field-recording Questions - Social Sound Design

tascam hs-p82 8 ch recorder mixer for prod recording and field recording

2012-01-22T19:51:42Z

I'm considering this vs the zaxcom nomad. Has anyone had experience with the Tascam?

Cheers

Pinna iPhone Construction

2012-02-02T19:18:01Z

A variety of mics has to be the equivalent to the swiss army knife of field recording.

Some very unique and useful recordings have come from iPhone microphones. Whether it be some random ambience, a funny noisemaker in a toy shop, or any spur of the moment capture ...

I was wondering if anyone had actually made or found a pinna/cone/etc like structure to successfully enhance, focus, or modify in a desirable way the input to the phone? I have actually cupped my hand around the microphone and had greater focus. Also, placing the phone on a resonant structure coupled with the sound source has allowed me to capture more bass in a sound.

Any thoughts?

Just found these - not much for non mic devices but still some cool products:

Use this in conjunction with this to use any mic (or using a T or Phantom box additionally) http://www.kvconnection.com/product-p/009-541.htm / http://www.kvconnection.com/product-p/km-iphone-2trs.htm

Cardioid Condensor Mic - http://www.bluemic.com/mikey_for_ipod/

Quarter Inch Line Input - http://www.ikmultimedia.com/irig/features/

SoundClip for iPhone 3G (VCProd's product suggestion for audio output) Would love a 4 version of this! http://tenonedesign.com/soundclip.php

Small mic attachment - http://touchmic.com/products-page/view-all-products/touchmic-mitymic---voice-recording-and-interview-mic/

Interesting lil array of products.

Somebody use Rode NTG-8 ?

2012-02-02T16:01:11Z

Somebody use RODE NTG-8 ? I think new model.

Run 120v gear on batteries? Lightweight options even possible?

2012-01-31T07:22:43Z

So Im looking to upgrade my audio interface and found the RME UFX which has some great field recording capabilities aside from the lack of battery powered operation. I also want to upgrade my portable recording gear so i would love to kill 2 birds here.

I know about using car batteries and inverters but those are heavy.

I dont have high hopes for finding a solution but thought i would ask

Furthest Distance You've Successfully Used a Dynamic Mic From?

2011-11-05T04:16:25Z

Have a fun SFX recording session going down Sunday - Source is going to be about 140 - 150db, about 100m from me.

Definitely bringing some high SPL shotguns, but was considering using a dynamic. The thing about dynamics is that their frequency response tends to get a little wonky after a distance, but the level of the sound tends to "extend" their reach.

What's the furthest you've ever successfully (as in got a good sound out of) used a dynamic mic?

For me, I think it was about 10m, while recording gun shots.

New Portable Recorders for 2012: Olympus LS-100 and Tascam DR-100 Mk2; anyone had a go?!

2012-01-02T00:22:58Z

Hi All,

I know the questions asked about portable recorders on here are numerous and repetitive but this is a very simple "question" about two devices that will be new to the market this year, within the next month or so.

I'm awaiting the (UK) launch of both the Tascam DR-100 Mk2 and the Olympus LS-100. Both look very good and I'm looking forward to heading down to my nearest store to see both in-the-plastic'n'metal.

I'm keen to hear views on both recorders, especially the Olympus, which, besides looking beautiful, seems to have a lot of great features up its sleeve. If anyone has had, or gets to have, a go on either (or better still, both) please could you report back with your thoughts and findings?!

Thanks!

Physically small omni condensers?

2012-01-26T19:51:44Z

As I find myself wanting to put microphones in various places where space is tight (yes, cars), I'm on the lookout for small omni condensers, like for example the Schoeps CCM 2 series.

The price of these things make me hesitant of putting them inside hot engine bays and under the car at high speeds. I'm afraid lavs are too fragile, but maybe I'm wrong about this?

The mini XLR plug and thin cable of the Schoeps is a plus, though not absolutely necessary.

Does anyone have some experiences to share about mics that are a bit cheaper than the schoeps but similar in size?

