Topic: what is causing these clicks on my recordings please help

[andrewkw]

my last 2 shows have came out with this weird clicking noise you can see the sound file here and its obvious something is wrong.  I originally thought it was the optical cable but i've replaced that.

i am running

microtech gefells m200s
15 canare mic cables
apogee mini me
12v slas powering
to aes
to hosa aes to optical converter
different optical cable first night
jb3

please help me ive already screwed up 2 of the 6 queens of the stone age shows im taping this tour.  I have a week till the next show but i want this solved now since im in canada it will take longer to replace gear. 

i can post a soundclip later but for now heres an image.

thanks for any and all help

[leegeddy]

my money is on the Hosa and its cables.

see if you can get an analog signal from the mme>jb3 line in.  if that sounds fine, then everything up to the mme (mic>canare>mme) & your jb3 are fine.
then all you have to do is isolate the problem from the AES cable > on.

marc

[Ed.]

if its little clips and blips you might need to format/clean disc on your jb3.  however, i've never seen anything like that before...if i don't clean off my jb3 i may get a few of those a show, but not constantly like that.  i'd still try the jb3 tho, it couldn't hurt.  the drive could be fragmented.

[hexyjones]

For now - I'll file this under "anecdotal reports of the CO2 HOSA producing artifacts - dropped or misplaced samples - with certain gear combinations and powering options..." 

Agree with leegeddy - see if this occurs without the HOSA in place...seems like you have eliminated the cable...

And its not the biggest sin in the world to use the JB3 analog in if you are in a pinch...

You arent using any of those swivel optical cables? Those are bad.

[Sanjay]

And its not the biggest sin in the world to use the JB3 analog in if you are in a pinch...

Certainly not, but until I can open tape again thats all I do and I am quite happy with the results.  Line in isn't ideal but it isn't a debilitating factor. 

This thread reminds me to reformat my Jb3's  I haven't done that on any of them ever....

[andrewkw]

thanks for the suggestions i can barely sleep knowing i screwed up 2 recordings already of my fav band.  Yesterday was my 20th time seeing them and i really wanted a clean recording

i will try running line in and see what happens.

the thing is i have run this rig before except the jb3 is a different one then ive used in the past.

that being said it seems to work fine when i just go dpa 4061>1/8th cable

[Nate]

I had a similar problem, and it was because I was trying to power the Hosa with a single 9v battery, which would die after about 2 hours.   What type of power are you using with the Hosa?   You could do a test and use AC power to run the Hosa...might help you isolate the problem.

Nate

[andrewkw]

im powering it with a 9v battery but a different battery each night

again i have run this rig before and it worked without incident.  Im a little scared something is wrong with the mini me in which case i HAVE to replace by next week.  Queens are the number 1 band i tape so this is a very big priority.

Unfournatly I dont have an ac to test or cables to run analog in to the jb3.  I'm going home tomorrow and I wll try then.  If i happen to pass a radioshack i'll see if i can find some analog connectors.  I still cant belive this has happened, but hopefully i will get 4 perfect recordings next week.

thanks so much for your help guys +t if not for this place i'd be in even more of a panic.

[The Kilted Taper]

And I would start using Firefox instead of IE. Just a thought.... 

[andrewkw]

i actually normally do use firefox im on my girlfriends laptop though.

[todd e]

i actually normally do use firefox im on my girlfriends laptop though.

could it be something with her machine?  maybe the signal is working, but the transfer from jb3 to laptop?  just an idea.

[SparkE!]

i actually normally do use firefox im on my girlfriends laptop though.

could it be something with her machine?  maybe the signal is working, but the transfer from jb3 to laptop?  just an idea.

Dingdingdingdingdingding!  We have a winner!  (That's exactly what I'd suspect too.)

Does the recording sound OK when played back on the NJB3?  If so, then it's your transfer that's bad.

[andrewkw]

sorry guys i wish that were true.

it sounds fucked played through headphones on the jb3 as well.

i do have one other question

how do i run analog out of the mme? just with a regular xlr cable in the aes connector? 

i suppose i can go to radioshack today and get a coax to optical converter but then i need a coax cable too and try that.  I know the rs ones are not bit for bit perfect but i don't care i just want listenable recordings of my favorite band.

i can't believe the problems im having.  Both shows turned out like this and yesterday the sla powering the mme died + the backup was dead so i quickly switched to 4061's and got the last 18mins of the show in so so quality while the rest sounds prefectly clear minus all the pops and whatnot. 

I know i could use my dpas to record the other shows but thats just not good enough for me i want a good recording 
thanks again for all the replies

[Nate]

im powering it with a 9v battery but a different battery each night

I'm still thinking this could be an issue.    Maybe you got a bad pack of 9 Volts?   I was only able to get 1.5-2 hours out of a single 9v with my hosa before the clicks started.         


I switched over the the Radio Shack RC/NiMH rechargable battery pack.

Just making sure you have enough power.   How long are the QOTSA shows?

