johnty

mmm. good to see you guys here feels weird when i instinctively type in the url (never have it bookmarked) out of habit, only to be greeted by the non-yellowness of an error page.

the problem with mic clipping can be solved through the use of a battery box. for really loud stuff you'd plug in the mic into the battery box, and then the output of the battery box into the line-input of the MD recorder. even the mic on that ebay link you sent will likely clip at higher volumes. hit a search on ebay for 'battery box' and see what you get. they usually take 9V cells.

goto amazon.com and hit a search for ex-51. the white ones are on sale for $22 right now. and they happen to be the LP version, which means they're symmetrical!

you can't have both mono AND LP2. its one or the other. Since LP2 and MONO will give you the same recording time, why not go with MONO since its one channel of SP quality instead of two (identical, based on your mic) channels of extra comppression. go with manual recording levels and make sure it doesn't go over the top. you'll probably be at less than 1/2 volume. (oh and do know that the volume control during recording sets the monitoring level and not the recording level - i think its FF and RW for the actual recording level, once you have it set to manual levels) you can adjust the recording volume as you record if you like, but don't do it too much.

don't use auto levels EVER... unless its for voice.... the best way is to try a few settings, and see what happens. make note of what level you used, and listen to the results. you'll get it after a few times. another way would be to get a batt box that will increase the dynamic handling of the mics. but that requires more $$.

i'd rather not use auto levels, even when you cannot adjust the volume as the recording goes along. what you'll need to do is record and get used to what kind of setting requires what kind of levels. set a certain level and see what happens. if it distorts tone down, if its too soft bring it up a notch. with auto levels you'll often get distortion on loud sounds, and high noise on softer sounds. it doesn't take too long to figure out roughly what level to use in a certain situation for a particular repertoire. on any recorder, i'm sure you can set it to display RecRemain without stopping... if Sony, not known for their live recording capability, can do it, I'm sure Sharp can too. What I find useful is to plan out the recording - you usually know how long you'll be recording for, so you have a rough idea of when (if) you have to change discs etc. Whatever you do, don't let the recording distract you from the actual rehearsal!

unfortunately digital audio data from the ps2 is copy protected and cannot be copied digitally (unless you have an SCMS stripper that removes the copy protect bits). The easiest way is to do it using analog - hook up an RCA to stereo mini cable from the audio out on the ps2 to the line-in of the MD.

a bass cut is worth a try, although that will not remove the distortion. the best thing to do is to use a batt box with bass roll-off next time. post-rec editing is just for small tweaks - no miracles there.

two points: 1.) A self-powered mic plugging into the line-in will work. The 610 doesn't have a mic preamp so you can't just plug in any microphone into the line-in (thats why some people say you can't do live recordings with this unit). However a powered mic will work in the line-in. This will probably be the cheapest option if you can find a simple powered mic. However for better quality (or louder sounds) I'd try use a batt box + mic combo. 2.) You can actually control the recording levels on recent Sony portables. You just have to set it before you start the recording. (Put it into pause-rec mode - hold pause and press record, and then go through the menu for recVolume and select manual. After this FF and RW will be +/- for the recording volume. The normal volume control is the monitoring volume and doesn't affect how loud the recording is). When you press stop the manual recording volume will be reset - so you may want to keep it in pause-rec mode (pause instead of stop), or remember to set it the next time you start recording.

oh good its not just me then... wonder whats wrong with it

not quite true. NetMD has a 'fake' SP option, which encodes LP2 as a SP track so older SP only units can read it. The quality of the track will be LP2, but it'll read as SP by the player. This fake SP option is not available in Simple Burner, however.

You can't transfer in SP - the SP mode is actually fakeSP, it's LP2 disguised as SP, so that non-MDLP players can read it. sorry to burst your bubble.

I would just try and see. For starters, (and depending on the listening equipment,) many people cannot hear the difference between LP2 and SP. Then, as the previous post mentioned, it also depends on the mic you use.

to be safe i'd go with AA's. however, it mostly depends on how long you need to record for. for shorter periods of time the gumpack should do - provided it's still alive.

pretty much the same. a mic that is 'designed' for minidisc will require lower power to operate, which is suited for the weak preamp of the MD, but most cosumer-grade mics should work. for recording lectures, just get the cheapest mic you can find at your local electronics store.