Problem With Recording On My New Nh1

[secretgunner]

Ello ello

I have just bought a nice new Sony Nh1 for recording with. Alas, I have a problem already. When recording, the sound seemingly only appears to record in mono, not stereo, and plays only out of one earphone instead of both.

I'm wondering whether anyoyne can help diagnose whether its a problem with;

a) My Hi-Md

My Shure SM57 mic

c) My Mic wire

Or am I just wrong in thinking my mic can record in stereo?

I'd love some help.

Thanksssssssssssssss

[dex Otaku]

An SM57 is a balanced monaural dynamic stage mic. I have usually reserved these for close-mic'ing guitar amps and drums [mostly toms] or other instruments whose voice is limited primarily to the midrange. In a pinch I've used them for vocals [what they were designed for in the 1960s when they were new - I have footage of The Doors using SM57s, heh], but I wouldn't recommend one for general use in any case - their response curve is fairly severe [limited] compared even to microphones that cost half as much.

Chances are, if you're getting the recording in one channel only, it's your cabling. Proper cabling to connect a balanced mic like an SM57 to an MD or HiMD recorder would adapt from its balanced XLR end, splitting the signal to both the mic preamp's input channels. A straight XLR to 1/4" balanced cable with a 1/4" to 3.5mm adapter will cause the problem you're experiencing.

In the case that you have proper cabling, you can test whether it's your recorder's headphone output by listening to something else on it, of course. You can also test whether it's the mic input by using a stereo microphone made for 3.5mm connection.

[1kyle]

Ello ello

I have just bought a nice new Sony Nh1 for recording with. Alas, I have a problem already. When recording, the sound seemingly only appears to record in mono, not stereo, and plays only out of one earphone instead of both.

I'm wondering whether anyoyne can help diagnose whether its a problem with;

a) My Hi-Md

My Shure SM57 mic

c) My Mic wire

Or am I just wrong in thinking my mic can record in stereo?

I'd love some help.

Thanksssssssssssssss

←

No prob with the HI-MD unit

--Might be the Mike --or even the connection between Mike and unit might not be good / tight either.

I don't know about your Mike -- I'm using the Sony ECM-719 with no probs whatsoever (it's the electret version with an internal battery) --Brilliant and unobtrusive piece of gear.

The NH1 IMO is still better than the newer units (apart from the small display).

Cheers

-K

[secretgunner]

Hello again

Thanks for the replies.

dex Otaku, i'm unsure what you are saying about what my setup should actually be.

I have ...

Shure SM57---- Female XLR to male 1/4" ---- 1/4" to 1/8" adapter --- HiMD NH1

I asked a freind of mine earlier and he said something about having 2 lines on things to signify stereo or something. My 1/4 to 1/8 adapter has these lines, but my cable doesn't, is that the problem?

Thanks again for anyones time.

[dex Otaku]

Shure SM57---- Female XLR to male 1/4" ---- 1/4" to 1/8" adapter --- HiMD NH1

I asked a freind of mine earlier and he said something about having 2 lines on things to signify stereo or something.  My 1/4 to 1/8 adapter has these lines, but my cable doesn't, is that the problem?

No. Your friend is part-correct on the stereo thing, but there's a caveat to that terminology as I'll point out.

What you need is a cable that goes directly from XLR to "stereo" [dual mono] 3.5mm.

What you appear to have is cabling that goes from XLR to mono [tip-sleeve, or TS]1/4", adapted to stereo [tip-ring-sleeve, or TRS] 3.5mm. The end result of going from mono 1/4" to stereo is that the right channel of the 3.5mm connection is connected to the ground of the 1/4" connection, hence only having one channel of audio.

The caveat about "stereo"? TRS connections have two main usages: first, as balanced mono connectors, similar to bantam as used in patchbays with pro gear. Second is as unbalanced two-channel stereo. If you go looking for a "XLR to 3.5mm" cable, you might end up with the balanced kind rather than the stereo kind - though in all honesty, I don't know how the recorder will take to a balanced connection [it might work correctly or not, I have seen stranger things].

I would suggest looking at places that sell these accessories online and getting specifically the cable you need. Using adapters from a heavy cable to plug into the recorder will put a great deal of stress on the connector and logic board inside the unit, and will eventually cause it to break.

If you live somewhere where these kinds of cabling are available in music or audio stores, try looking there as well. What you need is "balanced female XLR to unbalanced male 3.5mm stereo".

[secretgunner]

Ahhh man that's really good, thanks.

I'll head into town tomorrow and have a check. The only problem is that with living in the UK, most stores don't seem to stock any decent volume of cables. But look I shall do.