From: "Jean Coeurchamp" <>
>
> Hello,
>
> It seems that most of the recordists in this group use pretty
> professional equipment. I am merely an amateur with minimal
> funds, 'starting out' as it were. I record with a Sony MD (MZ-N707),
> and until recently made tentative experiments using a cheap, muddy
> Sony mic ill-suited to my purpose. However, I have just invested in
> the Core-Sound binaurals (haven't received them yet), which I have
> seen dismissed by ambience recorders, but even these are pushing my
> budget to the limit (c.$300 including postage).
>
> Also, anything more sophisticated would be pretty pointless anyway,
> as I intend to edit my recordings on a laptop, and the only way
> to 'upload' them is via the analogue line-in. I do have the program
> WaveLab (a newer version) - can this be used to 'improve' raw
> recordings to any significant degree?
>
> Anyway, seeing as I haven't actually started operating yet, I was
> just wondering what the viability of obtaining anything interesting
> will be (in terms of sound quality). Since I'm in a highly urban
> area (London, England), I will probably be recording
> mainly 'urban/industrial ambience' unless I go on trips to more
> rural areas, or maybe attempting to capture interesting
> intersections of natural and mechanical sound. So I do not aim for
> anything highly specific or localised (e.g. individual bird calls),
> more just an omnidirectional sense of 'soaking up sound'. But given
> my comparatively primitive setup, are the results likely to be muddy
> and lacking spatial depth, or distorted by even light wind? I know
> these judgements are relative, and my desired standards as an
> amateur are obviously lower than a professional's.
There is a tendency in groups like this to discuss sound quality as if
we can achieve truly awesome results just by choosing the right
equipment and failure to use the ultimate will result in complete
failure. The truth is far below that, no matter what equipment it's
pretty much our own skill and experience pitted against a environment
that is everything to turn a studio recordist to despair. The equipment
is trivia next to that. As someone new to the craft, I'd expect that
even the finest equipment would not help all that much at first.
Some of us do have expensive equipment, accumulated over years as our
experience grew and our desire grew. For most of us it was painful to
come up with the money. The high end pro equipment does make the job
easier in some ways, and does open up some more options. I recorded for
many years with a Sony MZ-R30 and a homemade parabolic which used a $49
tie tac mic and getting that into my mac via it's analog inputs. I got
good recordings with that setup, it can be done. I will not say you
won't have failures, you will, but you will also have some success to
balance that.
I think you will find that your kit can get some good stuff, as the
environment allows. I think you will get recordings from time to time
that you will really like. As you gain experience, you will get more of
them. Yes, higher level equipment will increase your odds a little, but
starting out you far more need to just get out and record lots. Sort out
how this craft is done. Or at least your own style of how it's done,
there are many options.
Filtering can help improve a recording a little, but mostly it has to be
there to start with. And that's mostly technique and luck.
I'd expect the Core-Sound binaurals should give you a fairly decent
stereo field. They will not be good for picking up distant sounds, so
you will want to concentrate on being close to the sounds you wish to
record. Experiment with just how you mount them, either on you or off,
There will be variations in the soundfield.
A fairly inexpensive trick to try with them sometime after you are used
to them is mounting them in the focus of a parabolic dish. You may be
surprised at how well that can handle picking up individual bird calls.
They have enough self noise that really quiet ambiance may be a problem.
But you point out you are going to really have to work to find such a
recording site. Just keep pushing them in quieter and quieter situations
and you will discover just where their self noise will allow you to go.
That is if the self noise of the Sony does not limit you first. Don't
worry that you cannot get all levels of ambiance, even the best pro mics
can limit that way.
Remember the directions on how to use those mics come mostly from
concert tapers. That's a different world from nature recording. So don't
be afraid to experiment.
Wind is a problem, but not all the time. And there are lots of creative
solutions that can handle light winds without breaking the bank. Like
the rest of it, experience will sort it out. Windscreening very small
mics is a easier proposition than the large pro mics. Often just a tiny
scrap of material is all it takes.
Walt
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