im wanting to do some field recording. But am unsure of what kit i need
Can anyone help me out thanks
fred
field recording
field recording
http://www.myspace.com/projectf - Progressive
http://soundcloud.com/fproject
http://twitter.com/fproject1
Macbook 2.4 4GB/Live 7.15/massive/Absynth 4
http://soundcloud.com/fproject
http://twitter.com/fproject1
Macbook 2.4 4GB/Live 7.15/massive/Absynth 4
Get yourself a nice condenser mic and a portable recording device.
A stereo condenser mic would save you the trouble of carrying a couple of mics around + cables, etc; the portable device would be lighter than a laptop and direct to the point.
Let us know how much you are willing to spend, that way we'll be able to suggest the gear.
Meanwhile, you might want to check this link: http://phonography.org/
A stereo condenser mic would save you the trouble of carrying a couple of mics around + cables, etc; the portable device would be lighter than a laptop and direct to the point.
Let us know how much you are willing to spend, that way we'll be able to suggest the gear.
Meanwhile, you might want to check this link: http://phonography.org/
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cinningbao
- Posts: 106
- Joined: Wed Aug 04, 2004 3:11 pm
i got me an Edirol R09 for just this (I'm a beginner to field recordings) but it seems ideal.
http://froogle.google.co.uk/froogle?hl= ... a=N&tab=wf
built-in stereo mics provide surprisingly good quality recording but you can also plugin your own powered or non-powered mic if you wish - I haven't had the need yet.
I know portable minidisc recorders are cheaper, but you will lose quality during a-d conversion - that's why I went for this.
hope that helps!
http://froogle.google.co.uk/froogle?hl= ... a=N&tab=wf
built-in stereo mics provide surprisingly good quality recording but you can also plugin your own powered or non-powered mic if you wish - I haven't had the need yet.
I know portable minidisc recorders are cheaper, but you will lose quality during a-d conversion - that's why I went for this.
hope that helps!
edirol r-09
http://www.edirol.net/products/en/R-09/
i love mine - the sound quality, even with the internal mics, is exceptional for field recording AND they're only $400 USD. it's the cheapest option i know of for digital recording. the only drawback i've found is that the internal mics suck in windy (an external mic with a wind-blocking thingy can take care of that issue) or heavy low frequency situations (like subways - this can be remedied somewhat with the on-board low cut switch, though).
the cheapest option would be a used md recorder from ebay ($50 - $100), plus a consumer level stereo mic ($80-120), but IMHO, you'd come out better springing for an r-09 if you think it'll be used for more than one project.
the "pro" option would be...
http://www.sounddevices.com/
...plus a quality self-powered stereo mic of your choice.
http://www.edirol.net/products/en/R-09/
i love mine - the sound quality, even with the internal mics, is exceptional for field recording AND they're only $400 USD. it's the cheapest option i know of for digital recording. the only drawback i've found is that the internal mics suck in windy (an external mic with a wind-blocking thingy can take care of that issue) or heavy low frequency situations (like subways - this can be remedied somewhat with the on-board low cut switch, though).
the cheapest option would be a used md recorder from ebay ($50 - $100), plus a consumer level stereo mic ($80-120), but IMHO, you'd come out better springing for an r-09 if you think it'll be used for more than one project.
the "pro" option would be...
http://www.sounddevices.com/
...plus a quality self-powered stereo mic of your choice.
..... . . . . . . . . .
personally I'm either recording on a sharp minidisc recorder or via laptop in the field, but I've been eyeing the Marantz PMD-660 as a solid state recorder.. xlr with phantom power and rugged construction.
for mics I recommend the Soundman OKM II binaural microphones. really nice to capture a true stereo image of what you hear. combine that with a nice directional mic like the Sennheiser ME66 and you've got a nice fieldrecording kit.
for mics I recommend the Soundman OKM II binaural microphones. really nice to capture a true stereo image of what you hear. combine that with a nice directional mic like the Sennheiser ME66 and you've got a nice fieldrecording kit.
I bought a used TDC-D8 Sony DAT walkman off Ebay a few years back and it has been awesome. Obviously, today I might consider something else if I was starting from scratch. I also bought and Audio-Technica AT822 stereo mic which is unbelievably accurate and 3D.
http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/AT822
http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/AT822
plus minidisc uses atrak (sp?) compression, and you have to keep buying discs, has moving parts and motors which adds noise...cinningbao wrote:i got me an Edirol R09 for just this (I'm a beginner to field recordings) but it seems ideal.
http://froogle.google.co.uk/froogle?hl= ... a=N&tab=wf
built-in stereo mics provide surprisingly good quality recording but you can also plugin your own powered or non-powered mic if you wish - I haven't had the need yet.
I know portable minidisc recorders are cheaper, but you will lose quality during a-d conversion - that's why I went for this.
hope that helps!
