abearatemyparents Posted February 22, 2004 Report Share Posted February 22, 2004 I want to start taping shows and don't really know to much about it. Last summer at Ultimate Electronics I found a MZ-N707 open box for $35, so I already have the MD, I've heard Net MD's aren't the best for recording and that Sharp is better, but this one was cheap so I'll take what I can get. I've been reading other forums and one suggestion for fairly cheap recording was these mics http://www.soundprofessionals.com/cgi-bin/...MC-9&type=store and this battery box http://www.soundprofessionals.com/cgi-bin/...SB-6&type=store I'm mainly going to be recording shows in small clubs, usually close to the stacks, but I plan on taping A Perfect Circle and The Mars Volta in April at some arena, but I'll have floor tickets and be as close to the front as I can get. I think binaurals are the way to go, but again I don't know what I'm doing, can anyone help me out? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted February 23, 2004 Report Share Posted February 23, 2004 The MZ-N707 makes excellent recordings if you keep the mics from distorting, which is what your battery bo is for. The SP binaurals and battery box should be fine. Run them through the Line-in jack. Use Automatic Gain Control, it's OK despite what manual-level-control fanatics say (and you can enjoy the concert instead of twiddling with levels). The binaurals will pick up what your ears hear, all around you. If you're close to a loud band like A Perfect Circle, it should drown out conversation unless the people near you are truly obnoxious, in which case they'd probably come through cardioids too. Start with the binaurals and see what you think. Put them on the tabs of your shirt collar for a nice binaural image which won't change much if you turn your head. It looks like you'll need clips for the mics to attach them wherever you choose. Try www.bhphoto.com, I think Audio-Technica makes clips small enough for those mics. Or ask SoundPros for clips. Happy recording--you'll be amazed at what you get. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abearatemyparents Posted February 23, 2004 Author Report Share Posted February 23, 2004 Wow. That sounds a lot better than I was even hoping for. I didn't want to go real hardcore and cut holes in a hat and tape the mics in there and mess with all of that, and knowing nothing about what the levels should be this automatic gain control sounds good. Thanks for the help. Next I'll need to figure out getting it to the PC and mastered, but I'll worry about that later. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted February 24, 2004 Report Share Posted February 24, 2004 Just looked at my MZ-N707. You have to put in a disc, start RECord, press Pause and then go through the Menu--right after DISPLAY is RecVolume, and you can choose AutoRec (it's not called Auto Gain Control). You can leave it as the default--it probably is already. RecVolume doesn't show up in the menu unless you have Record on. Also, find REC-POSI in the OPTION menu and change it to FROM END (not From Here). You can make that the default, too. For quiet acoustic music without much bass, you can skip the battery box and go direct to mic-in with the mics, but you're better off with the box for anything loud or low. A good place to clip the binaurals is to your shirt collar tips. They're about the same width as your ears (so the music will sound natural in headphones) and if you swivel your head you won't move your mics. Wear a dark shirt, put the cord down the front of your chest, and no one will notice the mics--they're smaller than collar buttons. Get a camera case/holster you can clip to your belt for the MD, or wear baggy pants and put it in your pocket. Try some recording at home before you go to the show to make sure everything's working. Put a fresh AA in the MZ-N707 just before the show. And try to stay out of the pit.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abearatemyparents Posted February 25, 2004 Author Report Share Posted February 25, 2004 Thanks for the advice. At most clubs around here (St. Louis) I could probably just throw it in my pocket and get in no problem, I've heard security is pretty tight at APC shows this tour though, and arena's are usually worse anyway. I suppose I'll have to crotch everything, I figure once I'm in the crowd I can plug everything without anyone noticing, unless I do manage to get right up on the rail, but even then I doubt it will be to noticable. I was planning on the mics on the collar with the cord in the shirt to the MD in the pocket. I'll test it out at home, and I may catch Coheed and Cambria on April 6th, if I order in time that'll be my first try. I do have some questions about the battery box though. I know I'll need bass roll-off, I wouldn't think I'd need the AC adapter for anything, but what about the level control? And again, thanks for all the help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted February 25, 2004 Report Share Posted February 25, 2004 If you feel like you have a little time to experiment, you can save yourself some $$ (though you've definitely done that already with a $35 MZ-N707!) and wait before you get the battery box. Get just the mic and go to Radio Shack and get a Headphone Volume Control, $5.99, or get Sound Professionals' version, which is called an attenuator cord, for $7. Plug the binaural mic into that, turn the volume all the way UP on the headphone volume control, and plug that into the mic jack. This is the setup I just used tonight at a loud club show, and it came through fine. If the bass is really blasting--hip-hop or dub reggae shows-- then turn the headphone volume control down a notch. It works as the realtime level control the Sony doesn't have otherwise. Try it and see how it comes out, then get a battery box if you want an upgrade. But it's one more gizmo to sneak into a concert, and it's nearly the size of the MD unit. The battery box gives a smoother response across the frequency spectrum than the headphone volume control, and theoretically the headphone control adds noise, but to me it's negligible--concerts aren't recording studios. Battery box into Line-In bypasses the MD's preamp, which also cuts noise. Personally--and there are plenty of folks who disagree with me--I don't see the need for bass roll-off because either the battery box or the headphone volume control will prevent nearly all bass from distorting. If you do use a bass roll-off, you're removing the bottom from your recording, and you can't get it back later because it never was recorded. Level control is up to you--I do fine in all but the loudest situations with AutoRec. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised with the headphone volume control combo as long as you have decent mics to start with, and Sound Pro's standard binaurals are fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted February 25, 2004 Report Share Posted February 25, 2004 Oh yeah, arenas. I have a camera case that holds my binoculars and the MD. Put the MD in under the binos, open the case and show the binos to the gatekeeper and you're in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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