Hi everyone. So i got a daisy seed and want to build basically a looper pedal (i hope it will get additional features when the main function is done). The main usecase is for vocals, so i won’t get line-level input but microphone-level. The problem is that the seed has no microphone input, so i’ve looked around at mic preamps that i could integrate. As i’m quite new to hardware and specifically audio hardware, i’ve got a couple basic questions and would be happy for any opinion / advice on the components.
I don’t know much about microphones, but i know it will need to be a dynamic mic since i don’t want to deal with phantom power. Apparently SM58 is cheap and widespread?
For the preamp, i see two choices:
- at first i was considering getting an additional I2S ADC, like the CS53L21 but (1) this seems to be complicated (i have to get both I2S and control right on the software side) and (2) i’m not too sure if they properly manage balanced input (as is usual with XLR mics): according to the diagram they sample first and then do the +/- subtracting for cancelling noise (i would have guessed it’s better doing the subtracting in the analog domain before the sampling machinery) and additionally it is supposed to be a two channel ADC, so using the two channels for balanced mics is weird (i’m sure i’ll have surprises in the I2S streams).
- after some time i found analog mic preamps that look much simpler and more robust from analog devices (with “clean” balanced inputs): i’m guessing MAX4062. This means i’m using up an analog input from the seed, since this will sit in front, but that’s ok. There was also MAX4466 but it seems much more lo-fi and cannot control gain. SSM2019 would have been nice too, in a through-hole package easier to solder, but it runs on >5V, so i wouldn’t be able to connect it to the more stable “analog 3.3V” of the daisy. It seems even higher quality tho so perhaps it’s still worth (connecting its V+ to the “normal” 5.5V)?
Does MAX4062 seem like a reasonable choice or did i forget something important? Does anybody have other info on preamps with daisy? Thanks a lot!