(you might wonder: why don't you ask your colleagues, surely you're not the first that wants to put a mic under the car? The thing is, measurement microphones require special preamps and they are designed for producing nice graphs and measurement data, not nice sound)

Sound Devices recorders maximum link cable length?

2011-10-31T18:30:30Z

From the Sound Devices web site:

Although the RS-232 standard allows for cable lengths of up to 50 feet, the recommended maximum length of C.Link cable between any given pair of 7-series recorders is 4 feet. Longer cables lengths introduce the risk of the slave unit losing word clock synchronization with the master unit.

Has anyone had success running long link cables (between 4 and 50 feet)? Or longer?

What is the future of recording technologies?

2012-01-23T08:36:05Z

Great strides have been made in the field of sound recording over the last couple of decades. We've seen (in no particular order):

Digital recording (both tape and disk based)
Multichannel recording
Multichannel mics (think Holophone or any other mic that captures more than a stereo image)
improved contact mics
improved hydrophones
sub- and super-sonic mics (think miss that can capture below 20Hz or above 50kHz)

…and many more.

But, what's next? What's that next big tech that will be a true innovation? I'm thinking something akin to what 3-D capture has done for the visual medium (think Avatar).

And let's keep this thread clear of any reproduction systems, ie. 5.1, 7.1, etc. I'm interested in the future of HOW we capture sound, not how it is played back.

Tips on Recording Gunshots

2010-05-07T03:07:52Z

I'm headed down to Pennsylvania to help on a shoot this weekend, and I'm really excited because I'll be recording gunfire courtesy of a local Civil War reenactment group. I've never tried recording gunshots before, so I'd like some tips. The max number of tracks that I can record are 4, as I'll be working on a 744T, so my current plan is to use a dynamic mic to grab the impact, and a m/s mic to grab the decay. What setups have you folks used? Placements? Thanks for your replies.

~Cheers

Miles

UPDATE -- Thanks for the advice! The shoot was postponed 'til last month, so I had some more time to prepare. I went down with a 744T, 702 and a Nagra. The gunshot samples came out really nice. The Nagra's recordings weren't very clean, but they have a nice "Western" quality, so I'll pocket those for later.

Is this the Zoom killer?

2011-11-23T07:05:49Z

Probably not, but at $80 it may become many people's go-to solution for impromptu everyday captures. And although it's currently capped at 16bit-44.1kHz, I imagine it's only a matter of time before a software/firmware update takes care of that.

Perhaps someone can shed some light on this: This device has it's own D/A converters so it's not relying on the iphone's capability to do this. Would this mean that rates beyond 16bit/44.1k would be possible?

Also, as a note, Tascam says that the mics are adjustable up to 180 degrees front to back, so at least there is a limited amount of control over the stereo image. And regarding the quality of the preamps, they are the same as those used in the DR series. I have a DR-680 and can tell you that they are not very quiet, however they are quite acceptable if you're not recording ultra delicate or sensitive sources.

Tascam iM2

Have time to kill next week. Gonna do some location recordings. Any suggestions?

2011-03-18T00:09:57Z

Evening all!

I've got a week off next week and need to fill my time constructively by not watching any daytime tv lol Was thinking of going out and about to record some stuff and wondering if anyone had any specific requests? I live on the coast so stuff like waves/shores/gulls etc will be no probs. Was thinking of doing some stealth stuff too like public ambience sounds; malls, museums, gym, swimming pools, town centres, pub wallas etc. I'll be doing it with my Zoom H2 so if anyone wants anything specific let me know :) Andy

edit: I live in Bournemouth, UK at present.

Year end sonic-mash!

2011-12-26T19:00:43Z

Hello Everyone!

I guess most of you might have seen this post on Designing Sound. This is just a reminder to contribute a sound if you can!

If you don't know what I'm talking about:

I’ve been developing a generative sound-scape app in Max/MSP – drop in a bunch of files, specify a few values and it will spit out a sound scape which can run for……ever…..

Since it is that time of the year when most people are going to be celebrating/holidaying/having-a-good-time in some form or the other, I thought it would a good idea if we could create a sonic-mash of these sounds by getting everyone to contribute.

