Using a Mic with Tascam DR-100MKII

[XA10]

[Posted this originally in the Newbies forum but no response after 160 views, so let me try my luck here...]

Very very newbie questions! Just getting into this recording thing...

1) Other than getting the necessary phantom power by hooking the phantom powered mic to a TASCAM DR-100MKII (or any other similar portable recorder), is there any other beneficial reasons for using two units this way?

2) While the audio gets recorded by TASCAM, the audio quality and characteristics are determined by whichever the mic is used in the recording, and not TASCAM's own stereo recording, right?

 

[Endorya]

[Posted this originally in the Newbies forum but no response after 160 views, so let me try my luck here...]

Very very newbie questions! Just getting into this recording thing...

1) Other than getting the necessary phantom power by hooking the phantom powered mic to a TASCAM DR-100MKII (or any other similar portable recorder), is there any other beneficial reasons for using two units this way?

You mean using two powered phantom mics plugged into the Tascam recorder? If so, the benefits are directly related to what you intend to do. You should describe what are you trying to achieve so people can comment about it.

2) While the audio gets recorded by TASCAM, the audio quality and characteristics are determined by whichever the mic is used in the recording, and not TASCAM's own stereo recording, right?

I'm a bit confused here. But let me see if I got it right: The resulting quality of your recordings are related to the settings you define on your Tascam device. If you set it to record in MP3@128kbit/s it will record the sound in such format for all 4 tracks, that is, for the Tascam's built in mics as well as any external mics plugged into it.

 

[XA10]

Thank you, Endorya, for your response.

I basically need to do video and/or audio recording of my violinist boy for his auditioning purposes. I don't need anything highly sophisticated or professional level recording. For his auditioning purposes, often times only audio recording is required. I have the Tascam DR-100MKII that I can simply use to do just that. However, I also have the Audio Technica BP4029 Stereo Shotgun Mic. My newbie question is: can I get a more quality sound by hooking up this phantom powered mic to the Tascam or is it about the same quality just using the Tascam alone? I've seen folks using the Rode shotgun mic hooked up to either the Tascam or the Zoom portable recorder with XLR inputs so I was curious as to why they do this. It has to be either because 1) better audio this way, or 2) that's just a simple way to get the necessary phantom power.

 

[Endorya]

Thank you, Endorya, for your response.

I basically need to do video and/or audio recording of my violinist boy for his auditioning purposes. I don't need anything highly sophisticated or professional level recording. For his auditioning purposes, often times only audio recording is required. I have the Tascam DR-100MKII that I can simply use to do just that. However, I also have the Audio Technica BP4029 Stereo Shotgun Mic. My newbie question is: can I get a more quality sound by hooking up this phantom powered mic to the Tascam or is it about the same quality just using the Tascam alone? I've seen folks using the Rode shotgun mic hooked up to either the Tascam or the Zoom portable recorder with XLR inputs so I was curious as to why they do this. It has to be either because 1) better audio this way, or 2) that's just a simple way to get the necessary phantom power.

There is also a third option, they do it because this lets them record sound captured by an external mic right into the handheld recorder. That's why most people choose these 4 track recorders, because they act as portable studios allowing users to easily record sound without the cumbersome task of carrying around loads of extra equipment.

I'm a noob myself in the recording field so I'm not sure if the Tascam alone would sound best over the BP4029. I do know the Tascam's mics have some good quality for their price. My advice to you would be actually record with both and see which one you like most. If the BP4029 is a better microphone than the ones supplied with the Tascam itself, it will sound better regardless of the method you choose to record it, that is, if the equipment used to record the sound is comparable.

 

[Endorya]

I just had a look into the BP4029. It is a quite expensive mic. The BP4029 seems to have very good reviews. It should definitely sound better then those supplied with your Tascam device.

 

[XA10]

I just had a look into the BP4029. It is a quite expensive mic. The BP4029 seems to have very good reviews. It should definitely sound better then those supplied with your Tascam device.

I originally purchased the BP4029 as a "versatile" mic. For someone like me with basically simple audio needs, I thought the mic could fill such a role. It is an excellent mic, but with my limited knowledge of how the mic really works, I found that I really need to just keep using it in a variety of ways to find that "sweet spot." I'm now getting better results, but I'm now also realizing that one mic is really limited no matter how versatile the mic came across to me originally. Since I already own a couple of Tascam portable recorders, I'm going to play around with these in combination and see what I'd get...

 

[Endorya]

I originally purchased the BP4029 as a "versatile" mic. For someone like me with basically simple audio needs, I thought the mic could fill such a role. It is an excellent mic, but with my limited knowledge of how the mic really works, I found that I really need to just keep using it in a variety of ways to find that "sweet spot." I'm now getting better results, but I'm now also realizing that one mic is really limited no matter how versatile the mic came across to me originally. Since I already own a couple of Tascam portable recorders, I'm going to play around with these in combination and see what I'd get...

May I ask in which areas you feel its limitation? That might be interesting to know. We never know when one's experience can affect us. Thank you.

 

[XA10]

May I ask in which areas you feel its limitation? That might be interesting to know. We never know when one's experience can affect us. Thank you.

Are you asking about MY limitations or the mic's? My limitations are self-explanatory since I'm new to the world of audio recording. I need to figure out its placement, for example, in relation to the subject and the ambience, and it seems so far that the best way to learn is really by trial and error and experimentation. The mic also comes with three switches: narrow stereo, wide stereo and mid-side. Which should I use for what situation, etc. As for the mic, the limitation is simply that there's no such a thing as one mic that can do all. All mics seem to boil down to their specialty. The BP4029 is a shotgun mic, and I know it's not designed for an indoor use, but my recording needs are 90% indoors, so I need to find the best way to work around that. So many things to learn...

 

[Endorya]

ASo many things to learn...

I see, welcome to my club. I'm in a learning phase myself. I urge you to post at the 'Microphones' section about the best mic for your situation as I really can't tell that much about indoor mics.

 

[elbandito]

Are you asking about MY limitations or the mic's? My limitations are self-explanatory since I'm new to the world of audio recording. I need to figure out its placement, for example, in relation to the subject and the ambience, and it seems so far that the best way to learn is really by trial and error and experimentation. The mic also comes with three switches: narrow stereo, wide stereo and mid-side. Which should I use for what situation, etc. As for the mic, the limitation is simply that there's no such a thing as one mic that can do all. All mics seem to boil down to their specialty. The BP4029 is a shotgun mic, and I know it's not designed for an indoor use, but my recording needs are 90% indoors, so I need to find the best way to work around that. So many things to learn...

Wow. That's a lot of questions, most of which will only be solved with lots of potentially frustrating experimentation. But I've got a question for you: Why did you buy a shotgun, if 90% of your recording is done indoors?

 

[XA10]

Wow. That's a lot of questions, most of which will only be solved with lots of potentially frustrating experimentation. But I've got a question for you: Why did you buy a shotgun, if 90% of your recording is done indoors?

This shotgun mic was actually chosen after I had gone through two others in my trial run, including a hyper cardiod condenser mic that's more suitable for indoor use. I didn't, however, quite like either of them -- both also Audio Technica around the same price range -- so I decided to try this more intriguing mic that offers somewhat of a versatile functional switches. Of the three functions I liked the Mid-Side the best for indoor use with quite decent results. I also had a very pleasing results when I recently shot a video of high school orchestra in wide stereo function inside the school auditorium from the back row with a surprising low level of noise. The mic is so sensitive that I hardly had to raise the gain... I think I'm going to be just fine shooting both indoors or outdoors for my non-professional needs.