Can I ask what you want to do with water, river, and shorelines? Are you lo=
oking for immersive stereo ambience recordings? Something more targeted lik=
e recording individual waves? Do you need to be able to mix down to mono, o=
r will you always use the recordings in stereo? Are you after big dramatic =
soundscapes like crashing waves, or are you also planning to record the tin=
iest trickle in a stream? Also, what do you consider a stereo mic? =0D
=0D
The reason I'm asking is that most of my water recordings were made using =
a home-built SASS with EM-172 capsules. It's a single unit, so you could ca=
ll it a stereo mic, but it's bulky; not the sort of thing you'd hand-hold a=
ll that easily. You can build one for well under $200, and the wiring on a =
Message: 3.
Subject: 5mm plug is very simple. Vicki Powys has good instructions on her
site: h=
ttp://caperteebirder.com/index.php?p=3D1_17_recording-gear-1 http://caperte=
ebirder.com/index.php?p=3D1_17_recording-gear-1=0D
=0D
=0D
The catch with the SASS, aside from its size, is that because of the physi=
cal separation between the capsules it's not always easy to mix down to a m=
ono track. Not a big deal for me because I don't use my recordings that way=
, but it bears keeping in mind in case you plan to. Something along the lin=
es of an X-Y or a Mid-Side microphone would work better if you need to be a=
ble to mix down to mono.=0D
=0D
=0D
Depending on the sounds you want to record, the ultimate noise floor of th=
e mic may not be all that critical, or it may be a huge deal. Big crashy wa=
ves are a pretty loud source. Even a relatively noisy mic will be able to r=
ecord them. Waves lapping on the shore of a river are quieter and will dema=
nd better noise performance out of your mics. Picking up the tiny drops of =
water falling on the floor of a cave requires a microphone with as low a no=
ise as you can find. (I'm not happy with any of my cave recordings, but I'm=
not convinced it's the fault of the mics.)=0D
=0D
=0D
Sorry for the ramble. Hope this helps.=0D
=0D
=0D
Tom=0D
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