Recording devices

[m21man 0]

I was wondering if there was a cheap way to record your own sounds. Maybe a small, cheap sound recorder . Any suggestions?

[Baron Hurlothrumbo IIX 0]

Its called a microphone

Crystal (piezoelectric) mics are really cheap (roughly the same as an 'own brand' budget mouse) - but are not good enough for professional recording - they're fine for in game chat or whatever though.

Next are dynamic mics* - moderately cheap, used for amateur voice recording, karaoke, etc. Not quite good enough for pro work but ok. Pay around the same as for a hard drive.

Then theres top of the range condenser mics, cost ... lots. Easily over a grand for the best ones.

Or did you mean software?

Windows sound recorder? That can record stuff but its pretty bad.

Your sound card probably came with some sort of recording software too. 99% of them do.

[FSPilot 0]

How about a small cheap sound recorder?

You could also use "sound recorder" on your PC if it has a microphone.

[m21man 0]

I need something portable, I can't haul my PC to the gun range .

[FSPilot 0]

Then get a small cheap sound recorder. Should be at radio shack.

http://www.radioshack.com/product....14-1118

[Baron Hurlothrumbo IIX 0]

Ahh right. Well, the mic advice is still sound. You can record onto a tape machine or something.

Best quality, if you can get hold of one, is a DAT recorder. (Digital Audio Tape)

[WhoCares 0]

Gun shots are one of the most difficult sounds to record. You might get an idea from this article (scoll down to 'HOME, HOME ON THE RANGE ')

IIRC, there is a sound engineer lurking around in this forum. He might help you a little more. My guess would be, that the dynamic range is probably the most critical factor...

Edit:

Of course, you can make it the very cheap way too:

1. Setup your PC as answering machine at home.

2. Call you at home with the Cell Phone you brought to the range.

But don't expect a useful result of it

[m21man 0]

And how much did those mics they used cost?

[WhoCares 0]

Hehe, well, it is professional equipment. On this page, you can find the analog recorder they talk about (NAGRA, 18.000DM => ~9000Euro) and the Sennheiser 416 Microphone (450UK Sterling => ~600-700Euro)  

btw: Killagee is a/the sound engineer around here; have to love the real world thread

[m21man 0]

Whoops, that's a bit pricey for me .

[R. Gerschwarzenge 0]

Electrovoice RE20 is about $550.

Sennheiser 416 is about $1000.

For gun shot recordings I'd recommend dynamic microphones that are used to record drums and brass instruments. You can get a decent microphone for about $150-$300.

[WhoCares 0]

You might rent the stuff.  

Edit: Direct link to the Ton(=Audio) page.

[m21man 0]

1. I don't speak German.

2. I live in the U.S.

[WhoCares 0]

Just noticed the bad link and fixed it above.

Otherwise it still can give you an idea about the price when renting is a serious option for you. However, I would suggest to go with a less professional solution...

[Placebo 29]

Certain MP3 players also operate as voice recording devices.

Something like this......

Quote[/b] ]Ebuyer 128MB Pen Drive W/ MP3 Player and Voice Recorder USB 1.1

Quote[/b] ]This slim and portable MP3 Player has fully integrated functions. It can play MP3 /WMA digital music and use ADPCM format for voice recording. As doubling a USB flash drive with built-in 128/256MB flash memory, it provides data storage and plug-n-play capability (no driver required in Windows 2000/XP). You may use it for learning language via A-B repeat function. With 7 built-in equalizers, you can enjoy music for optimum sound quality

$75.99

Of course there are most likely lots more to choose from, this is the first I found

[m21man 0]

Definitely. Or I might just have to find pre-existing sounds and use them.

[WhoCares 0]

You might rip it from a DVD, e.g. Black Hawk Down. Or download a free one, I came across a ak47 sound while surfing around today (but don't ask me where...)

About the MP3 solution, then you might indeed use a cell phone

[m21man 0]

Then can you possibly give me some suggestions for movies with good-sounding gunshots (And hopefully the movie has a variety of gunshots)?

I could also borrow some sounds from America's Army .

[WhoCares 0]

You might contact one/some of the creators of the various sound packs out there.

And the AA sounds are quite good indeed...

Actually I posted way to much in this topic, considering that most of my knowledge on this all is based on a little googling the this morning

[m21man 0]

Quote[/b] ]Actually I posted way to much in this topic, considering that most of my knowledge on this all is based on a little googling the this morning

The replies were still appreciated .

[WhoCares 0]

Quote[/b] ]The replies were still appreciated  .

Oh, you are very welcome. It gave me something interesting to do while sitting in the office but not yet being in the mood to do some serious work  

Actually, you can get quite some informations out of the article I linked above about what must be considered in your situation. But there is maybe a lot more, of which I

  a) know absolutely nothing about and/or

  b) I don't know your background and ambitions to go into such details... (e.g. stuff like this)

Edit: Changed the link to the full index as there can be found many more interesting articles. (Previously linked was 'Dynamic Range')