External power options for the Zoom F8/4 ?

[KnightsFan]

@Dave Tholen I was the original person to suggest Talentcell, and I use a couple for both audio and camera. Over the past year or so since I got them, I have found them to be very reliable and last for several days of shooting. The one I use on my F4 has a 2.1mm x 5.5mm plug, though there is also a larger battery that has a 2.5mm x 5.5mm plug on its 9v output. Talentcell batteries are 12.6 volts, not 12, though it drops over time since it's unregulated.

For my F4, I got a right angle 4-pin hirose connector (https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1355760-REG/cable_techniques_ct_hrs4_r_4_pin_male_right_angle.html?ap=y&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI4s32tYOZ4wIVnIqzCh3pEgj7EAkYASABEgJuQfD_BwE&lsft=BI%3A514&smp=y) and made a short DC to hirose cable. The DHC-1 adapter was bulky, and the straight connector makes it hard to store in a bag, compared to the right angle connector. The battery itself is attached via a 3D printed bracket with some cold shoe mounts for lav receivers.

 

 

 

HOWEVER... recently I have got strange electrical noises in some recordings. It's very rare. I use my F4 at least every other day on average, and the only times I have heard it were a couple days on a shoot last May. I can't reproduce it--yet. I suspect that it has something to do with the power supply. It could be that the battery isn't reliable. If so, that could be from someone dropping the battery on concrete a year ago. It could be a problem with my cable soldering. It could even be something wrong with the F4 itself.

Despite that, I think the talentcell is a reliable battery. But now that I've written this I'll put some effort into actually figuring out what is making that noise, and report back if I find anything.

[IronFilm]

6 hours ago, Dave Tholen said:

Yes, I can understand how some users like the idea of a connector that can't get accidentally yanked from the device.

 

It is much more than that

The DC barrel input has a narrow tolerance of voltages

 

 

Remember, these things work on smoke. If you let the smoke out then it will stop working. 

[Dave Tholen]

I had assumed that Zoom's insistence on using only the AD-19 adapter (going so far as to include a separate warning sheet about the possibility of death) had to do with current capability of the AC adapter.  Try driving eight microphones that need 10 mA of current at 48 volts for phantom power, and the microphones alone would be drawing almost 4 watts of power.  I didn't think about the tolerance on the voltage.  The Hirose power input has 9 to 18 volts silkscreened right next to the connector.  That's a pretty wide tolerance.  Zoom says nothing about the voltage tolerance on the barrel connector, but the AD-19 puts out 12 volts.  I figured an external battery that delivers 12 volts and at least 1 amp would work via the barrel connector, but battery voltage isn't nearly as flat as an AC adapter's voltage.  Thanks for the heads-up on that.

My experience so far is that a set of eight relatively new Panasonic Pro Eneloops (2500 mAh per, or a total of 24 Wh) can power the F8n for about 5.5 hours with two microphones drawing 10 mA of phantom power at 48 volts, with four channels being recorded at 24-bit and 44.1 kHz (stereo, with dual recording at a different gain level), though I've gotten nervous because the battery gauge turns orange quite quickly, probably because the discharge curve for NiMH battery chemistry flattens out at 1.2 volts pretty quickly, so the Zoom stays in the orange voltage range for a fairly long time.  I'd feel a lot more comfortable, especially as the Eneloops age, with an external battery that can supply 72 Wh, which the Talentcell can apparently do.  That way I can use more than two microphones that need phantom power and not have to worry about the batteries becoming exhausted during the recording session.  The first time I used the Zoom F8n, I wound up swapping batteries at intermission over concern about the battery gauge turning orange.  That's when I started looking at external battery power solutions, and a Google search led me to this forum.  It's nice that the F8n will automatically switch power sources if one becomes exhausted, so between a 72 Wh Talentcell and 24 Wh internal batteries, that's 96 Wh of power, and I could always swap in a second Talentcell while the internal batteries are powering the unit for virtually unlimited recording time.  But it sounds like I should purchase both the Talentcell and the DHC-1, rather than using the barrel connector with the Talentcell.

The outer diameter of the barrel connector on the AD-19 appears to be 5.0 mm, while the inner diameter is a little harder to measure in low light, but is around 2 mm.

[IronFilm]

2 hours ago, Dave Tholen said:

The Hirose power input has 9 to 18 volts silkscreened right next to the connector.  That's a pretty wide tolerance. 

And that is exactly why you should use the hirose input with a battery, and not the DC barrel input. 

[Kisaha]

https://www.gothamsound.com/product/dv-sqn2s-power-adaptor

Much more professional than a Talentcell and a lot more options.

I am having a set of Eneloop white for backup and use various NPF batteries.

A big one is enough for a whole day.