On 8/31/2007, 11:42:22 AM EDT, Byron sputtered: > what setting do you use when you record?
With external mics, usually mid-attenuation with the preamp jacked up a few DB, maybe from it's default 101 to about 109 on each side. I normally don't use the internals much, unless I need to "start recording right now!" and have no time to monitor or setup externals. I pretty much leave the internal attenuator on mid. Low wouldn't be a bad idea if you're in a moving box with lots of SPL, though. Given that, they are still the nicest internals I've seen on anything thus far. Definitely a huge improvement over the Edirol R1's internal mics, even though they are closer together. It's all about the cardioid pick-up pattern! Given the above settings for external mics, if something really scary/loud occurs, I can always drop to low attenuation (which is kind of a misnomer given that the lower settings are more attenuated, of course), and still have a pretty good signal-to-noise ratio before it starts hitting quantization territory. This is actually a problem with the H4 since the preamp is so clean. You can easily hit levels in quiet situations, while recording in 16-bit, where bits will start getting truncated. So, of course, the best option is to record with some headroom and a good SNR, then squeeze what you can out of it in post-production. Borris likes Sound Forge's wave hammer for this. Keep your recordings as close to nominal without clipping on the input stage, then have some post-production fun. P.S. the Sound Professionals phantom to plugin power converter is crap. It technically does what it's supposed to, supplying the right amount of plugin power to the mics when driven with 24 or 48-volts, but the impedance is all wrong for most, if not all plugin-powered mics. This is probably not completely the boxes fault. So, when using external mics, in my case, the awesome Wizzzoelliam modified WM61 panasonics, I use them in conjunction with a Giant Squid battery box with a locking power switch, and a 1/8 to 2 1/4 converter that fits rather seamlessly onto the bottom of the Zoom. I really should just cut the nuetrik off of the battery box, and put some equivalent 1/4 outputs on it, but this is easier for now. I'll bet an Audio Technica AT-822 would be a good single-point match for that recorder, if you want to use that style of mic. I don't have one to test, though, and for what little I practically do with my setup, given that I usually can't justify what I already have, spending another $249 on something I won't use all that much is... well... yeah. But, having said that, I'll probably do it anyway at some point, since I usually do anyway. -- -- Patrick Perdue (MCP, CNA) KE4DYI Greensboro, NC website: http://www.pdaudio.net home: +1(336)698-4417 Mobile phone and SMS: +1(336)509-5583 e-mail and .net messenger: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> aim: noaptiva This message originally sent in reply to [EMAIL PROTECTED] on Friday, August 31, 2007 at 12:30 PM EST. Did you miss a message? Well, don't. http://www.mail-archive.com/talk2%40andrelouis.com/ has it for you. Never miss a Talk2 message again.
