Topic: HELP! Clueless chick needs help with a christmas gift!!

[jnf505]

Hi,
My boyfriend really wants a recording setup for Christmas. He's really interested in recording live gigs and probably will use it for interviews and such (he's into journalism). I'm just a listener and I'm totally clueless about all of this stuff but I really want to get him a good set-up. I think I have a few ideas about what he wants like Zoom H2 and a pair of "John  Ramsey Signature Series" microphones he found online. What I don't want to get is some crappy stuff so I NEED HALP!!!!!!

Here's a link to each of these thangs:

1. Zoom H2 - http://www.amazon.com/Zoom-H2-Portable-Stereo-Recorder/dp/B000VBH2IG
2. Audioreality.com's John  Ramsey Signature Series - http://www.audioreality.com/

[su6oxone]

What's your budget?

[jnf505]

The budget is just under 300 or so.

[yltfan]

Does it need to come in shiny new boxes, or can you buy much better used stuff?

[mosquito]

Personally, I would suggest just buying a recorder as the gift. 

Sounds like he's going to be totally new at it so he'll be doing a lot of learning.  And he'll have several purposes for his rig, so he's going to want different sets / sorts of mics to use, but only he will know what he's going to want to do with it first. 

If it helps, think of microphones as shoes:  most of us have -- or at least want -- as many mics as the proverbial woman has shoes.  They all have different qualities and prices and uses, but getting him a pair of Birkenstocks when he needs something from Jimmy Choo may wind up not being the best use of the money.

After he gets his gift tell him the best part of the gift is that you've found a website where people are more than willing to help him learn.

Oh, most importantly, thanks to you.  Most of us tapers are, well, kinda nerdy -- even though we seem really cool -- and having a SO who 'gets it' is one of the best possible things.

[chrisdavis]

^^^^^^^^^^

right on the money.  he may even be able to settle on one set of mics, but he will need to learn what hes looking for before he invests.

buy him a recorder.  you rock.

ps.  if you do want to buy him mics, i might suggest chris church (church audio).  this guy makes great small mics for the money, and hes easily accessible if theres ever a problem.  you can also get a set of CA's on the cheap from the TS yard sale.  he might be touched that you bought him a recorder, and did some mic research as well....

[J.Maye]

Maybe an Edirol R09-HR to start? He could use the internal mics for the journalism piece and you could worry about the external mics for better quality live music recording later.

It would be a fairly solid foundation on which to build on later if your boyfriend really gets into recording.   

[hoppedup]

The Tascam DR-07 bundle ($199.00) from Sound Professionals would be a good start:

http://www.soundprofessionals.com/cgi-bin/gold/item/TAS-DR-07-BUNDLE

Or get the recorder by itself for $159.00

You can probably get a discount as a taperssection member. Call and ask.

The Church-Audio mics and preamps can't be beat for the price (or much higher prices, really). But Christmas would have to come late for this gear. Chris Church has ads in the retail space of this forum. It takes a while, but it's good stuff.

[su6oxone]

The budget is just under 300 or so.

Also agree with mosquito, I would get a nice new recorder if it's going to be a gift.   Try the Sony PCM M10... You can get it for under $300 at B&H photo and it will be a nice recorder to use for various purposes.  Edirol R-09HR is a good option also.

[page]

If it helps, think of microphones as shoes:  most of us have -- or at least want -- as many mics as the proverbial woman has shoes.  They all have different qualities and prices and uses, but getting him a pair of Birkenstocks when he needs something from Jimmy Choo may wind up not being the best use of the money.

The more I think about it, the better the analogy gets. Thats slick, thanks.

to the original poster: I have nothing to add other then to reinforce the suggestions already mounted. 

[fmaderjr]

The PCM M10 would be a great choice. For a lower budget the Tascam R-07 is also great & would be way better than the Zoom. For mics, nobody here talks about the John Ramsey mics, so for a similar price I would go with Church Audio (either CA-11 or 14's) that many many people here swear by. If the Ramsey mics were comparable, I think someone here would have discovered them.

