in addition to doing my small studio, i have been a historian during my
career. i have been asked to do some archival quality location
recording of older, retired musicians while another fellow videotapes
them playing. the work will be done on location at each paticipants
house, so i willl be faced with working in small living rooms or even
outdoors on porches, or wherever. the music will mostly be just the
individual performing solo, and ranges from bluegrass mandolin,
acoustic guitar, 30s-40s jazz piano, to bagpipes and native american
flute.

so, i need to be ready for almost anything in the worst possible
circumstances, and still be able to provide good quality recordings. i
would like your advice on what kind of setup would be the best choice
for this work.

1. what kind of recorder? edirol R-1? DAT? other?
2. what kind of mic/mics? should i just track in mono with a single
senn 421 or 441 dynamic? should i do stereo with a spaced pair of omni
condensers or ORTF cards?
3. close mic at 2-3 feet out? or put the mic/mics out in the roomo a
bit (6-8') to get a feel for the space where they are playing?
4. trying to keep the kit minimal for portability - should i use an
outboard preamp like the sonosax, or select a recorder that has decent
pres built-in?
5. anything else i should consider?
thanks.

We do similar things, except not music, just interviews with people in
their homes.
We use a tascam dat recorder (PS-D1); consider something else if you
will be unable to change tapes if it's a long session.

wrote:

i need to be ready for almost anything in the worst possible
circumstances, and still be able to provide good quality recordings.

1. what kind of recorder? edirol R-1? DAT? other?

I'd probably choose a Sound Devices 722 at this point.


2. what kind of mic/mics? should i just track in mono with a single
senn 421 or 441 dynamic? should i do stereo with a spaced pair of omni
condensers or ORTF cards?
3. close mic at 2-3 feet out? or put the mic/mics out in the roomo a
bit (6-8') to get a feel for the space where they are playing?

I'd probably have a pair of modular small diaphragm condensers and a
couple of cap options. Something that could manage M/S would ve a good
idea (maybe a Schoeps CCM setup if I needed ultra portability.) Add a
couple of decent miniature omnis/lavs (DPA?) and a pair of 635s or
similar for emergencies. You'll need a goodly assortment of clips,
clamps, ball gags, and other accessories as well.



4. trying to keep the kit minimal for portability - should i use an
outboard preamp like the sonosax, or select a recorder that has decent
pres built-in?

The latter, which is why I suggested the 722.

On 22 Jul 2005 07:58:16 -0700, wrote:

Burn to Cd then in 2 years copy the cd's then in as nother 2 years
copy the cd's etc.

Do some research on the ARSC cueerntly the best source for archival
sound.

In article .com writes:

I have been asked to do some archival quality location
recording of older, retired musicians while another fellow videotapes
them playing. the work will be done on location at each paticipants
house, so i willl be faced with working in small living rooms or even
outdoors on porches, or wherever. the music will mostly be just the
individual performing solo, and ranges from bluegrass mandolin,
acoustic guitar, 30s-40s jazz piano, to bagpipes and native american
flute.

That sounds like a really cool project. Even better if you get paid
for it.

1. what kind of recorder? edirol R-1? DAT? other?

Nagra on 1/4" tape.

2. what kind of mic/mics? should i just track in mono with a single
senn 421 or 441 dynamic? should i do stereo with a spaced pair of omni
condensers or ORTF cards?

I'd do it in mono. A 421 might not be a bad choice, or even a modest
EV 635 omni. If it's an archival recording, there may be some value to
preserving some of the ambient sound. Your intent, I don't think, is
to turn the home into a studio for a while.

3. close mic at 2-3 feet out? or put the mic/mics out in the roomo a
bit (6-8') to get a feel for the space where they are playing?

I think that 2-3 feet would give a good sense of the room. 6-8 feet
would mean that the room would have to sound good, unless it was a
really huge room.

4. trying to keep the kit minimal for portability - should i use an
outboard preamp like the sonosax, or select a recorder that has decent
pres built-in?

Like I said, a Nagra. Mic preamps are just fine. Put the tape in a box
and give it to your customer. If he wants a reference CD, then just
make a real time transfer.

5. anything else i should consider?

What your travel time and expenses are worth. Don't give away the
farm.

--
I'm really Mike Rivers )
However, until the spam goes away or Hell freezes over,
lots of IP addresses are blocked from this system. If
you e-mail me and it bounces, use your secret decoder ring
and reach me he double-m-eleven-double-zero at yahoo

wrote:

in addition to doing my small studio, i have been a historian during my
career. i have been asked to do some archival quality location
recording of older, retired musicians while another fellow videotapes
them playing. the work will be done on location at each paticipants
house, so i willl be faced with working in small living rooms or even
outdoors on porches, or wherever. the music will mostly be just the
individual performing solo, and ranges from bluegrass mandolin,
acoustic guitar, 30s-40s jazz piano, to bagpipes and native american
flute.

so, i need to be ready for almost anything in the worst possible
circumstances, and still be able to provide good quality recordings. i
would like your advice on what kind of setup would be the best choice
for this work.

Marantz PMD670 with AT825 stereo mic.

1. what kind of recorder? edirol R-1? DAT? other?

The R1 is a nice starting point for an all in one device,
but once you consider hooking up external mics the
availability of the XLR connectors helps out.
Marantz has variations on these units:
650/660/670/671/680/690 with choices of media -
CF, microdrive, PC card memory, and minidisc.
I think the 671 and the 660 are 24 bit capable.

2. what kind of mic/mics? should i just track in mono with a single
senn 421 or 441 dynamic? should i do stereo with a spaced pair of omni
condensers or ORTF cards?

For this type of use there's nothing wrong with mono.
Stereo is a nice touch. The AT stereo mic is decent
but if you're thinking of having mic choices available
just carry an assortment and choose based on the room
and the instrument.
Spaced omnis won't really get you much in this context,
but I might want to have a pair of better cards for
an ORTF setup (AKG C480, AT4051, etc)

3. close mic at 2-3 feet out? or put the mic/mics out in the roomo a
bit (6-8') to get a feel for the space where they are playing?

If the recording will always be associated with the video
you can get away with micing a bit further out.
If the recording is expected to stand on it's own
as audio only you'll want to move in closer.

4. trying to keep the kit minimal for portability - should i use an
outboard preamp like the sonosax, or select a recorder that has decent
pres built-in?

I wouldn't mess with external pres.
If you can afford an outboard you should
just get a better machine to start with.

5. anything else i should consider?

Use an audio track on the camera as a safety track.

rd