How? Record anything – voices, ambience, fireworks, bottle opening, shouts of joy, sounds of calm, carols, the local pub, a fireplace – anything that you might experience from now till the 5th of January. It could be recordings off a mobile phone, handheld recorder or the new microphone you gifted yourself for Christmas/end of the year. I will close all upload channels on January 5th and on the 9th I’ll post a few of these generative soundscapes made up off all the sounds we’ve recorded.

More info here: http://designingsound.org/2011/12/year-end-sonic-mash/

Happy Holidays and have a blast!

-Varun

What bag do you use for your field recorder?

2010-10-02T21:48:29Z

When I bought my Sound Devices 722 I also bought a purpose built Camrade bag for it: http://www.camrade.com/products-page/audio/other/ab-sd-01 which seems good in terms of being waterproof, but I'm planning my Samoa record trip & am wondering if there is a better option as I'll be travelling with more gear than usual... So what bag do you use for your field recorder? Please include a link to the model and/or a photo

Portable Mic Preamp... Suggestions?

2010-05-04T14:48:15Z

I am in the market for a portable, battery-powered microphone preamp for my shotgun. My Zoom H4n portable recorder does not seem to be driving my Rode NT2-A well enough, I would like to give it more juice through an external pre.

The main one I have found is a Sound Devices MM-1. Anyone have any experience with this pre? I know a lot of people record straight into their Sound Devices recorders, so I am thinking this would be a solid option.

I am also open to exploring DIY options. Are there any kits available for this sort of thing?

Any suggestions?

Rigging Microphones in Cars

2011-12-15T12:07:38Z

what would one make a microphone rig for a car to record dialogues ? Which microphones are preferable for these situations and why ?

Where to fix a Broken Headphone Input in an H4N?

2011-12-08T20:08:11Z

Hello,

I live in Chicago and I've a broken headphone input on my H4N. It still works, but when trying to monitor, I have to fiddle with my headphones in order to get a signal. I called but they charge too much for labor and I don't have a soldering kit to fix it myself yet. Does anyone know a good place to get is fixed locally or somewhere dependable in the states?

How often do you use limiters during field recording?

2010-06-08T13:37:22Z

Most field mixers and portable recorders have basic limiters at least for the stereo output. Stereo linked, no threshold or release, just switch it on or off. When recording vocals I prefer recording without limiter even if I have to record at lower levels. For ambience or noise I will switch it on because a little harsh is better than a big digital distortion.

Sound Devices usbpre 2 as a location field mixer, thoughts?

2010-10-18T08:01:13Z

Hello folks, So I was wondering if any of you have experience using the Sound Devices USB Pre2 in location audio recording situations. I was thinking of purchasing one and using a USB battery pack. It has a standalone mode, allowing you to route analog and digital out with out it being plugged into the computer. The pre2 has a lot going for it (same mic pre specs as the 7 series) and for the price it's a killer deal. I can't afford the 702 so i figure this paired with a decent digital recorder, is the next best thing. lend me your experience and thoughts if you can. Cheers!

-Kevin

Mid Side monitoring on PCM-D50

2011-11-23T12:03:14Z

Hi,

I've been recording M/S since a year or two and am very happy with my setup so far. My MKH's feed into a SQN4iia and i record on my PCM-D50. Unfortunately, the D50 doesn't have a MS matrix so i always listen to the SQN headphone outputs. This works great most of the time, but sometimes i get overloads when my setttings are either a bit to hot or something wonderful, but unexpected, happens.

Now of course i can pay better attention on my levels or drag around a ms/matrix box, but maybe somebody knows a way to create a small m/s-circuit, that can be placed between my headphone and D50 output? I'm thinking a simple but sturdy mini-jack in/out cable with the matrix in between the connectors.

Any ideas? Is this at all possible or will i lose a lot of output, increase noise?

Thanks in advance!

Yes, another Headphone question...

2011-11-13T16:02:31Z

As this will be the first time I spend any 'large' amount of money on headphones I want to get it right! I've read through the previous posts and (think I) have some good ideas about which pair to go for. I'm looking to spend somewhere in the region of £100 - £200... sadly can't spare anymore.

