Settings on my Sony PCM-M10?

[Nielsen81]

Hi guys.

I just recently got a Sony PCM-M10, a UBB and a pair of CA-14 Cardio mics.
I wanted to test the equipment before going to concerts in a few months from now, so I went to see a friend and his band rehearse in this small room.
When I get home to listen to the recorded songs, I find it full of distortion and the sound is very low.

I have set the PCM to "Low mic sensivity", I tried to record with different volume settings ranging from 3-8 (max is 10). The mics was plugged into the UBB which was then plugged into "Line in", and "Record level" was on manual.

So what am I doing wrong?
Anything/any settings I'm missing?

Regards
Glenn

[nulldogmas]

That's very strange — that's the exact setup I use, and I've never been able to get anywhere near to clipping when going Line In.

What were the M10 meters reading when you were recording? Were the green or red lights coming on? Can you share a sample of the resulting recording?

[beatkilla]

I dont think the line input is affected by the mic ,low or high settings.......also it is possible that your connector was not fully inserted into the m10 and therefore you may actually have been using the m10 built in mics.That happened to me before actually thata why i mention it.There may be a small last tiny bit of extra push to be fully inserted.Or your battery in the Ubb was dead?

[dabbler]

also it is possible that your connector was not fully inserted into the m10

This.  Whenever you think you've plugged everything in and mounted your mics: always snap your fingers, blow, or tap each mic to make sure your meters move accordingly.

[Nielsen81]

Hi again

The meter showed me -30 db (if that's what you mean), when they played, but the dropped some Dbs and of sometimes showed me nothing. That last part could be when I tried different recording volumes, to find the best level.
But no lights were coming on during recording.

I just tried to tap on the mics, and the react fine, so nothing should be wrong there, but will try a different battery next time I go see them (which might be next wednesday).

Nulldogmas: I'll send you a link to Dropbox

[earmonger]

When the battery-box battery is dying you get very bad distortion although the level meter looks low or normal. So I'd guess it's the UBB battery.

Still, test the mics into mic-in with your voice or your stereo to make sure there's no problem with them. And yes, make sure everything is plugged in securely.

I've used CA-14 and CA-11-->battery box-->Line-in on my PCM-M10 and my setting at a loud concert is usually between 6 and 8.

[nulldogmas]

I listened to the recording sample that Nielsen81 sent, and it sounds okay at the beginning, then the levels drop and the distortion rises. In other words, exactly what you'd expect from a dying battery box battery.

[rockphantom]

I dont think the line input is affected by the mic ,low or high settings.......also it is possible that your connector was not fully inserted into the m10 and therefore you may actually have been using the m10 built in mics.That happened to me before actually thata why i mention it.There may be a small last tiny bit of extra push to be fully inserted.Or your battery in the Ubb was dead?

This is correct according to the M10's Manual:

Page 43:

"You can set the sensitivity of the built-in
microphones and an external microphone
connected to the microphone jack of
the PCM recorder. Switch the MIC
SENS(ATT) switch according to the
recording conditions or to suit your
purposes, when the PCM recorder is either
stopped or is recording.

* The microphone sensitivity is set to "HI" when
you purchase the PCM recorder."