoded signals. The left headphone amp is fed M-S signals and the right
headphone is fed M+S signals. In this manner, MS signals appear as standard
stereo signals for headphone monitoring purposes. Note that the MS decode
function only affects the headphone feeds, not the main XLR outputs.
More complete descriptions of the M-S and X-Y stereo recording techniques can
be found in the literature of the major microphone manufacturers such as
Neuman, Sennheiser, and Scheops.
POWERING:
A. INTERNAL POWER, NP-1 BATTERY
PSC is the only company to offer compact ENG mixer to offer the ability to be
powered from an internal NP-1 rechargeable battery. This feature provides a
convenient way of powering the mixer without added size, adapters or cables. In
addition, because the NP-1 battery is securely housed within the mixer, there is
little chance that the battery could be knocked loose as with conventional battery
adapters.
There are several high capacity NP-1 batteries now on the market.
These
include the standard Ni-Cad, Nickel Metal Hydride and most recently Lithium-Ion.
Most of these batteries are available in both 12, 13.2 and 14.4 Volt varieties.
Either voltage will work in your AlphaMix.
The AlphaMix consumes
approximately 210mA of current when no microphones are being powered. This
translates into a battery life of 10 to 15 hours depending on the battery type.
Powering wireless will shorten battery life considerably depending upon wireless
models selected. The NP-1 battery pack is held in place with a simple spring
steel latch. To remove the battery simply push down on the latch and pull out the
battery. If you have not yet chosen a battery chemistry, and voltage, you should
know that the longest possible run time will come from batteries with the highest
amp/hour rating. Thus is you have a choice between a 13.2Volt battery at 3.9
amp/hour and a 14.4V battery at 2.5amp/hour, chose the 3.9 amp/hour battery.
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