Topic: Edirol RH09 : what should we buy with that ?

[ruth.olivier]

Hello everyone !

How are you doing ?
I will visit a few concerts this end of year, and for once I would like to record some shows, to please my kids who are too young to come with me, and to keep a nice "souvenir" of the shows (and why not sharing it).
But I never recorded before. I think I would go for an Edirol RHO9 device, this seems to be a really great tool for recording shows. But as I am a perfectionist and want a perfect quality, I wondered what material to buy with that. I mean external mic, and battery-box. My wants are for small size and quality. No shitty 5 USD external mic ! But no 1.000 USD too, as I don't have Bill Gates's fortune (sadly).
External mike : I was wondering if a Sony ECM 719 or Sound Professionals SP-BMC-2 mini binaural microphones (http://www.soundprofessionals.com/cgi-bin/gold/item/SP-BMC-2 + http://www.soundprofessionals.com/cgi-bin/gold/item/SP-EMC-1)  could be good enough, or if there was another mic that you could advice me.
Battery-box : Microphone Madness MM-CBM-Mini Miniature Classic Battery / Filter module, that should be good enough, but once again I would like your advice about that. http://www.microphonemadness.com/products/mmcbmminminc.htm
SD Card : I was considering buying a 8GB SD Card first, the shows could last up to 2h30, and I want to record in the best quality the Edirol RH09 can provide, do you think that my choice is good or do I have to look for something bigger ?

I'm a newbie here (sorry for that) so please direct me to the right post if the answer had already been given, but I haven't found it. I wanted to get the best advice I could and was directed to you guys, so thanks a lot to share your experience ! I didn't knew such a forum could exist, but it's nice and has answered some of my questions about the Zoom H2 and H4 recorders. So hope you could give me your advice !!


thanks a lot everyone.
Rock on !

Olivier.

[anarkust]

...as I am a perfectionist and want a perfect quality...

Not jumping on you or trying to start an argument, but first you'll have to lose the perfection mentality.  Recordings don't always turn out how we would like them to.

I myself use Church Audio cards and battery box/preamp.  Check out the retail space of the site.  Chris is always having some sorta special.

Go to Team Boards and look for Church Audio, you can get more info about his products there as well.

An 8gb sd card is a great choice.

+T and good luck

Gabriel

[su6oxone]

For a general-use mic, I would get a cardioid mic like the Sound Pro CMC-4 (~$200, I use this and like it), Microphone Madness HLSC-1 (~$250), or for the best value, you can pick up one of Church Audio's (Chris Church) CA-11 mics for much less, or a package with the CA-9100 preamp also for <$300.  His products are highly regarded on this board and among tapers, but you should check out recordings made with his mics/preamp on LMA (archive.org, search for "ca 11") to see if you like them.  If you get the Sound Pro mics, be sure to pick the "low sensitivity" option (around $30 when you pick the mics) to avoid distortion at high SPL.  Any battery box on the Sound Pro will be fine with it.  I think you may be best off with the Church mics and preamp though, just send him an email or reply on one of the threads of his products in the "retail" section.  For <3 hour long shows, a 4gb card will be fine even at 24bit/96khz.  

[su6oxone]

...as I am a perfectionist and want a perfect quality...

Not jumping on you or trying to start an argument, but first you'll have to lose the perfection mentality.  Recordings don't always turn out how we would like them to.

Good point. 

[Jeremy Lykins]

I just started taping a few months ago so I don't have anything to compare 'em to, but I also recommend Church Audio's mics and preamps.  They're small, easy to use, sound great, and are very durable.  If you do decide to go with Church Audio, make your purchase here through TapersSection instead of his eBay site and you'll save a lot of money.  You can also get Chris Church to answer any questions that you may have about his equipment. 

[bugg100]

...as I am a perfectionist and want a perfect quality...

Not jumping on you or trying to start an argument, but first you'll have to lose the perfection mentality.  Recordings don't always turn out how we would like them to.