If buying Church Audio, don't use E-Bay. You get a lower price by sending him and e-mail and mentioning taperssection.

[ianstone]

Maybe an Edirol R09-HR to start? He could use the internal mics for the journalism piece and you could worry about the external mics for better quality live music recording later.

It would be a fairly solid foundation on which to build on later if your boyfriend really gets into recording.

i would agree with Jmaye.

Get him an edirol r09

its easy to use
small - size of a pack of cigarettes
GREAT quality
internal mics to make voice recording easy & painless
(they can even be used for music, until he gets some external mics)

[rastasean]

If it helps, think of microphones as shoes:  most of us have -- or at least want -- as many mics as the proverbial woman has shoes.  They all have different qualities and prices and uses, but getting him a pair of Birkenstocks when he needs something from Jimmy Choo may wind up not being the best use of the money.

The more I think about it, the better the analogy gets. Thats slick, thanks.

to the original poster: I have nothing to add other then to reinforce the suggestions already mounted. 

You can also compare it to purses. 

I think you should get him a recorder and link him to this website for all the priceless information available.

[fmaderjr]

The Tascam DR-07 bundle ($199.00) from Sound Professionals would be a good start:

http://www.soundprofessionals.com/cgi-bin/gold/item/TAS-DR-07-BUNDLE

Or get the recorder by itself for $159.00

You can probably get a discount as a taperssection member. Call and ask.

10% discount. Online, look for the box that appears after the choice of shipping methods marked "Coupon/Gift Certificate Code" and fill in "taperssection". Does not apply to sales, however.

[notlance]

"I'm just a listener and I'm totally clueless about all of this stuff but I really want to get him a good set-up."

Since you found this site and you are willing to ask questions indicates that you do, actually, have a clue.  Your BF is a lucky guy.

[Big Perm]

^^^^^^^^^^

right on the money.  he may even be able to settle on one set of mics, but he will need to learn what hes looking for before he invests.

buy him a recorder.  you rock.

ps.  if you do want to buy him mics, i might suggest chris church (church audio).  this guy makes great small mics for the money, and hes easily accessible if theres ever a problem.  you can also get a set of CA's on the cheap from the TS yard sale.  he might be touched that you bought him a recorder, and did some mic research as well....

I have a set of church audio omni (CA-14) i am thinking about selling...pm if interested

[dunebug81]

Oh, most importantly, thanks to you.  Most of us tapers are, well, kinda nerdy -- even though we seem really cool -- and having a SO who 'gets it' is one of the best possible things.

Very true.  I don't know if my wife "gets it" or not but she humors me when we go to a show and if I'm going to tape she puts up with my being anal about getting a particular spot at the show and whatnot.

As for recorder, I'm a HIMD guy and one of the last few of us out there but its a rock solid recorder and I think they RH1 is a touch over $300 but comes with some mics which would be fine for interviews but not so great for taping shows.

[yltfan]

If used gear is ok, it's hard to go wrong with an iriver (120, 140, 320, or 340), a church audio 9100 preamp, and some audio technica 853 mics. You might be able to get all of that for $300 used.

But what everyone else says above is true as well. Starting off with the R-09 and the internal mics is a smart move. I know several tapers with pretty high-end mics who use the R-09 as their main recorder. I've never owned one, but I've used them a bunch, and always been satisfied.

And lastly, if things don't work out with your guy, you wanna marry me? I'd love to have a partner so supportive of my hobby/obsession 

[fmaderjr]

If used gear is ok, it's hard to go wrong with an iriver (120, 140, 320, or 340), a church audio 9100 preamp, and some audio technica 853 mics. You might be able to get all of that for $300 used.

Starting off with the R-09 and the internal mics is a smart move. I know several tapers with pretty high-end mics who use the R-09 as their main recorder.

I agree with everything except the quality R-09's internal mics. They are awful (with the Micsketeer mod from Church Audio it's a different story). I'm not that fussy. I tried them once and it was immediately apparent I was using a mediocre set of mics.

