Hello everybody!
I have been checking out this forum for the past few weeks looking through some threads regarding the taping of concerts. I usually film portions of gigs with my Kodak Zi8 and the internal mic is decent, but gets major distortion when its a loud gig. That's why I bought an external mic ( Sony ECM-DS30P ). It provides my recordings with better sound, yet lacks bass. I have been thinking about getting a Sony PCM-M10, Olympus LS-10 / 11 and a Zoom H2. I have found loads of recordings that were made with the Zoom H2 internal mics and those sounded great so I finally decided to get a Zoom H2N because I could get one pretty cheap ( I will recieve it tomorrow ).
I want to take it to local / bigger gigs and record using the internal mics. I am never in front of the stage because I happen to visit a lot of metal shows and don't want to be crushed / get my gear knocked out of my hands ( Slayer concert with a recorder in the frontrow is definatly a no-no ). I am however always standing, never up in the balconies or something when in a larger venue so I am directly facing the sound. I usually put my hand in the air with my Kodak to pick up the sound and film it. I don't really care that much for the video anymore, I just want to have good audio, so that is why I will replace my Zi8 / DS30P combo for the Zoom. And the battery life is much better with a Zoom recorder when compared to my Zi8.
So ( finally ) my question, what are the best settings to tape a ( usually ) loud metal gig? Using low cut and low gain? Or just one of them? My ECM-DS30P picks up audience noice like mad when on medium gain so I know that it's better to keep it low, but don't know if that will hurt the recording when using something like the Zoom H2N. And I don't need PERFECT audio, just audio without distortion, cracking and hissing ( might sound weird, but I only record for myself / Youtube, nothing else ) and with some of the bass intact.
I will finish my post with some samples with my Kodak Zi8 with and without internal mics.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ax8nR_iD1oc - Kodak Zi8 using internal mic
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GfUCVMLE3d8 - Kodak Zi8 using internal mic with distortion / cracking.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6SE7TQzZx8 - Kodak Zi8 using external mic DS30P with low gain