Any good sources or methods for preparing field recording samples?

The Lounge General Discussion
#61

I use a little h6 as well, and instead of the official wind breaker kit, I bought a cheap mic wind cover for £3 and a selfie stick as the stick has the same tripod screw hole that the h6 has.

I stick the wind jacket in, then pop it in the extendable stick and I’m ready to go. The stick serves two purposes:
Firstly it allows me to hold the mic higher to pick up more sounds
Secondly it stops me from holding the recorder, which has a horrible creaky plastic case. This allows for much better recordings as I don’t have awful sounds picked up via the case.

I live near the sea, and there’s also an arcade, pier, and fairground. All of which are great sources for material. I also live 2 mins from a train station, 10 mins from the local university, and a few minutes from a creak which is still used for transportation by small vessels.

#62

Yes, but a shotgun mike is supposed to be used outdoors. Using a shotgun mike in a smallish room will capture an unoptimal amount of the reverbrant field (when not used for ambience recording) compared to the direct field.

#63

Finding an optimal pair of mic and micpre is really difficult IME. Unless your mic is really highend, the preamp tone should be the kind that attenuates the undesirable aspects of the microphone response. Many lower tier mics have harsh highs/muffled highs, odd midrange response, unusably blurry off-axis response, or “paper sound” which does not take well to EQing (a lot of holes in the freq response). So always test a mic in context with your rig if at all possible before buying.

Lastly, I realize that in the context of creative field recording, these issues might not always give unsatisfactory results. Sometimes they can be exactly what one wants! But generally speaking, the most natural sounding response is often the most beautiful as well IMO

#64

If anyone’s interested I might sell my unused pair of these Lom Usi mics (pro xlr version)
https://lom.audio/product-category/microphones/

#65

Can they be used for Mid/Side recording? Basically you need one figure-of-eight and one cardioid to do M/S micing

#66

I have no idea, sorry.

#67

Nope, they’re omnis

#68

ok, thanks

#69

So I’ve been thinking a lot lately about implementing a field recorder in my daily work flow but had some questions first.

One of my concerns is how practical is it to incorporate into your daily routine?
is it time consuming to transfer files from device to computer than computer to sampler?

Also is it something you use often in your music productions?
Or is it just sort of a niche device.

I do lots of hiking and think it might be beneficial to start capturing sound out and about.
But I’m afraid it might be cool at first and never use it again.

Also too how impactful to your overall songs does the field recording sample play?
I know it’s mostly for background use and less often used as a prominent stand out sound in your song but trying to get an idea of how it effects the overall vibe/mood it has.
So basically, is it even worth adding.

Feedback appreciated.

#70

I’ve made entire tracks from field recordings: from files being barely processed to mangled beyond recognition. I incorporate recordings from ones I made myself on my mobile (quick capture) (and I don’t really recommend this…those mics are designed to capture the voice only, limited frequency) my Zoom to files grabed from pro libraries. They open a wealth of new sounds.

I gather youre more interested in using these as a textural, atmospheric mix “filler”. For this they are great. Depending on the recording, it can really change the mood of your track.

Whether they work for you or not depends on…you. And while perhaps a bit more cumbersome then incorporating a studio synth in your recordings, the pay off of the effort depends on…again you. Do you like them in your mix, do they fit well, is it worth the hassle ect.

I would say if you’re interested you should definitely encourage yourself to ensure you leave the house with a field recorder on the list of things you’d otherwise need. Force it for some weeks. Executing these initiatives are mainly routine based.

Now I always do some slight surgical eq and compression and noise removal. But i didn’t at first so I wouldn’t demand you do it now. But it does make working with them a lot easier.

Really it’s just a matter of trying it and see.

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#71

Maybe a little bit late, but I found this that could be helpful: Field RECORDING, Creative SAMPLING and SOUND DESIGN in Ableton Live - YouTube

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#72

A windscreen and a remote control to start the recording are super useful. Also not a must but really useful is a microphone stand, especially if you want to record longer clips.

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#73

Loscil’s Submers fits the bill, every track is named after a submarine.

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#74

Yes. I have one. The results are quite incredible.
But I have not used any of my recordings in any tracks.

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