Taperssection.com
Gear / Technical Help => Ask The Tapers => Topic started by: nicksowers on March 29, 2004, 07:50:41 PM
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Hey Tapers,
I'm planning on buying a JB3 for my trip to North Africa to record the sounds of markets and calls to prayer etc--My question is what mic should I get? I guess I need an internally powered, omni-directional mic. But I will be recording in lots of different environments, and I want to stealth it, as you guys say.
I will be doing some long sequences where I move from very quiet streets to booming crazy markets. Can the JB3 adjust the levels on the fly? Can I get a mic that records both soft, subtle noises and relatively loud noises?
Finally, what I can expect for battery life while recording?
Thanks guys.
-Nick
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PS: My budget SUCKS. I have $250, so basically less than 70 for the mic(s).
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I can't answer the mic question, but I will suggest that you look at www.soundprofessionals.com . A specific model I cannot suggest, but someone else may be able to. $70 is going to be a tough price point.
AFAIK, the JB3 can adjust on the fly. You can expect around 3 hours per battery for recording I do believe.
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don't just go and get the omni Radio shack mics. they work well in low DB situations, but anything above a loud talking voice, and they sound like ass... good luck man. check soundpro.
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http://www.minidisco.com/dt-1k.html
there ya go
make sure you burn me a disc
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these are GREAT for this type of thing (so i hear ... sample links at the bottom) http://www.soundprofessionals.com/cgi-bin/gold/category.cgi?category=110&item=SP-TFB-2&type=store (you definately want the High Sensitivity version) ... if you can dig up some extra $$ a battery box would be nice, but they will work fine w/o it. I too would love to hear some of your recordings, perhaps you would be so kind as to upload them to archive.org?
-Aaron
Sample links (they goto pages, not mp3s ... so you can choose which suject you want to sample)
http://www.archive.org/audio/audio-details-db.php?collectionid=jhammons2003-09-03_NatureLetterA.mp3f&collection=opensource_audio
http://www.archive.org/audio/audio-details-db.php?collectionid=jhammons2004-02-05-Suburban_Vacation_3.mp3f&collection=opensource_audio
http://www.archive.org/audio/audio-details-db.php?collectionid=jhammons2003-04-10.toadstest.mp3f&collection=opensource_audio
http://www.archive.org/audio/audio-details-db.php?collectionid=jhammons2003-10-11_I_Walk_Around_The_Bay_FE.mp3f&collection=opensource_audio
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The dt-1k omni-stereo looks like it would be difficult to conceal. I would probably need to pin that thing in an obvious place in order to get good sound. SoundPro's SB-TFP-2 binaural mic looks more like what I need. I don't know if I'd wear them in the ear, but maybe hooked into my hair might work better.
BUT... these mics don't seem to be internally powered. Won't I have a really weak signal when I plug it into the Line-in on the jb3? I really don't have the sixty bucks for the battery box... that's like a week's worth of hostels in Morocco.
Thanks for your help so far, and I DEFINITELY plan to post my recordings online.
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A microphone will not work if you plug it into the line in of a JB3, it will need a battery box to bring it up to line level.
These (http://www.giant-squid-audio-lab.com/gs/gs-poweredbattery1.htm) will work on the cheap, but if you can swing the SoundPro binaurals and a battery box, those would be even better.
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I've heard something about the mic-in on the JB3 sounding noisy because of the hard-drive. Is this really true, or is it just picky ears that must have perfect audio? I mean if I'm trying to record an nearly-silent moment and you can hear a droning sound or something that's not cool.
Will this be the case, going directly to mic-in? Basically I'm trying to avoid buying a powered mic or a battery module.
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Why not get a pair of Giant Squids for $90?
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its a fine line between the giant squids and th SPs:
SPs : Much better mic, but alos more expensive, So you'll end up using the shitty mic pre / mic power in the jb3
Giant Squids : lower quality mics ... but they come with power.
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Aaron, I've listened to some of those SP-recorded samples from archive.org and I'm sold on getting SP mics. I guess I'm going to double my mic budget so I can buy the batt. box, and make up for the cost later. I have a feeling I won't regret it.
So the NEW QUESTION: which SoundPro mics? I like the wearable gooseneck design ($89), but how are the standard high sensitivity AT omni's that come with it? It seems that I could get the same quality mic in the SP-BMC-2's (with no attachment options) for $49. forty extra bucks just for the gooseneck mount?
But if I'm going to spend $89, I may as well step up and get the BMC-12's (AT350) with clips for $99, right? Hmmmm.... this stuff is damn addictive. I can see why you guys are so intense.
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I just talked to the Soundpro guys, and they've informed me that I now need a PRE-AMP to boost my low-dynamics into the line-in. Is this true? Will the battery box not suffice for those quiet sounds?
Suddenly my little budget affair is exploding out of control.
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GSB
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sorry, GSB means what?
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How is SP's battery module + gain-selectable pre-amp? For $169 can I do any better than that?
I find it humorous that I started out saying my budget was $250 for the whole rig, and now I'm putting out $250 just for basic mics, power, and pre-amp. What kind of demented hobby is this anyway?
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I don't think the preamp will be necissary. The gain from my MD deck Line In was more than enough to make solid recordings. I think the preamp would just add more noise.
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But what about recording soft sounds? Let's say I want to pick up the sound of feet shuffling on a street around the corner. Is it really going to suffice, even with high sensitivity (-35db) mics and battery mod, to go straight into line-in? Please advise ;D
What I've read so far on NJB3Tapers Yahoo group leads me to believe I need a pre-amp. But if they're wrong, let me know, as this would obviously save me much needed cash. Cash I would maybe put towards CMC-4 omni's, which seem to be popular.
My newbie rig is going to look like: SP-BMC-12>SP-PREAMP>JB3 for a grand total of $480, shipped.
p.s. Is it a significant difference (to the aspiring audiophile) in signal noise ratio b/t 60db and 65db or 67db? Worth spending $40 more to get BMC-6's w/clips? Worth spending $80 more to get CMC-4's w/clips? Are these questions impossible to answer?