so how did the mr 8 with the sm 57s work out?

Hi georgeped. The MR8 is great--quite easy to use. It came with a 128MB compact flash card which can only hold about 20 minutes, so I'm going to buy a 1Gig card (currently ~$99) that will hold and hour and a half's worth.

I haven't yet figured out how I want to mic the piano though. I've been so busy I haven't had much time to experiment. Ditto with the various settings on the MR8.

Fun!

Thanks Bernard

Someone? Anyone? Need help!

My teacher recorded me today. It's not the best equipment, but there I am, on CD (and it wasn't even a bad take!). Except, I can't upload it. Is there a way to convert it to a mp3 or wav file? My computer says it's a cda file. Does this make sense?

thanks in advance!
penny

It does. You need to "rip" the file from the CD, Penny.

If you don't have Nero, or something similar, CDex should do the trick.

http://www.cdex.n3.net

HTH


David

You are so sweet to help! BUT ...

I've copied it to my computer, and now it's a wma file. I guess I'll click on that link you show above.

EERRRGGHHH

penny

Yikes, I downloaded it. But it's not exactly user friendly. Any idea where to start?

penny

*bump*


(help, only a week and a half left!)

penny

Penny,

If you intend to submit the recording to the Piano World CD project, send me an e-mail or private message -- I'll give you an address where you can send me the CD. I'll do the conversion for you and retain a soft copy of the material for inclusion in Piano World CD.

(I use Apple's Macintosh computer and they have something called iTunes can let you "rip" music from CD and convert to MP3 quite easily -- and they have a version for Windows that you can use for free -- see http://www.itunes.com/ if you want to give that a shot.)

Just made a recording following Dan M's playbook (a pair of MXL 990 microphones and an M-Audio AudioBuddy pre-amp). See THIS POST (click here) for details and link to MP3. Thanks, Dan M!

Comments and suggestions on how to make better audio recordings are welcome and will be greatly appreciated.

So how much does it cost to have a "decent" set-up to record yourself? I'm on a budget here, folks - new piano and all.

I really hate to say it but it really depends on your definition of decent.

I hesitate to throw out any number but I might draw the line at $500.

You may consider hiring a professional to bring portable equipment to your home to record you.

I did.

This is an old post but I realize I never replied to it.

No, it's white noise, noisy circuitry. Period. No 60 cycle. I'm using a plain unpowered mic, but it doesn't matter. I've turned off all other inputs, but the noise is internal. Operating off battery power makes no difference. It also makes no difference whether a mic is even plugged in or not (although when one isn't it uses the internal mic) but the noise is not external to the laptop.

I have been trying to record some of my piano playing with a Logitech webcam; I heard they're pretty good. It's the Quickcam Pro 9000, but I've been having static problems. Moving the cam elsewhere doesn't seem to do very much; there's still static. I don't know if it's simply because I'm using a webcam or something else is causing it.

You can see the results here; please disregard the bad playing.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5qHDB_fs5Ps

Hi to you all out there,

I am really pleased I found this thread, as I am an ex sound technician, with over twenty years experience in TV audio.

The really good news is that today, you can record an amazing quality recording with even a basic laptop, and a good microphone.

If you alrady have the laptop, All you really need is the Audio Technika USB Cardiod Condenser microphone. AT2020USB.

This is available from http://www.hostingsuccess.com/audiocreation

I recommend this mic, as it has a large diaphragm, and wil sound more natural, and clean, as well as faithfully capture your recording nuances in detail.

You can also use free software, like Audacity, and be set up to record in a matter of an hour or less, after installing the software on your laptop.

Whilst some audio phiole people may suggest the idea is too simple, I can assure you that it does work, and I use this very microphone for all my recordings, and even when I use the phone on my computer. Most of the people I speak to say it sounds like I am right there, as it is so natural, and clear.

Please do not feel you need t spend thousands of dollars, like you had to in the late eighties, before the advent of the laptop made audio recording more convenient.

In addition, you can then convert the file to an MP3 file, for this project, or any other.

I will be happy to answer any questions you may have, and really feel that audio recording has made it to the point where the 'more average joe' can record a professional result at homw.

I say the use of a USB microphone, as there is little adjustment required, and the sound is purer, as it is all in the digital domain, and not analogue, going throu a sound card conversion, and so on.

It just works, for the non technically minded people.

See for yourself...

All the best

Martin

Hi Martin,

Thank you for your post. I am thinking about buying the AT2020USB Mic.
Since you posted this over a year ago, are there any new produces came out?

Thanks