Anyone tried the Cloudlifter???

Sculli · Post by **Sculli** » Tue Sep 20, 2011 5:50 pm

It's September.... Anything new about the Cloudlifter? Roscoenyc,Was there a noticeable difference in the sound or were the mics just louder? I have an old RCA I just love but have to peg everything to get a signal. Looking forward to your review Chris. Thanks to everyone for all the info so far.
Peace,
Kevin

alcoyot · Post by **alcoyot** » Tue Sep 20, 2011 8:18 pm

What is the difference between this and a regular mic preamp?

Matt C. · Post by **Matt C.** » Tue Sep 20, 2011 10:07 pm

i got the 2 channel version of the cloudlifter a couple months ago. so far it's definitely no magic box that makes everything sound incredible so don't expect that, but it's handy. good way to get enough levels from low output mics and avoid preamp noise. i've used it with an m160, m500, fathead II, and re20, all with good results.

Jim Williams · Post by **Jim Williams** » Wed Sep 21, 2011 8:24 am

Tests are done. I posted the results at that site that rhymes with "Ear Butts".

So far the ver.2 Cloudlifter has less noise, THD. Fet head is not flat with a 3 db rise from 500 hz down, a suprize.

chris harris · Post by **chris harris** » Wed Sep 21, 2011 11:01 am

Whoa. That's a significant boost in the low end!

roscoenyc · Post by **roscoenyc** » Sat Oct 01, 2011 10:26 am

Enjoyed your review in the new Tape Op Chris.

I do really like the Cloudlifter.
My only tests have been in the non technical 'use' column.

We use a Beyer M500 ribbon for a lot of vocals (for sound quality and it's interesting rejection pattern). This box works really well with that mic.

Neal · Post by **Neal** » Mon Oct 03, 2011 7:26 pm

I'm waitin for a dual Cloudlifter to arrive. Lookin forward to tryin it out on a pair of Cascade Fatheads. Probably try it on my SM7 too.

Jim Williams wrote:Try it with a hotty like a Neumann U-87 AI. The THD vs amplitude sweeps will show how much level these can take before distortion rises. The THD vs frequency will show if THD is linear or rises in the top end.
I need to finish a couple of projects here before I get into these.

How will you accomplish this when the Cloudlifter doesn't pass phantom power though to the mic?

joninc · Post by **joninc** » Tue Oct 04, 2011 12:48 am

um, cascade fatheads and the sm7 don't require phantom power...

cgarges · Post by **cgarges** » Thu Oct 06, 2011 12:45 pm

roscoenyc wrote:Enjoyed your review in the new Tape Op Chris.

Thanks, Roscoe! I've been out of town for the last few days, but the new issue hasn't shown up at my house yet. I saw a copy of it at Mitch's last night, though, so I imagine I'll be getting it soon.

Chris Garges
Charlotte, NC

chris harris · Post by **chris harris** » Thu Oct 06, 2011 3:14 pm

joninc wrote:um, cascade fatheads and the sm7 don't require phantom power...

um, I think you missed the part of the post that puts his question into context...

Neal · Post by **Neal** » Thu Oct 06, 2011 9:45 pm

joninc wrote:um, cascade fatheads and the sm7 don't require phantom power...

um, no shit.
I was asking about the post that said "try it with a hottie like a U87."

reedblack · Post by **reedblack** » Sun Oct 09, 2011 1:55 pm

So I've finally tried the Cloudlifter with a variety of mics and a variety of sources. It's an interesting tool. I can confirm Chris' statement in his TapeOp Gear Review that, while the +25 dB boost is transparent, it boosts the MICROPHONE's noise floor proportionally to the singal. It does keep you from developing extra noise from your pre; but no, I did not achieve the result of being able to record quieter or more-distant-mic'ed sources.

However, with the extra +25 dB of transparent boost, the goal of staying away from high gain settings on my pre's was achieved, and quite useful.

HOWEVER, I found two benefits to the device that I had not anticipated being so important. The first was in the cable-driving -- since long cable runs are common for me, I often encounter loss of girth and musicality when I use my R-121's, and even with some of my dynamics. Using the cloudlifter, I could effectively use a short 6' cable between the mic and the CL, then have the majority of cable length running between the pre and the phantom-powered FET. It was a noticeable difference.

More importantly, the internal impedance conversion in the Cloudlifter allowed me to start using my ribbons (I have a pair of ShinyBoxes 46MXLs as well) with my pre's that do not have variable impedance selectors. For example, I used an R-121 on a guitar amp using a Neve 1272 racked by Brent Averill, which has no such selector; the result made me smile. I was also able to use my ShinyBox on HiHat through one of my FMR Audio RNP's without the sound getting too flabby. This has proved to be the most useful feature.

All told, it is a device that allows you to begin treating your ribbon mics more like "normal" (read condenser) microphones, without having to constantly think about cable length and impedance as important variables. That's worth the price to me.

-Reed

http://www.vinegarhillsound.com

top_ape · Post by **top_ape** » Mon Oct 10, 2011 7:47 pm

Jim Williams wrote:Tests are done. I posted the results at that site that rhymes with "Ear Butts".

So far the ver.2 Cloudlifter has less noise, THD. Fet head is not flat with a 3 db rise from 500 hz down, a suprize.

Anyone else able to compare to the Fethead? I've had a couple of those for a while and I have to say I'm pretty happy with them. I never picked up on something I'd specifically characterize as a "low end boost" but I will say that the tone of some mics changes noticeably with it. A 57 for example to me sounds smoother and actually seems to have a more extended high end and sounds almost like that high end spike has been given a wider, gentler q. (and none of these are really drastic changes, but noticeable)

Some mics don't seem to change in tone at all... point being I guess, that it seems highly interactive with the mic itself, just like a preamp would be I guess.

Cloudlifter/Fethead = Coke/Pepsi?

I'm happy enough with the Fethead that I'm not about to buy a Cloudlifter but if I were in the market I'd want to know. Not to mention one's significantly cheaper.

top_ape · Post by **top_ape** » Mon Oct 10, 2011 7:49 pm

Re: um, ...

many manufacturers offer external phantom power supplies which can be placed between the Cloudlifter (or in my case Fethead) and the mic in order to power condensers.

top_ape · Post by **top_ape** » Mon Oct 10, 2011 8:01 pm

top_ape wrote: the tone of some mics changes noticeably with it. A 57 for example to me sounds smoother and actually seems to have a more extended high end and sounds almost like that high end spike has been given a wider, gentler q. (and none of these are really drastic changes, but noticeable)

it occurs to me now maybe that this is a difference resulting from preamp gain too and not even a direct result of the Fethead... I'm not even sure at this point. But in practice it DOES change the sound of some mics, usually for the better I'd say.

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