--- In "Robert" <> wrote:
> hi--
>
> Here is yet another version of the ultimate newbie question, except
> that it is a question whose answer changes as the technology changes.
>
> I wish to record cicada, cricket and katydid sounds, but not for the
> purpose of getting pristine natural sound quality. Instead, I want to
> capture the intriguing melodic cacophony for use in making electronic
> music with my little sampler/synthesizer program.
>
> I did what everyone of a certain interest set has probably has done
> at one time or another, trying to use my simple 20 dollar mike and
> portable cassette player to capture bugsong, only to find myself
> capturing really interesting (and perhaps useful) tape hiss.
>
> But when I walk in our north Texas Summer nights, on my favorite
> hiking trail, the insect choruses overwhelm thought, sensation, and
> my ears. There must be a way to capture this for sampling purposes
> without buying one thousand dollars worth of gear.
>
> Has anyone tried to capture sounds like this with nothing more
> sophisticated than a Radio Shack audio amplifier and a simple
> recorder? What is the least expensive way to get audible birdsong
> and bugsound onto a medium that I can then record into a .wav file on
> my computer?
I have used the Cheap Radio Shack condenser mic element. I found no
use for their cheap audio amplifier. With a 9 volt battery, two
capacitors and a resister you can use that mic element just fine as a
entry level mic. This recommendation takes a little build experience. =
I still recommend that capsule for certain uses and if you want a
wiring writeup for making that mic I would be glad to send it to you
by e-mail. It was my first microphone, and I first used it recording
to a "chunk-o-junk" laptop computer.
Later mic builds led me to the single IC mic pre-amp circuit with the
mic capsule built in (that works very well although needed 2 9 volt
batteries to fire the IC", then the panasonic mic capsules, then
arrays of multiple panasonic mic capsules.
I have a huge advantage over the purist seeking the
> ideal sound, because I am not interested in perfect clarity, but only
> in intriguing sounds, that I can slice up and make into electronic
> wonders.
>
> For those, by the way, who are not musical, but who want to try a
> musical experience with their nature sounds, let me suggest the
> open source software Slicer, which is available as freeware at
> www.ixi-software.net. Slicer lets you import a simple wave file of
> anything, and use it as music with a graphical string art interface.
> How much musical knowledge or electronic knowledge do you need to use
> Slicer? Zero. You just hit the "import" button, import your nature
> sound .wav file, and the use the string art interface to alter the
> sounds--it's perhaps not more fun than a barrel of leopard frogs, but
> it's interesting.
>
> But I keep imagining what it would be like to get nature sounds
> on .wav files I create, and then slice and dice.
>
> Can you help me find a way to do it, i.e., capture the sound and
> record it, on the least expensive (let's say the abysmally low sum of
> 100 dollars) equipment imaginable?
Cheapest solution for mono is finding a surplus "chunk-o-junk" laptop
computer as these usually have a single mic input and you can download
free recording software or buy shareware cheap. The options depend on
the speed of your cheap laptop. Audio does not need a fast computer
but some audio software does. Audacity is free but you should have at
least a 66 mhz computer to use with it.
For stereo recording of low noise and a cheap pocket recorder, I
recommend that you look at e-bay and search for the Sony MZ-R55
recorder. Budget $50 to $75 US for one of those. They sound great and
are very low noise. There are many other Minidisc recorders with mic
inputs but I just recommended one model that is always available,
sells cheap, has a high/low mic pre switch, and the good version of
ATRAC compression. Other models are also very good but you would need
to check with recordists here if it is appropriate for field
recording. Also minidisc.org has a wealth of info if you want to
compare things yourself.
Surely with all the new
> technology, there must be better ways than the old, out of date
> magazine articles I find here. I admire all you folks who are doing
> really professional stuff, but can you help a fellow out who just
> wants to record a slice?
For low noise nature recording we worry most about the quality of the
microphones. And that can be your most expensive investment. For very
cheap entry level recording I worry first about the cost of the
recorder. This is because an inexpensive condensor microphone can work
pretty well with medium and louder sound sources. I can also e-mail
you examples of ambient sound recorded with the $2.00 radio shack
condensor microphone element if you wish.
Rich Peet
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