The r09 records to flash memory so no moving parts, it can record uncompressed 24 bit, uses 'AA' batteries, not proprietary, so it is easy to have a few sets of rechargeables.
well theres alot of different mini-disc recorders out there....but I just want to chime in to piss on the Mini-Disc Nay-sayer Parade.
a good MD recorder yields pleasant, desireable results. You talk about the compression like its a bad thing, its just a process that adds character to the recording. its all sound for the pallete...
i use a sony mzr-30 mini disc recorder & an edirol R-1 + a sony ecm-ms907 mic - thats my portable 'rig' for now...till i get something portable for an xlr mic
anyways I've done recordings with the mzr-30 outside under a bush, where blackbirds feed while it was raining lightly. Well I had the mic on the same piece of cardboard as the Minidisc...and the mic picked up the components movements from the recorder. it 'botched' the recording...but it also sounded good in its own right. after doing the recording again 'properly' , and comparing it to a similar one done by the edirol R-1....well the R-1 was technically 'better'...the minidisc has a charming quality that I for one cant say is bad. if yer into field recording as a hobby or past time, its definatly worth owning any kind of minidisc recorder....hell any kind of recording device if you really want my honest opinion.
but I digress....it is good to have a really technically good setup, to the best standard you're willing to go.......with sound devices being the daddy of the recorders (imo) with a pair of these mono mics for stereo recording http://www.sennheiser.com/me/icm.nsf/ro ... pen&print=
i'd like to make some seriously 'wide' stereo recordings some day
a good MD recorder yields pleasant, desireable results. You talk about the compression like its a bad thing, its just a process that adds character to the recording. its all sound for the pallete...
i use a sony mzr-30 mini disc recorder & an edirol R-1 + a sony ecm-ms907 mic - thats my portable 'rig' for now...till i get something portable for an xlr mic
anyways I've done recordings with the mzr-30 outside under a bush, where blackbirds feed while it was raining lightly. Well I had the mic on the same piece of cardboard as the Minidisc...and the mic picked up the components movements from the recorder. it 'botched' the recording...but it also sounded good in its own right. after doing the recording again 'properly' , and comparing it to a similar one done by the edirol R-1....well the R-1 was technically 'better'...the minidisc has a charming quality that I for one cant say is bad. if yer into field recording as a hobby or past time, its definatly worth owning any kind of minidisc recorder....hell any kind of recording device if you really want my honest opinion.
but I digress....it is good to have a really technically good setup, to the best standard you're willing to go.......with sound devices being the daddy of the recorders (imo) with a pair of these mono mics for stereo recording http://www.sennheiser.com/me/icm.nsf/ro ... pen&print=
i'd like to make some seriously 'wide' stereo recordings some day
spreader of butter
I have the same Sony gear as bOunce and I'd say the weakest link in my setup would be the ecm-ms907 mic. It adds a lot of self noise ruinning every recording.
Will buy myself another mic as soon as I get some extra €.
Here's an interesting link with some comparison tests: http://www.uwm.edu/~type/audio-art-tech-gallery/
Will buy myself another mic as soon as I get some extra €.
Here's an interesting link with some comparison tests: http://www.uwm.edu/~type/audio-art-tech-gallery/
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Michael-SW
- Posts: 2054
- Joined: Sat Apr 30, 2005 4:05 pm
- Location: Stockholm, Sweden
Portable DATs used to be the standard for field recordings for the last 10 years or so. A professional DAT delivers very good sound quality in a reasonable package. Now with the coming of solid state recorders, perhaps used DATs can be gotten in the second hand market for reasonable prices?
Definitely worth checking out if you doesn't have to have the absolutely latest gear.
Definitely worth checking out if you doesn't have to have the absolutely latest gear.
ya the mic is weak
I cant seem to justify getting a better one to replace it tho, seeing as I have a quality xlr mic....when I bought the xlr mic I thought I could carry my lappie around with my bus-powered soundcard for field recording, but it turns out closing the lid of your ibook whilst its running is a heat-related no-no (if you choose to 'hack' past the fact it goes into sleep mode when you close it) - doh!
so you've got a mzr-30 ? ...I dropped mine on concrete three times in a row (i was out of it) and the only damage was aesthetic - this thing is built like a tank. the later models are all plastic and cheap....I guess they couldnt afford/didnt want to keep producing units like the mzr-30....if anyone gives you funny looks while you record something, you can smash their face in with it, and it will still be working afterwards so you can record their friends howling in despair.
I cant seem to justify getting a better one to replace it tho, seeing as I have a quality xlr mic....when I bought the xlr mic I thought I could carry my lappie around with my bus-powered soundcard for field recording, but it turns out closing the lid of your ibook whilst its running is a heat-related no-no (if you choose to 'hack' past the fact it goes into sleep mode when you close it) - doh!
so you've got a mzr-30 ? ...I dropped mine on concrete three times in a row (i was out of it) and the only damage was aesthetic - this thing is built like a tank. the later models are all plastic and cheap....I guess they couldnt afford/didnt want to keep producing units like the mzr-30....if anyone gives you funny looks while you record something, you can smash their face in with it, and it will still be working afterwards so you can record their friends howling in despair.
spreader of butter
I dropped mine a couple of times as well and it still runs as it did.
The only downside is the mechanical noise (not due to the falls), one can't have it too close to the source; I'm considering buying the new Boss micro BR. It's small and rather cheap for such a device (packed with features).
But the mic comes first!
The only downside is the mechanical noise (not due to the falls), one can't have it too close to the source; I'm considering buying the new Boss micro BR. It's small and rather cheap for such a device (packed with features).
But the mic comes first!