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Best MP3 Line in recorder
Hey everyone I'm looking for a recorder to use with my mics and power module that I bought a while back for the chicago gig on October 30th. I used the mics and power module with a Transcend T.sonic 630 and, i don't know if anyone remembers, but the entire recording was all skippy. So does anyone have any suggestions for a small MP3 line in recorder that wont be a problem getting in and that actually records without skips. Thanks A Lot Scott
I'm not used to mp3 recorders, sorry for my curiosity but will you tape the Chicago show on Aug. 14th? I will tape the show with Nates h2, the h2 lossless recorder rules. I taped both NYC shows with it and the quality came out pretty good. rock on
I am selling a Tascam DR-1 and Sound Professionals SP-BMC Binaural mic rig on e-bay right now. it is an un-used rig due to the fact that I had gone out and bought another set-up and got the DR-1 for my Birthday. Unfortunately I can't get there from here at work. I am selling the whole rig for $250 or whoever gets high bid. If you are interested, PM me. and I will send you the link when I get home or I can add a post here with the link for all to see.
the problem is that I'm getting dropped off so if they dont allow it then i cant return it to the car as it wont be there
and DirtyEye, I will tape if I can get the gear and get it in, i might even videotape a couple of songs.
I've only used an h2. The cost of the Zoom H2 that I have (& Dirty Eye will be using) should be under $200 now. I've heard irivers can record mp3's, so that may be a cheaper alternative. I'm no expert though. I only looked at the Zoom products (H2 & H4) before getting mine. I'd get external mics from Church Audio (found on ebay) as I've heard they are pretty good.
I was going to suggest the Olympus ds-30 voice recorder as an option well under $100, but then I remembered that it records in windows media audio (.wma) and not mp3. It can record at 128kbps which is lossy, but the compression is not too bad. At 128kbps it will record for almost 4 hours with its internal memory. It is pretty slim (easy to get in to the show) and it uses 2 AAA batteries which means you don't have to worry about battery life. I got mine for about $65 with shipping on eBay. I think that you can get comparable stuff that will record mp3s from Panasonic or Sony, but if you're going to jump up that much in price, you might as well get the Zoom for $150 on eBay. If you are really interested in the Olympus, let me know, and I will upload a track from the December 4 Oakland show last year when I get a chance. The only reason I never split tracks or remastered my recording is that another recording surfaced which was far superior to anything that I could have done with mine. Any mp3 recorder without a line-in will not be able to handle the volume of an AC/DC concert (irivers fall into this category). Even if your recorder has a line-in, it may not be able to handle the volume. If the amount of volume you input is too much for your recorder, the whole input gets overloaded and occasionally stops functioning, resulting in the "skippy" problem. Before doing anything else you might want to try your current set-up with the MAudio MicroTrack 10dB Pad. You can get it on Amazon for about $23 with shipping. It will cut down on the volume you input before it gets to the recorder. Buy this, and then get into a car and shut the doors/roll up the windows and blast some AC/DC as loud as you can and record it. I tested a lot of mp3 recorders and this was the method I used. The reason I went with the Olympus is that I wanted to record the rehearsal gig and I was flying to the show in Pennsylvania from California. I didn't know how easy it was going to be to get a recorder in. I didn't want to spend $200 on a Zoom and then have it confiscated, or worse yet, have them tell me I had to leave the show altogether. Also, I had to tell my wife that I was spending $600 to fly across the country to see AC/DC while she and our 6 month old daughter stayed home, so she was not interested in hearing about any "toys" that I wanted to buy. I ended up actually recording the show on the wrong setting and it was only 32kbps. Now I can't afford a Zoom, but I still take the Olympus to shows to make sure that there is going to be at least one decent recording in circulation. Hope this helps! Good luck.
-erudite Could you please post those sound clips. Will I need the M Audio MicroTrack 10dB Pad if I already have this: http://www.soundprofessionals.com/cgi-bin/gold/item/SP-SPSB-10 I thought that that was a higher quality alternative, but I am probably wrong. And, like you, I am also a bit worried about it being confiscated. The Olympus sounds fine with me but I wouldnt have a problem with a higher quality one. Then again maybe the problem is that it is getting overloaded and all I need is that M Audio MicroTrack 10dB Pad. If that isnt the problem then I will have to get a new recorder. I dont know if these could be the problem but here are the mics I have. http://www.soundprofessionals.com/cgi-bin/gold/item/ISI-REM-1 -Nate I have considered the Zoom's its just that I'm a bit worried about getting one of those into the arena. That and I'm on a bit of a budget as I am getting this too for video http://www.amazon.com/Canon-PowerShot-SD780IS12-1-Stabilized-Black/dp/B001SER47Y
I'd recommend trying the 10db pad. Here is a link to couple of tracks from December 4th from my voice recorder. These are raw and unedited and also from before I got the 10db pad so it is exactly what you could expect from the Olympus DS-30. We had planned to do a remaster, but like I said, there is already a better version in wide circulation. Thunderstruck and Black Ice Oakland 120408
I just remembered that I accidentally left the battery module in the car. So that might have allowed the MP3 to overload and skip which means that I dont have any problems with what I have now?
I don't think the battery module has anything to do with it. I think that your recorder simply can't process anything that loud. Most mp3 recorders are not meant for anything more than recording a lecture or conversation, certainly not a rock concert. The recording I posted was made with the stereo mic that comes with the recorder.
does the olympus have a line in so I can use the pad with my mics?