Regnen 11,
What type of microphone did you use with your digital recorder? I assume that you used some sort of external amplifier/microphone....
Thanks a bunch!
contact microphones
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regnen11
- Member
- Posts: 165
- Joined: 09 Jan 2006 19:17
- x 7
microphone
I've three...
a small omni-directional on a 3' cord - the head is 1/4" wide (black) --- bought on Ebay from a seller in Canada (Quebec) for $ 15.00 including shipping
a "pen microphone" also omni-directional on 5' cord - it looks like an inexpensive "Bic" ball point pen (also bought this one on Ebay for about $ 10.00)
finally,
I've a cardioid microphone that I picked up from "Giant Squid Audio", the guys from Michigan and has a nice website. It has a 6' cord (which I keep thinking I should take some where and have cut down to 3' for ease and lower resistance). This one is preferred when I'm a location with greater background or ambiant noise. This is my most expensive at $ 25.00 plus shipping.
All of them have black cords and are small enough to slip under most hotel room doors (depends on the hotel...). The GSA microphone works well when its place right under the door and pointed into the room.
The other two (being omnidirectional) pick up noises from the hallway (or anywhere else) almost as well as from the room. If its a quiet area, it's never a problem but when there is extra noise AND I can tell that the target couple have the lights out AND are "busy", I've used that extra cord length to get the microphone completely on the other side of the door and a little deeper into the target room.
Makes a big difference in what you pick up and significantly reduces the ambient clutter. Titan Fans is an example of this technique...
Warning: you need to have a process for monitoring the activity if you use this technique.... a break for the bathroom could take someone right past or on top of that "strange black wire sticking into their room".
Reg
a small omni-directional on a 3' cord - the head is 1/4" wide (black) --- bought on Ebay from a seller in Canada (Quebec) for $ 15.00 including shipping
a "pen microphone" also omni-directional on 5' cord - it looks like an inexpensive "Bic" ball point pen (also bought this one on Ebay for about $ 10.00)
finally,
I've a cardioid microphone that I picked up from "Giant Squid Audio", the guys from Michigan and has a nice website. It has a 6' cord (which I keep thinking I should take some where and have cut down to 3' for ease and lower resistance). This one is preferred when I'm a location with greater background or ambiant noise. This is my most expensive at $ 25.00 plus shipping.
All of them have black cords and are small enough to slip under most hotel room doors (depends on the hotel...). The GSA microphone works well when its place right under the door and pointed into the room.
The other two (being omnidirectional) pick up noises from the hallway (or anywhere else) almost as well as from the room. If its a quiet area, it's never a problem but when there is extra noise AND I can tell that the target couple have the lights out AND are "busy", I've used that extra cord length to get the microphone completely on the other side of the door and a little deeper into the target room.
Makes a big difference in what you pick up and significantly reduces the ambient clutter. Titan Fans is an example of this technique...
Warning: you need to have a process for monitoring the activity if you use this technique.... a break for the bathroom could take someone right past or on top of that "strange black wire sticking into their room".
Reg
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SSL11
- Member
- Posts: 2
- Joined: 16 Jul 2006 08:03
Regnen 11,
Thanks for the tips on the microphones. Can you make some suggestions for recording sounds without being able to stick something under the door? I've found that you can sometimes hear what's going on if you press your ear against the wall. However, I can't seem to figure out how to capture sounds THROUGH walls using microphones.
Any suggestions or tips?
Thanks again in advance!
Thanks for the tips on the microphones. Can you make some suggestions for recording sounds without being able to stick something under the door? I've found that you can sometimes hear what's going on if you press your ear against the wall. However, I can't seem to figure out how to capture sounds THROUGH walls using microphones.
Any suggestions or tips?
Thanks again in advance!
