Use the remote recording apparatus in B002 (Mackie 1604 mixer and Panasonic SV3700 DAT machine) to make live recordings in room B016 (or other nearby room if available). BE VERY CAREFUL MOVING THE RACK.
You are encouraged to work in pairs, as long as both people do their own writeup.
Sign up for a time slot using the calendar on the door of B002. Keys to B002 may be signed out from the School of Music office for a two hour period between 9:00am and 4:00pm. After 4:00pm, you should arrange to pass the key along to the next group, so that the key can be returned at 9:00am the following day.
Make recordings using all of the available mics in B002, including the condensor mics in the mic case (AKG C1000S, Neumann KM184), and the dynamic mics Shure beta 58, Shure SM57, Shure SM58, Electrovoice RE16, Electrovoice 635A. Mic and mixer documentation is available here. Documentation on the Panasonic SV3700 DAT is in hard copy in B002.
Choose an excerpt of instrumental or vocal music (one instrument only, not a group), and record it with all the mics, at different distances (from the source) and orientations (0,90,180 degrees relative to the source). Find the critical distance (reverberation radius) R for each mic. Record at least 4 positions, one at about R/4, one at R, one at about 4R, and one at whatever position you think sounds best (which could be near the instrument or further away). Experiment with the different mic patterns and orientations and note the effect on the value of R.
Do the close miking experiment in the text page 116 (delete the "equalization" part).
For each recording, carefully document the mic location, orientation, and performer location in the room, as well as the recording levels. Recall there are 4 places to adjust level (trim pot, channel 1 fader, master fader, record level on DAT). Adjust these levels to get a good quality recording. All recordings should be mono. Don't forget to turn on phantom power for the condenser mics, off for the dynamic mics.
For each recording, compare the audio quality of the various recordings and their characteristics. Which mic is the quietest? Which mic is the most sensitive ? Which seems the most accurate (flat frequency response)? What are the peculiarities of the various mics? Which mic do you prefer for the excerpt/instrument you chose to record, and why ?
Turn in a DAT with ID numbers before each section, and a written report that is keyed to the DAT so that one can find each described selection quickly and easily. NOTE: You can add and remove ID numbers after you're done recording; see SV3700 manual. However, you can't have ID numbers set within less than 9 seconds of each other. If some of your examples are less than 9 seconds apart, it's OK, just label them 3a, 3b, etc.