MiniDisk mic too sensitive for live band???

[JiMoSiTY]

I often take my Sony Minidisk Recorder (MZ-R37) to my bands shows to record from the sound board, these sometimes work well when the whole band is ran thru the mix, but for shows where they are not (or at band practices) I would like to just plug in a small condenser mic (like for a home computer) and record that way.
I have done this a few times and it seems that it is far too sensitive and once the loud music kicks in, it gets too distorted and eventually just shuts off the recorder.
I guess my question is how can I record loud music like that without it overwhelming the unit??
I've tried turning the AVLS off and setting the recording level to be lower, but that didn't seem to help.
Is it because the level is so high going in that the recorder is shutting itself off?

Thanks for the help guys.

Jim Rodgers
American Hardcore
http://www.americanhc.com
jim@americanhc.com

[boingoman]

If setting the recording level manually doesn't help, the mic is overloading. One of the factors determining condenser mic spl handling is the voltage used to bias the elments. A battery/plug-in power mic can only take so much. The basic quality also matters a great deal. What mic is it? I use a little Sony stereo mic (forget the model) and use it in pretty loud situations with no problems.


BTW AVLS only affects playback.

[JiMoSiTY]

Originally Posted by boingoman

If setting the recording level manually doesn't help, the mic is overloading. One of the factors determining condenser mic spl handling is the voltage used to bias the elments. A battery/plug-in power mic can only take so much. The basic quality also matters a great deal. What mic is it? I use a little Sony stereo mic (forget the model) and use it in pretty loud situations with no problems.


BTW AVLS only affects playback.

Well, all I was using was a really cheapo $2 computer mic and plugging it into the MiniDisk recorder. It's not a powered mic by any means.
I don't mind buying a better mic if that will solve the issue, I just want to make sure that it will before I do.
Any suggestions?

By the way, where can I find a manual for my MiniDisk recorder just so I can be sure I'm manually setting the recording volume lower? Maybe that's what I'm not doing right.

[boingoman]

The manual is available at Sony support. Type in MZR37 for the model number. It's a .pdf file, you need Acrobat reader to open it.

Sony makes some pretty good mics for these applications. The ECM-719 works well, it's a bit less than $90. They also make a bunch of more and less expensive stereo mics.

[inkboy1]

try running the mic thru the line-in jack

[Nils K]

Originally Posted by JiMoSiTY

Well, all I was using was a really cheapo $2 computer mic and plugging it into the MiniDisk recorder. It's not a powered mic by any means.....

Never, and I mean never, use a computer mic for anything but a computer sound card. Ever. D'ya hear?! Ever!

Look here: (shamelessly snatched from www.epanorama.net)

TIP: Sound signal from microphone
RING: Power to microphone (+5V)
SLEEVE: Ground



/ \
| |-------------- output
\ /
+===+------------mike
| |--------------bias +5V 3.5mm plug
|===| to soundcard
| |
| |------------ground
| |
+=======+
| |

On a stereo mic, the ring is the right channel (Right=Ring), and the tip is the left channel. The output from such a mic would be very noisy and distorted if plugged into anything else but a computer soundcard mic input (the red one), and it would be mono, too. The recorder cannot provide the 5 V needed by the mic to function either.

I suggest you go and get a fairly decent stereo mic - they aren't that expensive. Sony, Marantz and Philips all has a fairly large selection to suit every need and piggy-bank out there - take your pick, and ask at the store if you may try out the mic with your unit before you buy.

regards, Nils