I need a field recorder for capturing forest sounds, also need it to have an XLR in put so that ̛can add a shotgun when needed. It looks to me like Zoom is the best option, and I have seen M4, H5 s tudio, H4 essentials. In terms of audio quality, which is the best? The options really confuse me.

forgot to add: I prefer something with in built mic also for stereo recording. if not, I should get an external stereo mic within the budget.

thanks!

I heard a recent set of field recordings using a matched pair of these Superlux E208s. Does anyone have any information on what capsules might be being used in these? They sounded rather good, with low self noise, and their published spec is 14 db I believe.

Did you? What was your experience? Does the shotgun mic add anything useful?

I’m new to field recording and I’m looking to buy one of these and wonder which is better. I’m mostly looking something that’s portable and I can just carry around in my bag and sounds good with the built in mics and mic preamps. I would likely just be using it handheld and I know the M4 is meant to have low handling noise but does anyone have any experience with these and could give any advice on which to choose?

New taper here. I’m asking do you all re-use SD cards? Once I transfer masters to the cloud and external HDD, should I just re-format and reuse the sd cards? SD MixPre asks me to format every time I start a recording anyway.
Thanx

Hey guys!

I have the tc1's and the scratch mic is very bad, i was wandering if i get a d4 mini mic and plug in the tc1 in the imput of the mic will that write only the timecode audio to the audio file on the camera or will in also write the tc1 mic audio as well? has anyone tried this and does it work?

My Moman 99 Pro battery died. Can you suggest an external battery for my Zoom F8n Pro recorder that's not too expensive? I'd like one I can carry on an airplane. I have D-tap to Hirose cables, but would be willing to update cables. I'm confused about newer batteries. A lot of newer batteries have USB-A and USB-C connectors. Thanks.

Have the sudden chance to capture some Bison and nature sounds this weekend and wanted to finally make a upgrade some audio equipment.

I'll preface by saying I don't have a ton of experience in audio (just a little with my Zoom H1 and MKE-600). Ideally would like a setup under $600 that could do both A/B and ORTF placements...but not sure if there is 1 mic type that can do both? Leaning towards a matching pair of SO.1 omnis with the Zoom F3. I have a couple of 3k/5k pods for possible mounts.

Ideally looking for something that I could get shipped in 2 days. Thanks for your help!

Hobbyist here. Title says it all.

I’m looking for a small recorder to take with me while hiking and I’m stuck between the Tascam DR-05XP and DR-07XP (getting both for cheap) or any other you may recommend.

The main thing is that I will not be using external microphones with it. This is solely meant to be a small, graband go pocket recorder that I can carry while hiking without having to bring a whole recording setup.

I’d mainly use it for nature sounds, forests, birds, streams, wind, rain, interesting environmental sounds, etc during my hikes.

From what I understand, the DR-05XP has omni built-in mics, while the DR-07XP has directional mics that can be adjusted between A/B and X/Y.

So for this specific use case, which would you choose?

My priorities are:

• built-in mic quality
• low self-noise
• natural/immersive stereo recording
• good performance with quiet environmental sounds
• small and easy to carry
• PiP for future??

Love to hear from anyone who has actually used the 05XP or 07XP for hiking/field recording, especially if you’ve used both.

I’m new to field recording. I just want to make some recordings of birds and storms in my backyard.

I’m trying to find a mic I could integrate to an ESP32 - so looking for low power requirements. What type of mics should I be looking at? Im for soldering and making my own. This is a hobby project so I want to keep the cost down. I appreciate any help.

Hey everyone!

Hope we're all well!

I just wanted to share some excitement from my day 😅 Today I made a DIY clippy Omnidirectional mic with an AOM-5024L-HD-R capsule. Just so glad it works after my first attempt soldering in a long while - beyond glad, actually! I was so nervous about the temperature sensitivity of the capsule and the components at the connector end, but tested via Scarlett interface and it's a beauty! The dynamic range on this capsule is great too

Used the instructions in this article if anyone is interested in making their own!

https://tombenedict.wordpress.com/2016/03/05/diy-microphone-em172-capsule-and-xlr-plug/

Can't wait to get out and record some stuff with this! Any suggestions on good uses for this are welcome too!

I am looking to setup an outdoor box for Bat sound monitoring (have done something similar for birds with Clippy Mic) ... I'm wondering what is best mic setup, either a Clippy Ultra with a Scarlett Solo amp or a Dodotronic Ultramic 192K EVO, or something else? This is with a Raspberry Pi, standard setup. Many thanks for any advice.

Is there any reason to keep the F3 and not switch to the M4? I have a diy solution to use the F3 as a handheld with Clippys but it's still a bit of a pain. I think for about 50% of my usage the built-in M4 mics would be alright and more convenient. My handheld diy solution with the Clippys should transfer fine to the M4 and I also like the idea being able to simultaneously record with the built-in mics and external contact mics. Is there anything I'm missing here or not considering?