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yeppie
- Site Admin
- Posts: 8317
- Joined: 17 Dec 2005 03:06
- x 6295
Hi ssl11,
there are contact microphones on the market which promise to do the job of listening through walls. you will find some basic information in the hardware forum
http://www.yeppie.org/ssl-forum/viewtopic.php?t=49
http://www.yeppie.org/ssl-forum/viewtopic.php?t=165
i once bought a cheap one on ebay, never really had it work. better (?) and more expensive ones can be found at spy shops like these:
german vendors
http://www.gutzeit-gmbh.de/html/richtmikrifone.html
http://www.alarm.de/security/
http://www.spyshop-online.de/?lang=DEU
producer of mics:
http://www.sun-mechatronics.co.jp/en/pr ... e_top.html
there are many shops like these around the world to be found online, i have bookmarked only the german vendors. a search on google will help you find more.
there are contact microphones on the market which promise to do the job of listening through walls. you will find some basic information in the hardware forum
http://www.yeppie.org/ssl-forum/viewtopic.php?t=49
http://www.yeppie.org/ssl-forum/viewtopic.php?t=165
i once bought a cheap one on ebay, never really had it work. better (?) and more expensive ones can be found at spy shops like these:
german vendors
http://www.gutzeit-gmbh.de/html/richtmikrifone.html
http://www.alarm.de/security/
http://www.spyshop-online.de/?lang=DEU
producer of mics:
http://www.sun-mechatronics.co.jp/en/pr ... e_top.html
there are many shops like these around the world to be found online, i have bookmarked only the german vendors. a search on google will help you find more.
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mjj9994
- Knight
- Posts: 1043
- Joined: 20 Dec 2005 23:06
- x 184
Unfortunately.... if you can put your ear to the wall and hear it usually means there is something carrying the sound to you (not just the hollow wall).
This is both good and bad news for us audiovouyers....and could mean a few things:
1) Very rare.. but best condition for sounds through objects
The location you place your ear is just the perfect acoustic location for capturing the source sounds (meaning the sounds bounce off and where you have chosen is the loudest point on the wall)... very rare..but the best for recording. This could be from hollow walls, no insulation at the spot you choose, etc.
2) More likely and not so good for sounds through objects
The location you have chosen is where there are pipes/ducts/wires/etc that the sound travels through. Not so good in that if the water/ac/heat is turned on during your recording, that will cause unwanted background noise (and in some cases completely drown out the sound you are attempting to record). In hotels, this is often my experience.
Just my theory.... Eighthman or someone else with more experience may have more insight on the topic.
If you are planning on using it for 'through-door' or 'through-window' recordings, just be very careful... because unless you are going to stay at the location with the equipment (which is another risk entirely).. there is a risk of someone discovering your equipment ... and then perhaps a loss in your new investment.
Don't take this to mean contact mics are bad.... they are definately a useful tool in the audiovouyers arsenal.... just not many of us have them due to cost involved, etc.... and don't know if the sounds you get from them are worth the price of the device. But if you have the means and dont mind experimenting... pick one up!!
This is both good and bad news for us audiovouyers....and could mean a few things:
1) Very rare.. but best condition for sounds through objects
The location you place your ear is just the perfect acoustic location for capturing the source sounds (meaning the sounds bounce off and where you have chosen is the loudest point on the wall)... very rare..but the best for recording. This could be from hollow walls, no insulation at the spot you choose, etc.
2) More likely and not so good for sounds through objects
The location you have chosen is where there are pipes/ducts/wires/etc that the sound travels through. Not so good in that if the water/ac/heat is turned on during your recording, that will cause unwanted background noise (and in some cases completely drown out the sound you are attempting to record). In hotels, this is often my experience.
Just my theory.... Eighthman or someone else with more experience may have more insight on the topic.
If you are planning on using it for 'through-door' or 'through-window' recordings, just be very careful... because unless you are going to stay at the location with the equipment (which is another risk entirely).. there is a risk of someone discovering your equipment ... and then perhaps a loss in your new investment.
Don't take this to mean contact mics are bad.... they are definately a useful tool in the audiovouyers arsenal.... just not many of us have them due to cost involved, etc.... and don't know if the sounds you get from them are worth the price of the device. But if you have the means and dont mind experimenting... pick one up!!
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Rograd
- Member
- Posts: 237
- Joined: 12 Nov 2006 04:11
- x 4
Re: contact microphones
Does anyone have any experience with contact mikes? How do they stay against a vertical surface like a wall?
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jinhui
- Member
- Posts: 217
- Joined: 04 Nov 2008 20:35
- x 96
Re: contact microphones
usually with modelling clay or you hold them...Rograd wrote:Does anyone have any experience with contact mikes? How do they stay against a vertical surface like a wall?
@everybody: keep your fingers away from the alarm.de shop! that one is highly untrustworthy!!
took me 3 months and a lot of anger and effort to get (most of) my money back. and i'm not the only one as i found out with google...