Help with TR40 mic choices?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Mark Rankin
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Mark Rankin

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Hi, This is my first visit to this forum. I have just recently purchased a DR40 Tascam and like it very much. I would like to record a rack harmonica and acoustical guitar (with no pickup) at the same time. The on board microphones the DR40 come with are hit and miss and I cannot seem to find the correct combination of MONO or Stereo, sit close or further back, and trying to find a place to set the DR40 so it picks up both my guitar and harmonica at the same time without one drowning out the other.

In addition to my struggles, If I set the mic level right at the (on screen) "down arrow", I still seem to light up the "peak" light and get some distortion. So if I lower the mic level, my recording is so low I cannot really get any volume out of it on play back.

I would like to purchase maybe two microphones one for each instruments and get away from the on board mics the DR40 comes with. I should note, I mostly play straight harmonica "melodies" so I am not really looking for a heavy blues sound.

I am getting buried in the log jam of which microphones to purchase within a reasonable budget.

I would appreciate any input here for suggestions. Condenser mic, bullet mic, or ???

Thanks in advance.
 
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I have no experience of the TR40 but I would have thought it should make a decent fist of this job?

My first setup would be the TR40 on a mic stand or camera tripod and about 2mtrs from you, essentially a co-incident stereo recording. If guitar and harmonica are still out of balance THAT I am sorry to say is largely YOUR fault! A hypothetical audience would be getting a similarly unbalanced result.

Again, don't know the box but I suspect you are generally recording at too high a level. The result on a PC should average out at around -18, even -20dB with peaks no higher than -8, maybe -6dB. Once copied into a DAW you can boost the signal to your hearts (well, s'long as you stay under 0dBFS!). This assumes you are setting the TR40 to 24bit/44.1kHz recording.

Dave.
 
Your correct, it is a DR40

arcaxis said:
Couldn't find a TR40. Is it actually this > Product: DR-40 | TASCAM
Click to expand...

Sorry about that, it is a TASCAM DR40. If possible, I would like some suggestions on purchasing two microphones to add to the DR40. Just getting lost in the AMAZON log jam of products.

Thanks for getting back to me.
 
ecc83 said:
I have no experience of the TR40 but I would have thought it should make a decent fist of this job?

My first setup would be the TR40 on a mic stand or camera tripod and about 2mtrs from you, essentially a co-incident stereo recording. If guitar and harmonica are still out of balance THAT I am sorry to say is largely YOUR fault! A hypothetical audience would be getting a similarly unbalanced result.

Again, don't know the box but I suspect you are generally recording at too high a level. The result on a PC should average out at around -18, even -20dB with peaks no higher than -8, maybe -6dB. Once copied into a DAW you can boost the signal to your hearts (well, s'long as you stay under 0dBFS!). This assumes you are setting the TR40 to 24bit/44.1kHz recording.

Dave.
Click to expand...

Thanks Dave, I will copy this info. I watched a tutorial and was told the best setting would be 16bit/48K. The reasoning was it would not be compatible if it were to be mixed with a video file (still learning the language).

The out of balance issue seems to come from the placement of the DR40. "I assumed" that since the internal mics can be rotated that I could set the DR40 unit on it's side and point one up at my harmonica and one down towards the fret board/sound hole on the guitar.

This is why I was thinking an upgrade to exterior microphones (on stands with horizontal adjustable arms) would be easier to place the mics and leaves me to play in a more comfortable position.

Thanks for your help on this Dave.
 
Ok, so go 24 bits 48kHz, easy enough to convert to 16/48 in fact if you transfer to PC and "save as" it will probably do so. But 16 bits "will do nicely", just need to watch the peak level a little closer.

24 bits you see gives you the lowest possible noise floor, so low in fact that the remnant analogue electronic noise becomes the floor. In practice the ambient noise level is likely to be the deciding factor unless you have a studio to record in.

Dave.
 
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