mojo_mattv Wrote:Just out of curiosity, what do you guys do? Just walk in with this stuff and set up before the show. I've seen some of you at show's when you're recording video (that's a little more obvious), but I never notice the audio tapers. What do you do with the mics and all the gear when recording? Do you have to stay pretty quiet through out the show so you don't pick yourself up singing instead of the band? Do you have to stand a certain distance from speakers? Do you need to drink the kool-aid to start taping? I'd love to start, but alas, broke ass university student. Still interested regardless.
When you saw me at The Music Hall I had my mics clipped to my camera stand.
The best spot to mount the audio gear is close to the soundboard as that's where the sound should be the best - because the soundguy mixes to what he hears...
The mics are usually put on a stand and the stand is raised to about 8 feet or so - again this depends on the venue, where we're set-up, etc. If stands are not allowed the mics are clipped to our shirt collar or brim of a ball cap.
All of my gear can fit in my pockets.
Audio
Church Audio CA-11 (Omnis and Cards) Microphones
Church Audio CA-9100 Preamp
Church Audio eBay Store
Something similar to this:
Tascam DR-1 Recorder
Some folks have more extensive kits, but they usually fit in a small backpack. Run the wires from the mics to the bag, place the bag on the floor between your feet, or under the seat.
We stay pretty quiet so that we just get the band, but there are different kinds of mics, and different pickup patterns that also help. Certain mics are very directional - meaning they pick up what they are pointed at - whereas others are omnidirectional - they pick up sounds from all directions.
Understanding how these mics work, and where to place them results in the best recordings.
markslog, Mr. Dave and dreyfuss are much more experienced in this than I am and I'm sure that they can elaborate if you need more info.
And as for being a poor student - it's not that expensive to get into it. A set-up like mine is less than $500 - and you can scale mine back to just the recorder and mics (eliminate the preamp) when you start out.