lalomania Posted November 15, 2005 Report Share Posted November 15, 2005 Hi,I own a MZ-R500, and I have recorded my electric guitar directly to the minidisk with no problem for a long time. But now i've tried to record using a mic and it records no sound at all. I've used a common computer mic, but i thought it was the mic's problem becouse i couldn't use the mic in my stereo. The problem is that now i've bought a normal mic, that works on my stereo, but it still doesnt record to my MD. I've been doing some reading on the site and ive found that my md only has a line in (no mic in) so i'm now doubting wether i should give external power to the mic using a batery as it is shown here .But i dont know if my mic is electret and I dont know if this only applies to stereo microphones. Any help will be much apreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greenmachine Posted November 15, 2005 Report Share Posted November 15, 2005 With a battery module you can record very high sound pressure levels via line-in, but if your recordings are mostly in the normal loudness range, you would get very quiet recordings and after normalization lots of noise. For normal usage it's propably best to upgrade to a MD with mic-in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lalomania Posted November 19, 2005 Author Report Share Posted November 19, 2005 Thanks greenmachine, but i really cant buy a new MD.So what i still dont know is:-Is it the mic's problem or the MD's problem that when i plug in a mic it doesnt record anything at all?-Why could i record the guitar but couldnt the mic?-Do i really need two mics, cant i just use a mono mic?-I will be recording in the normal loudness range... what should I do?(considering i cant buy a new MD). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greenmachine Posted November 19, 2005 Report Share Posted November 19, 2005 -Is it the mic's problem or the MD's problem that when i plug in a mic it doesnt record anything at all?-Why could i record the guitar but couldnt the mic?Electret mics need to be powered in order to work. With a battery box you could record without preamplification via line-in, but with potentially very quiet/noisy results.-Do i really need two mics, cant i just use a mono mic?It depends on what you want to record. For close miking mono is usually sufficient, but for ambient recordings (far miking) a second mic will improve the realism considerably.-I will be recording in the normal loudness range... what should I do?(considering i cant buy a new MD).Considering the prices and additional bulk of external preamplifiers, get a used MD recorder with mic-in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A440 Posted November 19, 2005 Report Share Posted November 19, 2005 It's the MD's problem: it doesn't have a mic jack to supply preamplification to the mic. Also, if you plug a mono mic into your (stereo) line-in jack it will only record on one channel. You'll need a mono-to-stereo adapter--preferably a cord, since a simple adapter could put a lot of physical strain on your jack. Look at Ebay for used minidisc units. The MZ-R700 or MZ-N707 are both available for under $100. You'd be paying around $50 for a battery box anyway, and that will only record loud sounds through your line-in. A different MD unit is a wiser investment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lalomania Posted November 30, 2005 Author Report Share Posted November 30, 2005 Ok thanx, but still i dont feel like spending $100 just to record myself.As i said I was planning to build the battery box, which would only cost me a few bucks. Yet you tell my that my recording will probably be very quiet. Is there any way in which i can make them louder, like for example, building a battery box with 2 batterys instead of one? i dont really care about the noise y just want to record something i can hear, without having to use my pc's crappy sound card. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greenmachine Posted November 30, 2005 Report Share Posted November 30, 2005 Using a too high voltage will damage the mics and doesn't compensate for the lack of preamplification. I doubt the resulting recording would be even loud enough to clearly hear yourself - unless you're screaming into the mic maybe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lalomania Posted December 1, 2005 Author Report Share Posted December 1, 2005 So.. pretty much what you're telling me is that i need a preamp.... as im too cheap to buy a new MD or to buy a preamp... ive found a diagram to build a preamp for electret mics... can you tell me if it will work for the md? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greenmachine Posted December 1, 2005 Report Share Posted December 1, 2005 I don't understand the spanish description, but i guess it should work for electret mics. For dynamic mics, remove the left 10k resistor. For a stereo mic you'll need two of these circuits. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lalomania Posted December 1, 2005 Author Report Share Posted December 1, 2005 Thanx a lot.Just to be sure, can you tell me if this will record quiet things, a human voice for example? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greenmachine Posted December 1, 2005 Report Share Posted December 1, 2005 Most propably. Good luck with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lalomania Posted December 2, 2005 Author Report Share Posted December 2, 2005 Ive already started building it, i'll post a Do It Yourself with photos, should i post it in this thread or in a new one? Also, im planning to do it as compact as possible, but i dont have hot melt glue, any glue will do?Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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