Topic: Hello! A complete taping n00b here...help please?

[JimJam]

I know what SBD, AUD, and FOB are...but i really dont know what a DAT machine is all about...is DSBD different than SBD...is a matrix simply SBD + AUD?

I want to become a taper!!!!

i read : http://www.taperssection.com/yabbse/index.php?board=14;action=display;threadid=4237 , but it only confused me more. this makes sense:

Remember - there are 5 functions required for digital audience recording:

[1]  mics
[2]  power to the mics
[3]  gain
[4]  analog-to-digital converter (ADC)
[5]  storage device


but whats a  polar pattern cap?? That little intro REALLY confused me...help please 

[twatts (pants are so over-rated...)]

Welcome,

Glad you found the FAQ...

To answer your few questions above:

DAT = Digital Audio Tape, the digital version of your cassette walkman, uses smaller DAT tapes.  Preferred, though slowly going extinct, recording device.  The most popular are:  Sony D7, D8, D100, M1 and the Tascam DA-P1.  Lots of other kinds of DATs outh there too.

DSBD vs. SBD = DSBD is a shortened version of SBD>DAT.  I have yet to encounter a true digital soundboard at a venue.  In a sense, all SBDs are DSBDs, unless they are SBD>analog recorder, in which case, they could be labeled as ASBD, though no one ever does...

Matrix = SBD + AUD

Polar Patterns = Changing the microphone cap on some mics changes the way it records, or rather changes the field from whcih the recording is made.  OMNI, as the name sounds, records in all directions.  CARDIOID records in front, HYPERs focus in on the front, etc. etc.  Some mics require you to change the capsule to change the configuration of the mic.  Others have all (or some) built in and all you do is flip a switch.  Some mics are only one config (like mine). 

If you live near a taper, or are friends with one, I'd ask them first - only because they are available to you faster and more conveniently than here.

But ask us and we'll try to answer!

Terry

[Fatah Ruark (aka MIKE B)]

I know what SBD, AUD, and FOB are...but i really dont know what a DAT machine is all about...is DSBD different than SBD...is a matrix simply SBD + AUD?

I want to become a taper!!!!

i read : http://www.taperssection.com/yabbse/index.php?board=14;action=display;threadid=4237 , but it only confused me more. this makes sense:

Remember - there are 5 functions required for digital audience recording:

[1]  mics
[2]  power to the mics
[3]  gain
[4]  analog-to-digital converter (ADC)
[5]  storage device


but whats a  polar pattern cap?? That little intro REALLY confused me...help please 

1.  A DAT machine is a digital tape recorder. No need to worry about them. You're better off buying a Creative Nomad Jukebox 3 (make sure it's a 3, not 2 or anything else). It's cheap. You can find one on eBay. Better buy one quick though. They have been discontinued.
2. DSBD= Digital Soundboard (refering to a recording made digitally from the soundboard). SBD is just a soundboard recording. The difference was important back when some people were still using analog cassettes to record shows.
3. Yep, Matrix is usually SBD+MICS.
4. Microphones sometimes have different capsules. This makes it possible to record different "polar pattens." There are many types of patterns but the most common are Hyper (picks up mostly sound in the direction of the mic), Card (picks up mostly the direction the mic is pointing but also a little from behind), and Omni (picks up 360 degrees around the mic). There is some good info on mics here:
http://www.oade.com/Tapers_Section/faq-mic.html

Hopefully that helps. Keep reading A LOT!! Also once you actually start taping you'll pick up a lot more. The number one step is to buy a recorder and a variety of cables to patch out of other tapers.

Good luck,
MIKE B