Topic: Practicing Your Stealth

[mosquito]

I've only gone stealth once or twice and that was a long, long time ago and I was not impressed with what I got out of it.  Now, whenever I change something with my open taping rig, I'll test it out and / or practice what I'm doing at home so I can do whatever without having to think about it much and get some decent stuff.  But I still wonder about stealth from time to time.  I would verify things looked good and were workable at home, but I'd also wonder about practicing getting a recording in and around crowds. 

Does anyone do this?  Where?  Tips and suggestions?  The best I'm coming up with right now are going to the movies or maybe a mall or the subway.

 

[nathan_g]

Try your local bars/clubs with live music and a cheap cover.

[yousef]

I certainly wouldn't be messing around with wiring and electronics in a public place where you could be seen on CCTV - you might find yourself in more trouble than you would if busted for trying to tape a gig...

I suspect that the best place to practice is at home, with the lights out or your eyes closed. Once you can plug everything in, hit record and hit the hold mode without looking down, you're good to go.

[RobC]

best place for practicing stealth recording is at an "open taping" show

if you screw it up hopefully another taper gets it
and you don't have to worry about getting tossed out of the show

[stevetoney]

While I don't disagree with some of the comments, the best advice to me is practice in the dark.  Closing your eyes...it's too tempting to open them.  I used to stealth 100% of my shows when I used a D8.  I practiced in the dark a number of times and got to where I knew where all of the buttons were instinctively and never needed to even look at my recorder.

After getting REALLY good, I didn't even need to look at the D8 to set my levels because I could dial my levels up from zero...I knew that zero was at maybe 7pm and 50% was at 12 noon...so all I had to do was twist the level control knob to the proper setting for the volume of the show...and I knew that my levels were gonna be close.  Probably can't do that with digital recorders, but you get the point.

[Scooter123]

Tone Deaf is right on.

--Be able to pull the recorder out of your pocket, in total darkness,  unlock it, start the recording, and lock it. 

--Be able to connect mikes to preamps and preamps to the recorder, again in the dark. 

--Be able to rig up in about 2 minutes in a bathroom stall with a minimum of equipment and gear bag. 

--Being able to judge the volume based on your ears, and get the settings right for your rig.  This will take 10-15 shows.  Do it at home in front of the stereo if you have understanding neighbors. 

--Being able to shut off the recorder and restart it between sets so that the file splits right.  Again in the dark. 

Bear in mind that many times concert ushers may be standing right on top of you, so you have to be able to do all this with the recorder in your lap, you staring straight ahead, and the recorder covered up with a newspaper, magazine, or coat. 

[stevetoney]

--Being able to judge the volume based on your ears, and get the settings right for your rig.  This will take 10-15 shows.  Do it at home in front of the stereo if you have understanding neighbors. 

This is where 24 bit is a savior.  If you know your settings are somewhere near -20db, you have so much lee-way that you probably never have to worry about getting levels perfect because with 24bit you can add all kinds of gain and still have a nice sounding recording.  Yeah, I know some people will say that you're also amping your noise floor, but for loud shows which is what most of us record, you never hear it.

[nathan_g]

If your recorder can run 24bit and you have a large enough CF,SDHC or whatever card then just start recording before you even walk in the venue. Set levels and forget it. Seems like I'm always pretty close to the front and almost always in range of event staff...it's a curse. Either way, I don't dare break out the recorder during a show...too many pretty lights to draw unwanted attention.

[dean]

Tone Deaf is right on.

--Be able to pull the recorder out of your pocket, in total darkness,  unlock it, start the recording, and lock it. 

--Be able to connect mikes to preamps and preamps to the recorder, again in the dark. 

--Be able to rig up in about 2 minutes in a bathroom stall with a minimum of equipment and gear bag. 

--Being able to judge the volume based on your ears, and get the settings right for your rig.  This will take 10-15 shows.  Do it at home in front of the stereo if you have understanding neighbors. 

--Being able to shut off the recorder and restart it between sets so that the file splits right.  Again in the dark. 

Bear in mind that many times concert ushers may be standing right on top of you, so you have to be able to do all this with the recorder in your lap, you staring straight ahead, and the recorder covered up with a newspaper, magazine, or coat.

Yep.  Also be very careful how much you talk about it here and elsewhere. 

[Belexes]

If your concert neighbors can see and knows what you are doing, you need more practice.  I've got it down so that no one has any idea what I am up to. 

[page]

I agree with the above, also, once you want to go out in the field. I recomend trying your jedi mindtricks for gaining entrance at venues that arn't where you live. It sucks to get busted and then become marked at that venue. It probably won't happen at a large metro area, but in smaller places it's a real possibility.

[sml42]

If your recorder can run 24bit and you have a large enough CF,SDHC or whatever card then just start recording before you even walk in the venue.

unless of course you're not confident the battery will last.

and also assuming your recorder splits long recordings seamlessly.

mt2496 falls at both these hurdles. maybe it's time for me to upgrade

[dave570]

There are so many people who have cell phones and cameras that "light up" at shows now that a glowing recorder fits in fine. And if you have a recorder that is small enough to fit into a cell phone holder, its less stressful. Finally, I always put on the HOLD button after I start taping because I know I will turn it off by mistake if I don't.

[stevetoney]

^^ While this is true, I think even your average pimp-bouncer can see the difference between how a person uses/holds their cell phone with someone that's checking levels.  If they happen to be looking for recorders, the lights will still be a beacon that calls attention to one-self.

[edtyre]

Before i had experience i used to rig up when i went to the movies. Got to play around in the dark and
experiment with mic placement as well. When it was for real, i made less newbie errors.
Also helps to have a taping mentor, i was lucky to have a few.