Use: I will be using these for Field Recording, Mixing and occasionally recording bands and overdubbing, though the first two subjects will be the primary uses so ideally good isolation and an 'uncoloured' sound.

Now I know that there's this whole thing about mixing on headphones, but with my previous (and first) release one piece of feedback that I received multiple times was compliments on the mixing which was actually done about 70% on phones. They were only some cheap £20 sony phones but I knew their sound so it worked and thus would like to continue to mix on phones once I get used to the new pair. I unfortunately dropped the sonys at the end of a field recording session so no longer have them :'[

http://soundcloud.com/disconnectuser - to give you an idea of the style of music I generally make. It could help influence the decision, who knows! :]

Models: Anyways I've narrowed it to these at the moment but feel free to suggest others more suitable:

Sennheiser HD280
Beyerdynamic DT 880 - too open for field use?
Beyerdynamic DT 770

Cheers for your help as always SSD!
Al

Sound Devices MixPre-D vs USBPre-2

2011-11-11T17:21:23Z

Although my question is similar to another about an interface for Pro Tools/Preamp for field recording with a portable recorder (H4n aswell). I'm not as experienced as others on this site so I was wondering if you guy's could give me some insight into choosing the right one to give me more long term use. I personally think the MixPre-D would be better since I don't have to worry about external power supply and after reading Varun Nair's post about the USBPre-2 it sounds like it a bit of a pain to work with the H4n, but I really don't know for sure, thanks for the help.

Which way do you mount your 416 in the zep?

2011-05-17T20:13:17Z

I was wondering. When mounting the MKH416 in a rycote suspension, do you place the opening (grill) area of the mic "top and bottom" so that it is not blocked by the plastic tabs that hold it in place on the Rycote suspension or do you place it "sideways" so that the plastic is covering part of the slotted grill area of the mic?

Hope I explained this question properly! Thanks! If need be I can take pics.

Nature doco sound design?

2011-11-09T10:53:48Z

I'm just curious to ask anyone who has produced sound for a nature documentary, how much of the audio content is recorded in the field or how much is the product of sound design?

First Time Recording in Forests

2011-11-05T11:18:05Z

I've lived in Dubai all my life and have never really been "into the wild" much other than camping in the desert and mountainous areas as a Boy Scout so this is pretty exciting. I'm going to be visiting Perth, WA in Jan just before I head to NZ for film school, when we're there my brother and some friends are planning on visiting some interesting places for photography. I'll be going along obviously recording sounds but all I got is an H4n (Hopefully a PreMix-D to accompany it in that time) and a Rode NTG-2 which is better than nothing I guess.

I'm wondering if you guy's could possibly give me some general ideas on what to record that aren't very obvious like ambience and foley, I'll also do some research on the sort of sounds are commonly found in these type of libraries. Also could you give me some insight on how to take care of my stuff? I hear there are quite a few ticks around in one of places we're visiting I don't want any getting on my deadwombat, also its going to be summer in Australia so I'll be putting my gear in a little pouch with a silica gel packet in there. The last thing I want to do is ruin my gear just before starting film school. Thanks for the help.

Rode vs. Rycote

2011-02-23T23:49:54Z

So, this question is for anyone out there who has used both Rode and Rycote wind protection systems. Twice now I've heard people say they prefer the Rode system over the Rycote (Haydn Payne here on SSD being one of them). I'm curious if there's anyone else here who has used both and has a preference for one over the other.

I'm trying to make a decision on future purchases. The Rode price point is very appealing, and I could probably mod it to take a Rycote Connbox if I really wanted to get silly. Any thoughts on durability and functional performance of the two brands? I'm just looking at this comparison for single mic systems (not stereo/m-s).

[I'm aware that Sennheiser makes zeppelin kits as well. We have two at work, and I'm not impressed with the way the back cap fits. They're out of the running as far as I'm concerned.]

Thanks in advance.

UPDATE: So I found a deal on a used Rycote kit. I upgraded the suspension to the new lyre mounts and added a Connbox. Very happy with it, and definitely prefer it over the Sennheiser models.

