Best mic for recording 'sleep talking'

F

fwrunner2017

New member
Hey guys;
I'm not a pro in any sense of the word, but I do have a good knowledge of analog and digital electronic, A/D, D/A etc.
I know that I 'sleep talk' a lot. I wake others up sometimes, but I sleep alone, so that's a good thing.
Thing is, I sometimes come up with some pretty creative stuff while sleep talking, and would like to transcribe this into a journal.
I purchased a wireless mic set (Holyland Lark M1 2-mic set), and have tried wearing one of the mics on my shirt when I sleep, but more often than not, the sound gets muffled by the bedding or my clothing as the mic flips and flops around as I turn in my sleep.
So I had the thought to buy a pro mike and mount it on a stand, which I would extend over my bed (high enough over me so I don't accidentally snag it during my sleep).

I have 2 options for a mic:
USB connected directly to my Windows PC and recording into Reaper DAW
XLR plugged into my Behringer UMC202HD, which would then be plugged into a USB port on my PC and record into Reaper.

I would assume that the XLR mic would be my best option, since I already have the equipment to process the analog signal, but I have never owned either an XLR or USB mic (except for a cheap USB headset).
I am looking for something that would be sensitive enough to pick up my voice while I lie talking in my sleep. I would want to hang the mic onto a boom that would extend out over my bed.

This is more of a curiosity than a need, but I think it would be interesting.

Any recommendations?
Thanks
fwrunner
 
As you move around when you sleep, mics that have to be pointed - as in directional ones, might not be best - the type of mics that clip on are omnidirectional, so clip one to the headboard of the bed. Personally, a proper mic would be my choice because I have the interfaces - but the real thing of course is the recording quality - high quality - 44.1 or 48K, 24 or 32 bit audio which we usually choose will eat through huge amounts of disk space - so perhaps you can sacrifice quality in your chosen recorder to maybe just 16 bit at perhaps 32K? Or direct to mp3 if that is possible for you?

Mono and mp3 will still be a big file but manageable.
 
This brings back memories. When I was a kid, I had a bunk bed. I also had a small reel-reel tape recorder, a compact little model like from Radio Shack. I had the idea to record myself mumbling or talking while dreaming. I looped the single mic through one of the wooden slats holding up the upper mattress, letting it dangle above my head as I slept. It worked great except the tape reels were so small the recorder stopped before I got into dreaming and talking - all I got was silence.

tape.jpg
 
Too bad you didn't have a timer to start the recording after a few hours.

About the microphone: I could suspend it from a hook in the ceiling...
 
What you need is a sound activated recorder, so you don't record large amounts of nothing.
Having a PC running all night is rather cumbersome.
You might find a dictation machine, that has the sound activated feature, and records to a chip.
 
I do have a Sony ICD-UX570 voice recorder which I hold in my hand while falling asleep. It works very well when I'm holding it, but it always falls out of my hand onto the bed - or the floor - when I fall asleep.
I had a thought about the mic I was looking for: If it's either hanging on a cord from the ceiling or extended over my bed with a boom arm, it's going to be very clumsy when I get up from the bed; I am sure I will hit the thing all the time. So, I'm going to work out a way to attach the Hollyland wireless to myself in such a way that it remains close to my mouth most of the time. That, or I would have to position the mic far enough above my bed to avoid my bumping my head on it.
 
I am not an authority on a subject like this in any sense of the word. But a large diaphragm condenser seems to make sense to me. Cardioid/directional sensitivity seems important.

But yeah - it's the size of the capture file that seems like the bigger obstacle here.
 
The file isn't a problem. I have enough space on my SSD, and Reaper will automatically break up the files into manageable size.
From this list of condenser mics on Amazon, which one - $100 or less - would you choose?
I'm leaning towards one of the $49.99 ones, but if the Audio Technica AT2020 ($99) would offer better performance for my use, then I would consider it.
Found the AT2020 for $85 on Ebay, but maybe only one in stock.
 
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rob aylestone said:
Seems a bit like overkill, spending anything for this project - why not just use your phone?
Click to expand...
I have never had any luck with using my phone; the mic may be too small, and/or the phone gets buried in bedding, causing the sound to be muffled.
One of the problems is that I keep 'meditation' music playing through speakers next to the bed all night, so talk is more difficult to pick out.
That said, I haven't tried with my Pixel 6 yet, and have the Hollyland Lark M1 I can wear, but so far, I haven't been all that successful with it, as it keeps flipping and flopping on my loose night clothing. If I could figure out how to keep the mic facing up, it could work .
So I will exhaust all of my other options before spending $$ on a mic.
 
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