Topic: Need help with my first time recording.

[Bannock]

Hey there, I've been asked to help a friend to help him record some outdoor shows in a couple weeks.  He plans on using a couple HD digital cams to record the video but was hoping to find a way to get some better audio than what the cams provide.  One of the cams is going to be about 3 feet above the crowd (between 20 and 80 ft from the stage) and usually gets fairly decent audio but still picks up more crowd noise that what we'd like to have.  In the Enter the Matrix PDF it talks about mixing audio sources and that sounds perfect for what we'd like to have but I have zero experience in recording audio and would really like to come through for my friend and get a great recording to help him with his videos.

I would like to know what equipment i should be looking to purchase.  We can get to the soundboard for a few of the bands so I'd like to get the audio from that source.  I'm wondering if all I need is a large selection of cables and adapters, a digital audio recording device (am looking at a Zoom H2) and possibly attenuators.  I don't have a lot of money to throw around ($200-400) but would rather spend more money to get a good recording than throwing away money on a bad one.

Am I on the right track?  Does anyone have any advice on equipment or tips and tricks so I can at least get a useable recording on our first attempt?  Any help would be greatly appreciated.  After reading through the forum a bit, I've become quite nervous and a bit overwhelmed.

[acidjack]

Lots of questions embedded there.

In external mics, if you'll be outdoors, try some small omni mics from Church Audio or Sound Professionals.  Those should run ~$100 and another $50 or so for the battery box.

For a multi-channel mix you will need a multi-channel recorder, or two recorders that you combine later.  I believe the cheapest multi-channel recorder is the Zoom H4N, which is of somewhat dubious quality but can do what you're describing. 

For an SBD you need three main types of connections (plus whatever you connect to the recorder with) - RCA, XLR and 1/4".  The good news is you can buy one set of XLR cables and one set of RCA cables, and then get adapters for the rest.  My deck takes XLR and 1/4" inputs, so I have a set of 50' long RCAs, with 1/4" adapters to plug into the deck, and several sets of XLR cables, again with 1/4" adapters.  That covers me.  The Zoom H4N takes XLR inputs as well, but as I have not used the deck, I'm somewhat hesitant to recommend it.  It is, I believe, the cheapest and simplest option for what you are doing, though, and has the advantage of recording all four channels at once, so you don't have as many issues with syncing (though if you're running SBD, assuming the venues are of any size, you will have to align the recordings again).

Zoom is $300 new, so that plus some Church Audio mics and a battbox puts you at $450.  You can probably buy a used one for less.

http://www.amazon.com/Zoom-Handy-Portable-Digital-Recorder/dp/B001QWBM62

From looking at the spec sheet, I believe when the Zoom goes 4-channel it requires that two of the channels be its included onboard mics.  If you look, the writeup specifically describes doing what you are doing (SBD+onboard mics).  I have heard the onboard mics on it are alright, so for $300 this could be a simple and effective route.

[Frequincy]

One of the cams is going to be about 3 feet above the crowd (between 20 and 80 ft from the stage) and usually gets fairly decent audio but still picks up more crowd noise that what we'd like to have.  In the Enter the Matrix PDF it talks about mixing audio sources and that sounds perfect for what we'd like to have but I have zero experience in recording audio and would really like to come through for my friend and get a great recording to help him with his videos.

You could sync this audio with the soundboard audio in an editor and only need a 2 channel recorder and a bunch of different cables. It doesn't help you with the artist's you can't get sbd recordings from though