The Tascam DR-07 is probably a better recorder and definitely has better internals.

yltfan-Are your sure your high end friends aren't using the R-09HR as their main recorder? The R-09 needs a good external pre to be part of a great recording system (unless you record only loud stuff).

[taperwheeler]

I definately think a DR-07 would be a great choice.  Very good internals and at Sound Pro's, good price leaving enough leftover for a pair of externals. 

And for what it's worth, gotta send a big shot out to my wife who puts up with me and my taping.  Last night she made the hour plus drive to Worcester.  Had to set up my gear down by the board as it wasn't wheelchair accesable.  She had everything up in no time, settings all dialed in and pulled a good recording.

[jnf505]

Ah, thank you so much for the help guys. I really have a better idea of what to get. The Edirol seems like the best choice for starters. And his birthday is in February, maybe I'll be able to order mics from Church Audio before then. Thanks again for the advice

[yltfan]

If used gear is ok, it's hard to go wrong with an iriver (120, 140, 320, or 340), a church audio 9100 preamp, and some audio technica 853 mics. You might be able to get all of that for $300 used.

Starting off with the R-09 and the internal mics is a smart move. I know several tapers with pretty high-end mics who use the R-09 as their main recorder.

I agree with everything except the quality R-09's internal mics. They are awful (with the Micsketeer mod from Church Audio it's a different story). I'm not that fussy. I tried them once and it was immediately apparent I was using a mediocre set of mics.

The Tascam DR-07 is probably a better recorder and definitely has better internals.

yltfan-Are your sure your high end friends aren't using the R-09HR as their main recorder? The R-09 needs a good external pre to be part of a great recording system (unless you record only loud stuff).

Yes, I'm sure folks use the older R-09, but with an external pre. And I agree on the internal mics. They will do the job, especially for the interview stuff, but they leave much to be desired.

But if you can find the Tascam or Sony for a good price, and other folks here give them thumbs up, go for it.

[stevetoney]

Given that this girl said she is clueless about this stuff...taperssection has just proceeded to confuse the living shit out of her! 

If you do come back and read this far, you should know that all of these recorders that have been suggested have essentially the same feature set and mostly function the same as any of the other recorders.  The differences between them are subtle. 

FWIW, the only other thing I'd add to what's already been said is that, since you already know that you're BF is gonna be using external mics for everything but his journalism, I wouldn't base any decision on the quality of the internal mics on a recorder.  Any of the products that have been suggested will work totally fine for recording interviews. 

Since you've stated that he's gonna be recording music with external mics, the comments regarding the quality of the internal mics are irrelevant.

[acidjack]

Ah, thank you so much for the help guys. I really have a better idea of what to get. The Edirol seems like the best choice for starters. And his birthday is in February, maybe I'll be able to order mics from Church Audio before then. Thanks again for the advice

One thing to note: If you are ordering from Church Audio leave a LOT of lead time. It is handmade gear and, depending on Chris' workload, it will take time.  If you are really sure you want to go that route, you ought to consider ordering now for a February birthday.  I'm sure with the holiday season and all, Chris will be busy.

[vanark]

The Tascam DR-07 bundle ($199.00) from Sound Professionals would be a good start:

http://www.soundprofessionals.com/cgi-bin/gold/item/TAS-DR-07-BUNDLE

Or get the recorder by itself for $159.00

You can probably get a discount as a taperssection member. Call and ask.

The Church-Audio mics and preamps can't be beat for the price (or much higher prices, really). But Christmas would have to come late for this gear. Chris Church has ads in the retail space of this forum. It takes a while, but it's good stuff.

The DR-07 recorder is on special today at soundprofessionals.com - $129, plus all sorts of bundles with mics that are very low priced as well.

http://www.soundprofessionals.com/cgi-bin/gold/item/TAS-DR-07

I don't want to confuse the situation at all.  I have an Edirol R-09 so Edirol would be a good choice as well.