Fireface fucked up my Rode NT5+Audix D6. FML

[jipchen]

This is really fucked up. Yesterday I was recording drums for the first time ever (yaay), so I took my brandnew Audix D6, plugged it into the Fireface's Preamp... and there was just a very annoying noise everytime there was a bassdrum hit. I lowered the gain, nothing changed. Tried it with toms, snare and vocals.. everytime just a loud annoying fizzy clicksound. Nice. Thanks Audix, I thought.
I then used my rode NT-1 for miking the bassdrum and everything was good. Until the next day. Now one of the NT-5s did not do anything but make noise if I highered the gain on the preamp. Checked all cables, changend them, checked the preamp, changend the preamp, even used preamps of my Presonus FP-10. Nothing. It just wouldn't work. Please notice I didn't change ANYTHING, over night it was broken. Nice.
So.. in the evening I came home frome work, and checked everything again.
Now I noticed that the Input 9 of the Fireface was summing very very loud no matter where the gain knob was, or if a cable/mic was plugged in at all. Unlike all other preamps of course.
Well... thanks RME, for fucking up 2 of my brand new (!) microphones.
Unnecessary to say I'm booked next week, and they want real drums. This would have been my first project with proper payment. FML!

So, a small conclusion:
Defect RME Fireface 800 (about 8 months old)
Defect Rode NT-5 (few weeks old, never used)
Defect Audix D6 (bought 4 days ago)

I'm so goddamn pissed right now I want to smash expensive things in my studio.. oh wait. They're already broken.
FML
Really considering getting a Metric Halo 2882 Mobile I/O, becuase goddamn RME won't program a stable driver for OS X 10.6 -.-

 

[JeffTD]

I really heavily doubt the preamp is what's fucking your mics up.

 

[jipchen]

Btw, this is what it sounds like, and a fellow technician said it's the sign of a defective preamp:
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/3245929/preamp-geräusch.wav
No cables (other than the power and firewire cable), Gain @ a quarter (around +15db, max. is +60)

@Jeff: Honestly, I don't really know.. but it's the only explanation for me. I treat mics like new-laid eggs, set the gain to zero before plugging it in, NEVER hit it, carefully set the gain, activate phantom power only when gain is zero etc.. I don't think I fucked the two mics by simply doing.. nothing. I mean, the goddamn NT-5 got broken over night.

 

[JeffTD]

Preamp could be defective, but again, it makes NO sense for a preamp to ruin mics like this. The only thing a preamp can put back to a mic is 48v phantom power, with wouldn't affect the D6, and is required for the NT-5's. The only thing that could do that would be a messed up PSU or something that shot way more than 48v into the mics, and even then I'm not sure if that's possible.

No clue what that noise really could be, but there's bits in it that sound like line-noise and electronic interference to me?

 

[jipchen]

Hmm... I thought pretty much the same until today
In the end,it has no consequences to me what did cause the problem, because I'll have to get all 3 things fixed anyway. I just hope the shop where I bought the mics doesn't say "Your Preamp fucked up the mics, so RME has to buy new ones" because that won't happen. So I hope they have the same thoughts as you.

The noise is just created by this preamp at every gain setting, the others are quiet no matter how high i set the gain. I thought of the phantompower, too.. I don't dare to plug in my Rode NT-1 to test it, though. Don't need 3 broken mics.

 

[arv_foh]

I would say with about 99% certainty that it was not the preamp that fucked up your mics. Even putting phantom power on a non-phantom microphone will not harm it unless it is a ribbon microphone. I'm willing to bet they are not broken, it's just your RME that is jacked up... as far as the NT5s not working with the FP10, are you sure you had phantom on? Did u try the D6 with the FP10? I'm guessing when you take the mics into the shop they are going to try them and they are going to work. Maybe I'm wrong and something freak happened, but I'd say it's gotta be something with your equipment, mics don't just break from plugging them in to a bad preamp. If that was the case then your NT1 would be ruined too.

 

[Wolfeman]

The only thing that could do that would be a messed up PSU or something that shot way more than 48v into the mics

This is what I'm thinking.

 

[jipchen]

I would say with about 99% certainty that it was not the preamp that fucked up your mics. Even putting phantom power on a non-phantom microphone will not harm it unless it is a ribbon microphone. I'm willing to bet they are not broken, it's just your RME that is jacked up... as far as the NT5s not working with the FP10, are you sure you had phantom on? Did u try the D6 with the FP10? I'm guessing when you take the mics into the shop they are going to try them and they are going to work. Maybe I'm wrong and something freak happened, but I'd say it's gotta be something with your equipment, mics don't just break from plugging them in to a bad preamp. If that was the case then your NT1 would be ruined too.

As I said, i double-checked the problems, which means I trier the nt-5 and the d6 with every preamp i have (4 on the ff800 and 6 on the presonus), also i used different cables with one mic plus After that the Same Cable and preamp with every mic. The Second rode nt5 is working well with every preamp (ecept Input 9 on the ff), from 1-6 on the presonus and 7,8,10 on the fireface.
The rode nt-1 is still full working with every preamp also, ecept Nr.9 because I don't want to risk it, even though the chances are low.
I hope the guys at thomann / RME check the PSU and thus the phantompowerr, too. Still IT wouldnot really explain the D6's death.

 

[jangoux]

Dude, contact RME and they'll help you.

 

[Loren Littlejohn]

A dead D6? Something must have really gone wrong for that to go down.

 

[AboutBlank]

The erklärbär from RME is pretty cool and its not expensive, like other hotlines(Steinberg)

Our fireface here was defect too, took about 3 -4 weeks to get it back from RME(be prepared).

Greetz
Jannik