Rich,
Overall, my advice is to get a starter budget system like the Sony and
a mid range affordable mic. If you catch the recording bug, your next
upgrade could be a low noise mixer which will get over the input
noise, and start trying out various mic rigs which we talk about on
this list. I use a professional SQN mixer with a Tascam DR-1 or DR-100
which gives high quality recordings with no audible hiss on line in.
Without the mixer, they are both a bit hissy.
I'll go along with those who advise that input noise is not the most
important factor with budget systems. The important thing is to get
going and learn as you record. Save your money for a good stereo pair
and an effective windgag.
Re noise specs I'm struggling not to give a geeky answer, but I'll
try. Manufacturer's noise figures are often very misleading so it is
difficult to compare specs. Noise has to be measured against a stated
norm and these norms are mainly what varies when noise figures are
quoted to the benefit of the manufacturer.
The sound of noise also varies widely but the most disturbing with
wildlife recording is hiss. If you can recognise the hiss from a mic
in a very quiet location (or covered by a heap of bedclothes), you are
doing well. Here comes the snag - you should compare different mics
with the same recorder which is difficult if you haven't got your
hands on them. The noise you are looking for is a persistent high
hiss. With many practical locations there are other hiss noises like
wind in trees, but you can learn the sound of the fundamental high
pitched so called "thermal noise" hiss.
BTW I should have said to get a decent pair of headphones so you can
hear what you are recording.
One spec which is useful with noise is the output level in mv/Pa and
10mv/Pa or higher tends to swamp input stage noise more. The pre-amp
in the mic should beat the pre-amp in the recorder. If the mic is
hissy by itself this won't necessarily help with the end result but
the hiss you will hear will be from the mic, not the recorder.
You can reduce recorded hiss without affecting the overall sound using
Audacity and if you need more details, I do this with some of my quiet
recordings taken with MKH mics and a professional mixer with very low
input noise.
A parabola is not a mic, sorry to be pedantic. You put a conventional
mic into a parabolic dish and you get three benefits. 1) An increase
in level at birdsong frequencies, mainly the higher kilohertz which
swamps the various system hiss noises. 2) This effect happens in a
narrow angle, leaving other directions at a lower level. 3) Sounds
from behind are baffled off. These effects make the birds sound much
closer, which is very handy if they are up high trees.
The snags with a parabola are its bulk and it needs a good stand and
it can blow over easily. It is also basically mono and if you widen
its imaging areas for stereo you lose its initial benefits.
David
David Brinicombe
North Devon, UK
Cogito cogito ergo cogito sum - Ambrose Bierce
"While a picture is worth a thousand words, a
sound is worth a thousand pictures." R. Murray Schafer via Bernie Krause.
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