Topic: Newb Question..Help Needed

[LastJoyRide]

Hello all,

I've been going to concerts for a long time and have decided to start taping. I am going to see Tom Petty soon this summer and have decided to make that my first show to record. I have a portable digital recorder and have been looking for a good mic. I don't think Tom allows tapers at his shows so I was going to get a lapel mic so I could go undercover. There are two mics I've been checking out and I'm not sure which one to go with.
My considerations are:
   
Audio Technica ATR-3350 Lavalier Omnidirectional​ Condenser Microphone

Olympus ME-52W Noise Canceling Microphone

Which one would be the best? Or any other suggestions would be appreciated. Also, if anyone has any covert op recording tips they'd be greatly appreciated! Look forward to your answers.

[fmaderjr]

Wow! Given the 2 mics you are considering, I hope you didn't buy a recorder designed for voice. Forget those 2. Mics are the most important part of the signal chain, given at least a decent recorder.

To get useful feedback from members here, you will need to tell us the digital recorder you bought and what your price range for mics is. If you do have a decent recorder, I'd recommend a Church Audio Mic and you'll probably need a battery box to power it (though a small preamp is even better). That could set you back $200 or more with shipping, unless you can buy used from the yardsale. You'd get the gear a lot faster buying used as well.

I don't record much in stadiums so I'll leave it to others to recommend whether you should use cardiods or omnis. They would need to know what the venue you'll be taping in is like and where you'll be sitting to give an informed answer.

[admkrk]

you will need to tell us the digital recorder you bought

sorry but a bit bucket is a bit bucket.  i think it's safe to assume that pp isn't going to be available. so that narrows it down to mics and a bb. i don't run that way so i'll step aside now.

[Brian Skalinder]

sorry but a bit bucket is a bit bucket.

That's true when we're talking about a recorder that simply stores 0s and 1s from a digital stream.  If it's reliable, it's no different than any other bit-bucket.

But a recorder that's run analog-in is far more than just a bit-bucket . It's analog stages and ADC are involved, and some recorders are far better than others in this regard.  Depending on the particular recorder, mics + battery box might suffice.  Alternatively, perhaps preamp + battery box would be best if the recorder has a particularly poor analog gain stage.

At any rate, more information will enable TSers to provide better feedback.  So, first things first:

Tells us what gear you have already (i.e. what recorder do you have)?
What's your budget?
What's your timeline (when is "soon")?

[fmaderjr]

you will need to tell us the digital recorder you bought

sorry but a bit bucket is a bit bucket.  i think it's safe to assume that pp isn't going to be available. so that narrows it down to mics and a bb. i don't run that way so i'll step aside now.

What?

Sorry but I'm with Brian. I don't see anything in his post that indicates he's looking for a bit bucket or that plug in power wouldn't be available if he got a mic that would run on it. I'm totally confused by your post.

However, it is true that a battery box may be called for to provide adequate power to the mics even if plug in power is available, depending on what mics are selected.

[admkrk]

my bad, i've always used a preamp so didn't consider that a mic/bb combo is an analog input to the recorder. 

[Big Perm]

Dont know what recorder you have, but Church Audio mics are small, inexpensive as far as mics go and sound great...I recommend FOR SURE especially if your taping in situations that are less than perfect. (low pro)  I would pair this with the CA-9100 pre amp and then into your recorder.  This is GREAT first set up.  I just set my buddy up with this and he loves it and is pulling some nice tapes!
good luck!
a



**shameless plug, i have a pair of CA-14 omni for sale now in the YS 
  only selling these mics because i have gone CMR 

[stevetoney]

I'd respond with my 2 cents, but the OP posted this question and hasn't been back to the site since within 5 hours after he initially registered.