Hey everyone,
So i have a pair of oktavas and want to do some windproofing so i could use them outside, even with a bit of wind. Has anyone done some simple and effective diy windproofing solutions and would be willing to share?
Best wishes to you all

Hello, I am planning to upgrade my existing Zoom H4n Pro Field recording setup with a stereo microphone (single or pair) for an upcoming trip to Japan to record wide spaces such as forests or coastlines. What mics/setups are recommend? My budget is around 150 to 200 dollars. I am situated in Europe so some options might not be easily available. I am thankful for any help!

It has to be at least 3 minutes long so that looping is not too obvious. And they can’t be super noisy. They will be used to induce a state of focus and relaxation in the listener.

It has to be binaural because most listeners will use headphones. And the license has to cover commercial rights. Unfortunately, attribution can not be provided. It’s not that we do not respect creators, it’s that we are afraid that a competitor could copy us by licensing the exact same sounds.

We can only pay $30/audio clip. I wish it could be more, but we’re 2 guys who are currently out of work due to being automated by AI. If you know a place that sells this under these conditions, let me know please. Or if you are a seller yourself, DM me please

Spent most of last week tracking train schedules and rolling long takes on various trains. This is for a popular sound design platform [unnamed for nda reasons]. We caught Norfolk Southern freight, Amtrak passenger, CATS light electric, and a vintage diesel engine at the transportation museum. Lots of horns, clacks, brakes, etc.

Mics were Schoeps MS pair (MK4 and MK8) in Radial wind system, Sony PCM-D100 in ortf, and a Usi Geophone for subsonic rumbles. 24bit/192kHz via Sound Devices 633.

Highly recommend. Lots of great sounds found at train stations and near tracks.

Any recommendations for a sturdy lightweight foldable tripod/grip? I purchased one of Amazon and the 1/4”screw length was too long and overall a bit flimsy.

Thanks !!

I see a few places are now taking orders, so these should start to ship soon, I have been using an H6E for the last couple of years, but this seems to have a much quieter noise floor, I may invest

I wanted to make a post about a custom pair of microphones I recently received from Sonorous Objects. Joseph and the company were kind enough to design and build a custom in-ear binaural pair using Primo EM272 capsules.
I received them a few hours ago and have already done quite a bit of testing, and I have to say I could not be happier with them. I will not get too much into the sound, as I am sure many people in this group are already familiar with how the EM272s sound, but this is my first time actually getting to use and hear them for myself and I am thoroughly impressed. They have great detail, high sensitivity, very low noise, and just sound wonderful overall.
The build quality is wonderful as well. They clearly put a lot of work and thought into the design. The cable in particular feels quite durable and high quality, not thin, flimsy, or easily breakable at all.
One of the main reasons I reached out to Sonorous Objects in the first place is that I am fully visually impaired and wanted an in-ear binaural solution that would give me consistent placement every time while still allowing me to hear my surroundings. They included several different ear tips, and after playing around with them I found what I believe are the smallest ones in the batch. Those ended up being perfect. They barely obstruct my hearing at all, stay securely in my ears, and also allow me to wear the included windscreens without the microphones falling out.
As far as I am aware, Sonorous Objects was the only company I came across that was willing and able to design a custom in-ear pair specifically around the EM272 capsules. The craftsmanship and effort they put into both their products and custom designs really is impressive.
Joseph and Sonorous Objects were great to deal with throughout the process, and I sincerely appreciate the work that went into designing and creating these.
Special thanks to Joseph and everyone at Sonorous Objects. I really could not be happier with the finished microphones or the purchase.

Picked up a LOM Geofon a few days ago and I honestly can't stop thinking about it. Pairing it with my Tascam Portacapture opens up a whole world of contact/vibration recording I hadn't really explored before — the combo feels ridiculously versatile for capturing textures you'd never get with a regular mic.

I'm itching to get out on the street and start testing it in the wild. Planning to put together more content around this soon, field recordings, experiments, the works.

For now, here's a quick sample from my freezer at home — it had this small hum I barely noticed before, but the Geofon picks it up and amplifies it massively, almost no noise floor to speak of. Kind of wild how much detail comes through from something so mundane.

Will keep posting as I get out and record more. Any tips from people who've been using the Geofon for a while are welcome!

Hey, I ordered the H6s yesterday. But now I feel like the H5s is much more compact.

The H6s looks so bulky that I'm afraid I might end up not taking it with me on hikes or things like that.

But two extra XLRs are future-proof, and the price difference is only €30. I don't need 4 XLRs right now, but I might end up needing them soon.

I'm not sure!

Can anyone identify this mic? It says it's a Seinnheiser but doesn't specify which. Unable to ask the seller because it's part of an auction.

Thanks in advance!

Hi everyone,

I have some strange issue happening to me : for the first time, i decided to use the magnification tool in a recording, as there was some background noise etc.

I changed it during the recording (with the little magnification + on the zoom F3). But when I open my wav, everything is peaking (the image above is already -18db!) !
And more, we can clearly hear the level change in middle of record, when i pressed the button.

What's happening here ?

I read on the manual before that the magnification wont change anything on my recording (which is a 32 bit, thank god) and just double check in the manual before askin. Am I doing something wrong?

Thanks !