I myself use Church Audio cards and battery box/preamp.  Check out the retail space of the site.  Chris is always having some sorta special.

Go to Team Boards and look for Church Audio, you can get more info about his products there as well.

An 8gb sd card is a great choice.

+T and good luck

Gabriel

My take on this is..... mic placement REALLY is the most important factor, then gear.

Not to say that better gear won't sound better in SOME situations, but as a new hobbiest, go for knowledge about mic placement first.  Many here recomend " The Stereophonic Zoom ".  It is linked here on TS.com

Good Luck! and get out there and make some mistakes to improve upon.  Welcome to an obsessive hobby!

Joe

[heyitsmejess]

i run a set of the sp-bmc-2 on a regular basis.  while you can do better overall, for the price, you wont get a better pair of omni microphones.

i run mine into a church audio 9100 preamp.

[bluntforcetrauma]

If you want the perfect quality, you might steer yourself towards schoeps or DPA mics.  Yes they are more expensive than the ones you listed, but they will yield exponentially( sp)  better results.

[run_run_run]

For some low cost omnis you could solder up a set of these

http://cgi.ebay.com/Panasonic-WM-61A-Electret-microphone_W0QQitemZ150260132839QQihZ005QQcategoryZ4660QQrdZ1QQssPageNameZWD1VQQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp1638Q2em118Q2el1247


http://taperssection.com/index.php/topic,94446.0/all.html

a great post by digifish_music on the process

[itook2much]

i run a set of the sp-bmc-2 on a regular basis.  while you can do better overall, for the price, you wont get a better pair of omni microphones.

i run mine into a church audio 9100 preamp.

Second that.  I ran them into a Hi-MD & the R-09 before I bought the DPAs.  I agree, they're unbeatable at that price.

[sunjan]

I mean external mic, and battery-box. My wants are for small size and quality. No shitty 5 USD external mic ! But no 1.000 USD too, as I don't have Bill Gates's fortune (sadly).
External mike : I was wondering if a Sony ECM 719 or Sound Professionals SP-BMC-2 mini binaural microphones

SD Card : I was considering buying a 8GB SD Card first, the shows could last up to 2h30, and I want to record in the best quality the Edirol RH09 can provide

Hi Olivier,

Since you go for small size, I take it that you're stealthing.
First question: note that binaurals demands a lot of attention to your location and the characteristics of the venue. If you're in the wrong spot, you might end up with a lot of crowd noise. Also, for optimal listening pleasure, binaural recordings should be heard through the headphones. If you intend to listen mainly on your home stereo set or in the car, there are better mic setups. I won't even go into the Sony 719 mic, obviously you won't get a decent stereo image with that.
Did you reflect on the fact that the SP-BMC-2s are omnis? Many of us here start out with cardioids instead, like the Church CA11 combo that was just mentioned.

Second question, what type of gigs are you going to? For loud rock shows, mics+bbox will usually provide a hot enough signal to the R09HR. But for acoustic or low-key sets, you should go for a proper preamp that both provides mic power and gain. Since this is a small one-time investment, the price difference is small enough going for the preamp straight away, to cover all kinds of music.

Like previously said, the Church combo is ideal for a budget stealth kit. If you got more money to spend, look into the DPA 4061. Check the Yard Sale to see if there are any on offer. Otheres here can tell you more about powering them. I know that Church can customize his 9100 pre to take DPA mics too...

Regarding SD card size, the price difference between 8Gb and 16GB is marginal these days. If you go for 16GB, you have the liberty to tape the support act or go to at least one-day festivals. If you're in a tight spot, record in 24/48 instead of 24/96, that will give you twice the time. For non-critical listening, most of us won't hear the difference.

[ruth.olivier]

thanks for all your kind words !
It's always uneasy to as for something when you are a newbie on a forum of specialists of technique... So that's great !
I will go and seek for info about those Church-Audio then.
I thank you very much for that info. anybody having more thoughts about that ?
Many thanks to everybody who took some time to answer me !


Regards,
Olivier.