microphone

[jamesanderson]

Originally written by forum user A440, but bear modifications by kurisu and dex Otaku.

---------

MYSTERIES OF REC-SET

Record settings make all the difference in MD recording. And Sony doesn't make them particularly logical. Here's a primer, based on the settings for 1st-generation Hi-MD units but pretty much applicable back through regular MDs.

If using a Hi-MD unit, before you go into REC SET go into Menu/Option and set DISC MODE. You can choose Hi-MD (not compatible with regular MD playback) or MD (not uploadable).

REC-SET under the Menu offers different options depending on whether a disc is in the player and whether you're recording.

With NO DISC, you can set:

1) Rec Mode: how much will fit on the disc and what quality it will be. For Hi-MD, your choices are:

PCM: best-quality recording, 94 minutes per 1GB disc or 28 minutes on an 80-minute regular MD.

Hi-SP: very good quality recording. 7:55 on 1GB, 2:20 on 80-minute MD

Hi-LP: decent quality recording (not recommended for live music). 34 hours on 1GB, 10:10 hours/minutes on 80-minute MD.

For MD, your choices are:

SP: best-quality, 80 minutes per 80-minute MD.

LP2: good quality, 2:40 minutes per 80-minute MD

LP4: marginal quality, 5:20 per 80-minute MD.

2) Mic Sens: how much the preamp built into the mic jack will amplify the signal coming in through the mic jack

LOW: for just about everything from a close-up interview to loud music

HIGH: for extremely quiet sounds, ambient recording, etc.

3) Group Rec: whether the recordings you're about to make will go into a separate folder. On or Off.

4) Sync Rec: this is a widely misunderstood setting that is often mistaken as a way to enable/disable auto-trackmarking while recording - which it is not.

Sync Rec is only applicable when recording with the optical input. It will automatically start/stop the recorder when you start/stop the playback source.

This is its only function, and it does not affect the behaviour of recording from either the microphone or line inputs.

As a corollary to this:

* when recording from the microphone input, there is no auto trackmarking unless you have AUTO TIME MARK turned on.

* when recording from the [analogue] line-in, track marks will be inserted during quieter passages of at least 2 seconds' length. You can partly defeat this by using Time Mark as below.

* this information is in your manual.

The unit will hold these settings as defaults until you change them. A440's usual settings are Hi-SP, LOW Sensitivity, Group Off, Sync Off.

With DISC INSERTED you can ALSO set:

1) Mic AGC: Auto Gain Control: Standard or Loud Music

This attempts to keep the volume of the recording steady. It is very useful for recording speech. It can't handle the sudden impacts of music, although Loud Music tries to be smoother. Use Standard if you are recording speech.

AGC is the default setting, and each time a disc is Stopped or a new disc is inserted the setting goes back to AGC. This is the bane of music recorders.

2) TIME MARK: To automatically place a (silent, gapless) track mark at fixed intervals from 5 to 60 minutes. Turn to ON, pick your interval. Also useful for interviews. This overrides Sync Recording.

With DISC INSERTED AND REC/PAUSE (||) PRESSED SIMULTANEOUSLY you can set;

1) REC VOLUME

This is the key setting. You can leave it on the default of AGC or switch to Manual. Under Manual you'll see a bar graph (NetMDs) or a number: x/30. You can set it with the pointing stick (>ENT) on Hi-MD, with the wheel on Hi-MD, or with the |<< and >>| controls on Net MD.

If you have previously set Manual to a level above 13/30 it will go back to that level. If you have set it below 13/30, it will go to 13/30.

This overrules AGC and MIC AGC settings.

If you are recording music, Manual is essential. The proper setting depends on your mics, the volume of the music, etc. Some tips are here (WHEN THAT FAQ GETS WRITTEN), but your goal is to keep the incoming signal between the two little dashes on the level meter (Hi-MD) or at about 3/4 of the peak on MD.

TIP: Remember that if you push STOP the MD will revert to AGC. If need be, use Pause during live recording.

With DISC INSERTED AND RECORDING you can:

1) CHANGE the manual level with the pointing stick (>ENT) or the wheel. But every change will make the volume of your recording fluctuate, so it's better to start with a good setting and leave it throughout the recording.

Using manual volume is an annoyance but well worth it.

Here's a step-by-step, courtesty of jadesmar:

1. Press T.Mark/Rec(+>) and pause (||) at the same time.

2. Hold Navi/Menu until Edit menu pops up.

3. Using Wheel, scroll to REC set.

4. Press Enter (>' Ent) in middle of wheel.

5. Scroll down to RECVolume

6. Press Enter (>' Ent) in middle of wheel.

7. Scroll to Manual

8. Press Enter (>' Ent) in middle of wheel.

9. Use wheel or pointing stick (>ENT) to select a recording volume.

10. Press pause (||) to start recording.

11. Wheel will now allow you to manually set recording level.

It sounds complicated, but you can do most of it in the dark--Menu, five clicks down with pointing stick, Enter, one click down, Enter, pick a level.