Update #2: I now own three Rycote systems...just sayin'. ;)

External Mic use (eg. Rode NTG-2) with the Sony PCM-D50 and Zoom H4n

2011-10-31T14:40:44Z

There are a couple of questions on here that are similar, and I've looked at several reviews etc but thought it'd still be worthwhile asking for opinions on my situation.

I'm fairly new to the SD field and about to get some kit to start me off with field effects recordings etc. My budget is fairly limited. Initially, for a portable recorder, my eyes were always set on the Zoom H4n as, within my budget, it seemed the most suitable. However, I've recently found a deal on a Sony PCM-D50 which would mean that at a real stretch I could just about afford to get one of them instead.

From what I've read the SNR on the PCM-D50's built-in mics is far better than that on the H4n and the unit itself seems to be much better in general (it is technically in the next price-bracket up really, so this is expected). My only issue is the lack of XLR inputs.

For standard effects recordings using internal mics the PCM-D50 wins hands down it would seem. However I'm going to be working on a project that will require me to do some dialogue recording. I'm probably looking to boom-mic using a Rode NTG-2; as this can be battery-powered or phantom-powered from the unit it would work with either the PCM-D50 or the H4n, and fits in my mic budget of £150-170. So, my question:

Does anyone have experience of using a battery-powered NTG-2 with a PCM-D50 and it's 3.5mm input, what the quality and level is like etc? Would the H4n with the NTG-2 be a better choice? Or would using the money saved from getting an H4n over a PCM-D50 on a better mic (suggestions?) be a good idea?

Thanks in advance!

Has anyone got experience with the Tascam DR-680?

2010-10-20T09:37:25Z

Hello.

I'm looking around for a solid state unit to do my location recordings with. Eventually I want to take it with me around travelling as a solid device to do all my recordings with.

I don't have the budget for a Sound Device unit, so the £700-ish mark is the most I could get together for something like this. I've even looked into a PortaBrace bags, and they do one for this unit.

http://tascam.com/product/dr-680/

My main aim now is to build up my own sound effects library. For my own use and for others to use. I'm curious that the preamps are clean and detailed on this unit, ready for all sorts of microphones to be plugged into it.

Would this be a good quality, flexible, solid device to do professional location sound recording with?

Sound Professionals SP-BMC-1 recordings

2011-10-22T15:14:21Z

Hey all.

Just thought I'd post a quick recording I made of me making soup/toast/coffee/washing hands,etc in my kitchen with my new SP-BMC2 binaural (edit:just realised on the packaging they're the BMC2 not the BMC1!) mics that I got recently (cheers for the heads up guys!). Quite a noisy, hissy gas hob unfortunately though :/ Sounds of me eating/drinking at the end of it!

http://soundcloud.com/andrewjohnlewis/sets/binuaral-sound-recording

Download original with link at 48/24.

How many other got their hands on them during the special offer? Mine didn't come with any windscreens so any sudden head movements/walking can be slightly noticeable, but I'm quite happy with the sound. Will need to somehow find some mini windjammers suitable if I ever take them outdoors. Will no doubt get strange looks with my excessive ear hair growth if I did! lol

Just be careful, levels are bit peaky! Wanted to demonstrate the dynamic range of the mics a bit though. Recorded into an H2 with plug-in power on. (some noise reduction carried out after)

Obviously best listened on headphones! (but not too loud)

Anyone else bought these mics and wanna share put up some sounds? :) Enjoy Andy

MicW i456 or similar, works on Android smartphone?

2011-09-01T15:18:49Z

Mmmm .. excuse my most awful English. Is just for fun, I don't expect professional results. I'm trying to find the best way to use my Xperia Neo smartphone as portable recorder conecting , for example, a battery powered microphone, or something like that. In internet there are many ways to do it in Iphone, but it seems to me that for android not

The smartphone's jack input is a TRRS conector, but i'm not sure of where the mic signal goes. I say that for make an adaptor, but i'm not sure.

Anyone has tried?

Thanks!!