[SparkE!]

[grasping straws]What rate and bit depth are you using? I've heard that the NJB3 simply truncates 24 bit words, so it's just additional overhead on the interface to send the extra bits.  I've also heard that unless you have defragged and nearly emptied your NJB3, it doesn't like to take samples at rates higher than 48 kHz.[/grasping straws]

If it's not the bit rate or depth, then I'm going to agree with leegedy and Ski w00kie #83.  Low optical signal power could definitely be the culprit and it could either be the battery or your cable or even a fuzzbunny that's stuck in your TOSLINK or 1/8" optical jacks.  What kind of optical cable are you using?  Have you cleaned the end facets recently?  It doesn't take much Cheeto dust to cause problems.

[hexyjones]

FWIW - Ive been sending 48/16 to my JB3 from my DAT no problem...the JB3 already has 2-3 shows on it...

FWIW2 - the CO2 wont run on a 9V at all...(ill get those chip #s today SparkE - I keep putting it back together...)

I think - the Radio Shack item will run on a 9v - I think somebody did some tests?

[dklein]

Andrew - what city are you in?

[fozzy]

Since the problems occur right a way it suggests that power is not the problem although i do suggest going w/ the 9.6v from RS.  I have seen similar problems w/ busted optical cables or adapters.  You said you tried different cables but did this also include any adapter in the chain?  If you did I'd suspect the Optical TX on the Hosa to be the issue.

[Tim]

how do i run analog out of the mme? just with a regular xlr cable in the aes connector?

you can't run analog out of the mme

[andrewkw]

i really cant do anymore tests until i get to either a radioshack or home tomorrow.

its not the optical cable because i changed cables.

Queens sets are 2hrs but i have gotten 2hrs from a 9v before.  I will it out with another 9v or possibly a battery pack if i can get one soon enough.  The other thing is the clicks start right away so its unlikely its the battery.

I had it set for 16/44.1 knowing that i was just going to burn this on cd.

i really dont know ive used the mini me about half a dozen times and never had problems like this.  I'm seriously thinking of a quick switcheroo to a v3 but i really like the sound of the gefells >mme and it would be some extra $$$ for the v3.

once i get some more tests done i'll post again.

[grider]

thanks for the suggestions i can barely sleep knowing i screwed up 2 recordings already of my fav band.  Yesterday was my 20th time seeing them and i really wanted a clean recording

i will try running line in and see what happens.

the thing is i have run this rig before except the jb3 is a different one then ive used in the past.

that being said it seems to work fine when i just go dpa 4061>1/8th cable

hey Andrew, you can always set up your rig in front of your stereo at home and just recording a random disc or whatever, just for the sake of running your rig and diagnosing the problem before you get out into the field at an actual show, trying the diagnose the problem and solve it as your favorite band begins will not turn out well, I try out new mic configs and such at home with my rig fully set up all the time

[Brian Skalinder]

its not the optical cable because i changed cables.

Assuming you switched to a Known Good Cable.

The other thing is the clicks start right away so its unlikely its the battery.

Unless the batt was low to begin with.  I've bought brand-spanking-new batteries that have been all but dead from the get-go.

Definitely more testing in order...let us know your results.

[SparkE!]

its not the optical cable because i changed cables.

Assuming you switched to a Known Good Cable.

And dirty optical cable ends can make your cable appear bad when in fact, it just needs a good cleaning.  So can Cheetos* dust in the TOSLINK and 1/8" optical receptacles.  The optical recepticles are harder to clean than the ends of your cable.  It takes surprisingly little material to cause bad problems.  I've used a rolled up piece of Tyvek, dipped in alcohol to clean the recepticles.  Tyvek will not leave fibers behind like a Q-tip will and the rolled end gives enough room for dislodged particles to collect so that they can by physically removed from the recepticle.  The alcohol just dissoves any water or oil soluble foreign materials that might have collected there.

*This was the problem with my neighbor's TOSLINK output on their satellite TV box.

[andrewkw]

okay guys i'm back from montreal. 

Apperently the problem is a much simpler and stupid problem.  I had the mini me set at 16/44.1 at the 2 o'clock setting and this should have been on 8 o'clock.  I will confirm this later today (still dead tired and need to unpack).  If this is the case I will be fine for next weeks shows.  I feel really stupid that all i had to do was turn the knob a bit and everything would have been fine.   I also don't get why the mini me wont send the proper singal when set at 16/44.1 but whatever.  This was also the first shows I taped all year and most if not all of what i did last year was 16/48.  These were actually the first queens shows i screwed up taping out of more then a dozen so i guess its not that bad.  they would have deffinalty been the best sounding if not for this.

I'll post again tonight to confirm this is the problem and I thank you all once again for your help.

Assuming the next 4 shows are fine they will be up for torrent, but if anyone would prefer me to send them discs of the show either in flac or audio format, just pm me and i'll make sure they go out soon after i get back.