Bringing Bird Sounds Indoors
I spend a lot of time sitting at my computer, and I enjoy hearing nature
sounds while I work. Based on suggestions from some avid nature recordists=
,
I have installed an audio setup with which I am well pleased. My goal was
to bring reasonably good quality stereo sound from outdoors into my home
office. The following is a description of my setup:
Microphones: I purchased two Shure EZB/O Omni-directional boundary
microphones for approximately $100.00 each. I mounted one under the eaves
on my back deck and the other under an overhang in the front of my wood
frame house. It is important that they be mounted where they will be
protected from direct rain. I was told that they should be mounted on a
fairly large flat surface and not too near a corner or perpendicular wall.
The one on the front of the house is only a couple of feet from the ground
and hidden by bushes. I suspect that neither of my mounting points permits
optimal audio input, but they perform well enough to suit my ears. These
microphones are very sensitive and will pick up even very light sounds. On=
e
slight disadvantage is that they pick up some unwanted sounds from inside
through the wall of the house. Wind is not a problem at all, unless a gust
blows directly into one of the mics.
The EZB/O mics include preamplifiers and require phantom power. I used a
100-foot XLr microphone cable for one of them, with no noticeable hum or
interference. Initially I had some static from moisture getting into the
XLR fittings, but I used silicone sealant and have had no more trouble.
Mixer: I purchased a Behringer UB1202 audio mixer for just under $100.--.
It provides the phantom power needed by the microphones, and it offers a
number of useful features that made it well worth the investment.
Speakers: I cabled the "Tape Out" output from the mixer into the Line-in
input on my computer sound card. This serves two purposes; I can hear the
sounds through my computer speakers, and I can also record via the computer=
.
(See below) I cabled the mixer's main output channels to inputs on my
stereo system for even better sound.
Recording: I use an audio editing program called GoldWave, available from
http://www.goldwave.com/
I set GoldWave to accept input from the Line-in, and I set the record mode
to "bounded and looped". I set the initial file size to 2 minutes, althoug=
h
I could have used a much longer time period. Once I begin recording in thi=
s
mode, GoldWave continually captures the most recent two minutes of sound.
If I hear a sound I want to save, I simply stop the recording within two
minutes of hearing the sound. I then save the current file, which contains
the past two minutes of audio. With GoldWave, it is easy to edit and
convert audio files. I prefer the MP3 format, because MP3 files are only
about a tenth the size of comparable WAV files.=20
Although this equipment cost a little more than I had initially planned to
spend, I am happy with the outcome.
Jerry Berrier
http://www.townisp.com/~jerry.berrier
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