Good recording settings (iRiver h320) for a standard rock concert?

[Arni]

Well, I recorded my first gig and it has turned out not too bad. I set the gain at 15 to start (with AGC - safety) and by the end of the gig it had dropped to 7. There's some distortion during the loud parts but I was using the std. ext. mic that shipped with the iRiver, so I figure investing in a decent mic/battery box will reduce any distortion, and allow me to set the gain lower at the start.

The band I was taping varied the set between very loud songs and very quiet ones, so what happens if they start loud (resulting in the gain dropping) and then play quiet songs. Should you just leave the gain low and rely on a quality mic to deal with it? I got a recording from a taper recently where the rec. volume was up and down throughout (prob. a result of agc) and it didn't sound great. I just wondered if most tapers use agc or prefer to fix it manually.

Cheers

Use "safety-clip" with a high quality mics like SP-CMC-4u(low sens modded) or SP-CMC-8.
"safety-clip" is NOT the known AGC from MD-recorders which might result in pumping sounds.
safety-clip lowers levels if they peak near 0db but never boosts levels afterwards.
So this is like manual level control and lowering levels manually.
Once lowered it stays there. DON´T increase levels, start at +10db or +15db gain for l+r channel depending on the shows soundpressure levels , hit record, activate hold button and enjoy the show .
safety-clip is MANUAL LEVEL CONTROL with automatic gain-lowering.

[petur]

Well, I recorded my first gig and it has turned out not too bad. I set the gain at 15 to start (with AGC - safety) and by the end of the gig it had dropped to 7. There's some distortion during the loud parts but I was using the std. ext. mic that shipped with the iRiver, so I figure investing in a decent mic/battery box will reduce any distortion, and allow me to set the gain lower at the start.

yes, you certainly want to use another mic. If you're taping loud concerts, make sure the mic can handle the SPL.... more info on taperssection.com. Even if the levels do not clip, you can still get distortion simply because the mic is brickwalling internally.

I am using a pair of cardoids from Chris Church (search for his 'church audio' shop on ebay - he's Canadian), and I use an external pre-amp (st-9100), also from him. Highly recommended!

The band I was taping varied the set between very loud songs and very quiet ones, so what happens if they start loud (resulting in the gain dropping) and then play quiet songs. Should you just leave the gain low and rely on a quality mic to deal with it? I got a recording from a taper recently where the rec. volume was up and down throughout (prob. a result of agc) and it didn't sound great. I just wondered if most tapers use agc or prefer to fix it manually.

yes, do not touch the gain while recording, it makes post-processing a nightmare! AGC-SAFETY will only lower the gain to the correct level. Dropping from  +15 to +7 sounds ok to me... too bad you had a bad mic

[exxile]

Cheers for the advice guys, I've been looking at many mic's but I think that the SP-CMC-20/22/19 + a battery box are looking favourite at the moment, due to budget retrictions.

@ petur
Re: AGC Clip Time settings, you recommend 200ms whereas someone on taperssection recommends 1sec, to stop it dropping due to someone clapping for example. When I was recording I split the difference and set it to 600ms - does it make a big difference which sensitivity setting is used?

Re: the st-9100 pre-amp, I see this has a separate control for the gain, is that more of an advantage or do you use the software to set gain? Also is there much advantage to using a pre-amp over a battery box?

Cheers

[petur]

Re: AGC Clip Time settings, you recommend 200ms whereas someone on taperssection recommends 1sec, to stop it dropping due to someone clapping for example. When I was recording I split the difference and set it to 600ms - does it make a big difference which sensitivity setting is used?

Really depends on your situation. If you're in the audience, slower times will be better (exactly to avoid gain being turned down because of clapping/yelling next to your mic)
If you can set up your mics so the public has less influence, shorter times make sure the AGC Safety responds quick enough if levels are too hot...

Re: the st-9100 pre-amp, I see this has a separate control for the gain, is that more of an advantage or do you use the software to set gain? Also is there much advantage to using a pre-amp over a battery box?

I like it more because it gives me more gain range - really depends on the situation. If you only do the same type of shows (loud concerts), a batterybox is enough probably...

[exxile]

Ok, thanks for all your help.

[biggles_downunder]

G'day all

I'm a new Rockboxer, brought into the fold by the need to have more control over my (old) iRiver iHP120.

I use it as an audio recorder at weddings when I shoot video (slipped into the groom's pocket) - the audio recorder, not me!

My Rockbox journey started when I purchased a much better microphone than the one supplied and it was the supplier's recommendation that lead me to the Rockbox community.

The microphone is just fantastic and you would do well to consider it. See: http://www.giant-squid-audio-lab.com/

Each one is made to your specs - cable length, cable colour etc and Darren (company owner) is very quick and very, very helpful.

Sorry if this sounds like a plug for a specific product, but I cannot speak highly enough of the company and the quality of service both pre and post sale!

[petur]

I'm aware of the company, but there are lots more of good ones.

Hop over to http://www.taperssection.com for recording discussions that are not rockbox related (like mics, pre-amps,...)

[biggles_downunder]

Thanks for that link - 5 minutes of scanning posts and I can see already that this is a mine of information!