newbie ecm-md70r + battery pack question + mic inputs

[mcrelly]

I recently got an Olympus WS-320m digital voice recorder. I've tried it with the band, but the volume tends to kick in some sort of limiter for the internal microphones, so I thought I'd get an external Microphone. but, since i read around a bit on this site it seems I might benefit from a "battery pack" or "juice box" etc.?

My concern is with the microphone input on my recorder, its rated at -70 dbv??? I don't know what that means, but I assume 9v going throught the microphone (I'm thinking of gettting the sony ecm-ds-70p) into the recorder is WAY too much! or does the microphone impedence cut it down? The recorder also has a "conference" and "dictation" (lower sensitivity) modes.

my band seems top play between 100 dbc (c-weighting not A) and 110 dbc. it seems from the microphone spec that it, the ECM-MD70P, should handle 110 db (I assume dba) so I should be safe, but should I get a battery pack? and do I need.... oh, I already asked that...

please give me your feedback and please go easy on the newbie! thanks.

[greenmachine]

Without a low sensitive (line-) input and/or manual level control a battery module alone would be rather useless, unless the recorder doesn't provide a bias voltage ('plug-in-power'). The voltage of a battery module/box/pack doesn't enter the recorder's input at all, there are usually condersers to cut DC. Your best bet are propably low sensitive microphones and/or attenuation. If you attenuate microphones, they should be powered externally.

[mcrelly]

Without a low sensitive (line-) input and/or manual level control a battery module alone would be rather useless, unless the recorder doesn't provide a bias voltage ('plug-in-power'). The voltage of a battery module/box/pack doesn't enter the recorder's input at all, there are usually condersers to cut DC. Your best bet are propably low sensitive microphones and/or attenuation. If you attenuate microphones, they should be powered externally.

ok, I think I'm confused now, I guess I was before too!! anyway how do I know if I have "plug-in-power"?? is that a propriatary SONY thing? if I use an electret condenser without "plug-in-power" would I still get a signal? or am I thinking about regular condenser mics?

I guess my main question is "if I use a 9v power pack, what voltage comes back through the stereo plug and will it overload my "mic" input (-70 dbv)??"

question 2: "can the sony ecm-ds70p be used with a 9v battery pack?"

thanks.

[A440]

The specs on the Olympus look interesting:

http://www.videodirect.com/olympus/voicere...us-ws-320m.html

but not stellar for recording music. You're going to be recording in .wma, which is compressed. It must be significant compression if the best quality gives you 35 hours of playback with 1GB--similar to Hi-LP. The best quality frequency response is 100-15,000 Hz, which loses some bass and highs.

The built-in microphone and preamp are made for speaking voices: dictation, conferences, etc. So it's hard to tell what's overloading: whether it's the little built-in mic or the preamp. On minidisc, line-in lets you bypass the preamp if you have a stronger signal, but the Olympus doesn't seem to have line-in. Your best possibility is to experiment.

1) Try the Sony mic by itself into mic-in--maybe it won't overload and the preamp can handle it.

2) If it still distorts, that would suggest preamp distortion, so try it with an attenuator (Radio Shake Headphone Extension Cord with Volume Control) to lower the signal into the preamp. Unfortunately, the attenuator makes the mic more likely to overload with the loudest music so you might have to...

3) Turn down the band.

[mcrelly]

The specs on the Olympus look interesting:

http://www.videodirect.com/olympus/voicere...us-ws-320m.html

but not stellar for recording music. You're going to be recording in .wma, which is compressed. It must be significant compression if the best quality gives you 35 hours of playback with 1GB--similar to Hi-LP. The best quality frequency response is 100-15,000 Hz, which loses some bass and highs.

The built-in microphone and preamp are made for speaking voices: dictation, conferences, etc. So it's hard to tell what's overloading: whether it's the little built-in mic or the preamp. On minidisc, line-in lets you bypass the preamp if you have a stronger signal, but the Olympus doesn't seem to have line-in. Your best possibility is to experiment.

1) Try the Sony mic by itself into mic-in--maybe it won't overload and the preamp can handle it.

2) If it still distorts, that would suggest preamp distortion, so try it with an attenuator (Radio Shake Headphone Extension Cord with Volume Control) to lower the signal into the preamp. Unfortunately, the attenuator makes the mic more likely to overload with the loudest music so you might have to...

3) Turn down the band.

wow, I didin't think about a volume controled cord! at 100 dbC the band is not "bar band" loud, but I just need to avoid the audo compression kicking in if I can help it.

thanks for the suggestions.