Topic: new taper, need some help.

[Overlee]

So I purchased a Sony Hi-MD MZ-RH1 years ago with some Sound Professionals in-ear binaural microphones (SP-TFB-2) and I really would like to start recording some rock concerts with them.  I practiced recording some music playing over my home stereo using the mic in option on my recorder and it sounded okay I guess, but for an actual concert I don't think it would hold up very well. I don't have a lot of money but I assume I would need to by some kind of pre amp to record a decent quality show right?

anyone have any recommendations for a fairly cheap setup? maybe with products that can be purchased at radioshack so I could start recording immediately.


Thanks.

[Big Perm]

are you wanting to record bands that allow recording, or are you going for stealth?  This will determine what sort of equipment you will need

[Overlee]

I imagine a lot of the bands would be cool with it, but the venues around here tend to be nazi's about any kind of electronic device entering the venue.

It would probably just be much less of a hassle to go the stealth route.

[Big Perm]

you can spend as much or as little as you want...what is your bugget?

[Overlee]

not much, I'm a college student 

I would just need a pre-amp to get things going right?

[rhinowing]

you might want to consider a sound pros box, since they also make your mics. I use the SPSB-10 and am really happy with it for low-pro/stealth situations. another route would be upgrading your mics. I'm not sure how great those mics might be compared to a better set of sound pros, even to something like the SP-BMC-2 (~60$)

Also, I thought most MD recorders could provide decent plug-in power. maybe another reason to think about upgrading mics instead of box

[su6oxone]

not much, I'm a college student 

I would just need a pre-amp to get things going right?

For a really tight budget, I would pick up those Sound Pro mics mentioned above (SP BMC-2), a cheap battery box, and you should be good to go.  Check out the YS for those items used or post an ISO to see if anyone has one they're interested in parting with.

[sunjan]

not much, I'm a college student 

I would just need a pre-amp to get things going right?

Here's a cheap ST-9100 for ya, but it's located in Europe:
http://taperssection.com/index.php/topic,123789.0.html

Otherwise, talk to Chris Church. He was supposed to have a "used gear" program with cheap preamps that he got back for upgrades.

[fmaderjr]

I thought most MD recorders could provide decent plug-in power. maybe another reason to think about upgrading mics instead of box

NO! The MZ-RH1 is a truly great recorder, but the plug in power voltage is low (possibly as low as 1.5 volts). You need a battery box or preamp to record reliably.

The MZ-RH1 has a great preamp on board, so you could go with a small battery box, like the one from Chris Church ($30). I love his ST-9100 preamp for it's versatility, but you might not want to spend that much.

You should be able to make great sound recordings with your mic and a battery box, but it only handles SPL's up to 120 dB with a battery box, so you could occasionally run into distortion if you were trying to record an ear crushingly loud concert too near the stacks.

When you have the cash I would add something like the CA-14 Cardioid to your arsenal. It will handle higher SPL's and there are times a cardioid is better than omni or binaural mics (such as when you are far from the source, the room has bad acoustics, or you want to reduce crowd chatter behind you).

Tips on using the RH1:
I generally go line in, but mic in works great too with or without the -20 dB switch on as appropriate (for loud music you would always want it on).

Do not use auto level control. Set levels so the meters peak in the -12 to -6 dB range so you have plenty of headroom to avoid clipping. You can use the Hi-SP mode if you need more than 93 minutes recording time without swapping discs. I hear no audible difference between that and PMC mode. Make a test for yourself and see if you can hear a difference (you're younger than me).

If you are going mic in and and you have to set your levels below 12 to keep the meters from going over 0 dB, you are likely to get a brick walled recording that will sound terrible. Instead of going below 12 switch the mic to the line in input where hopefully the meters will stay below 0 dB with the level set at 12 or higher.

For low profile recording keep the RH1 in your shirt pocket so that you can monitor the levels just by looking down in the pocket. Cut a hole in the shirt pocket for the cords and run the cords out your shirt collar behind your neck.  You can easily fit an RH1 + a battery box or ST-9100 in a shirt pocket.