[Wylug-discuss] Seeking Advice: Quality Mobile Sound Recording

[gARetH baBB]

On Wed, 29 Nov 2006, Phil Driscoll wrote:

> In terms of getting the audio into your computer, and particularly as you are 
> just experimenting at the moment, you could do much worse than buy the 
> Behringer UCA202 for £18

Warning, the TI-based USB things Behringer sell are ok, but do not have 
any form of software gain/volume control (though the UCA202 I think has a 
physical control, as opposed to the cutdown UCA100 they bundle with desks) 
- they are mainly designed for using from a mixing desk, rather than 
directly from the sound source.

From what I've read of this thread - forget the expensive recorders, I've 
used the Marantz 660 and ok, it's got some nice features (and some bad 
features), but they are pretty much irrelevant. I suspect the same could 
be said for the rest of them.

Our (www.hebradio.org) stock device for such things is an iRiver H120, 
unfortunately discontinued, but does an ok job of mic (both dynamic and 
electret) input (with a bit of post-processing) and a good job of line 
input. It is much cheaper than those listed, and far more versatile. It 
doesn't have balanced inputs, but who needs balanced inputs when the cable 
is a couple of feet long to record a talk from mics or even less for line 
input from a desk ?

Get a cheap mixing desk - as noted, Behringer do good for the price. Get 
the Maplin 30-ish quid XLR condensers. They do cheap-but-good dynamic 
Senheisers too. You won't go wrong at this stage with such a setup.

Most of the problems I've come across have not been due to our equipment 
but something else in the chain, including a reverb unit producing a lot 
of noise/hiss and room lights causing mass amouts of mains hum.

And most of the solutions have just involved practice, experience and 
simple problem solving.