Hey its OK we really are a bunch of cheap B@$t@rds...
And with congress's idea of a fee schedule is it any wonder??? Does Dragon allow someone a trial to play with??? I'm wondering about it with Al's favorite mic. If I could just allow Nancy to play with it without spending a lot upfront for what might be a no go, that would be sweet.
And don't knock cheap mics (price wise). As an audio engineer although there really is a difference between poorly designed and well designed mic, one of the most used, appreciated, abused, it took a lickin' and kept on tickin' mics has been around forever. The infamous Shure SM58. Remember Roger Daltery??? You can literally hammer a nail with the thing, have it look like it just got hit with buckshot while the "the microphone smells like a beer" and it just won't quit. Same frequency response and S/N ratio. Now is the thing as sensitive as some $1000 condensor mic? Will it even have that big radio sound of the EV's? Will it ever be as warm as a good ribbon? Will it capture those sizzle highs for great high hats and the like? Hell no, but try getting some top of the line condensor to be that reliable day in and day out no matter what. So if the software and computer recognize what you say as speech, does it really matter???
Hey Tom; as an old Audio tech, how much of the processing of the signal since it is starting as an analog signal from the air to the mic and it's diaphram thru it's coil and connections back to the PC has to do with the actual sound card recieving it? Both in terms of the analog side of the card (I'm sure there are old fashioned analog signal issues there, these things certainly are not running on XLR balanced connections with top sheilding at plus 4 or 8 studio or broadcast type levels) ; as well as the A/D conversion itself? And what about any software and processing anywhere along the chain?
This is not meant to bust on you at all, it is a sincere attempt to understand the process better. Also what I'm getting at is might there be several other factors that might explain things like Al's good outcomes with modest equipment verses standardized, control all variables and then only change one type testing.
Also are there things in software and processing that a decent end user could adjust that might help the program understand things, clean up the signal or help clarify things so it can better do it's job??? I could even see that perhaps what would be a great mic for actual sounds good to the human ear type things, might not actually be all that great for the software or computer. They may want to "hear it" in a way that isn't all that good for us, but it works for the software...
I remember when digital just came out, tape and CD's, everyone was talking about how clear but "cold" it all sounded. Meanwhile I would take stuff home to my old Sherwood set up and these new recordings sounded great in my living room with just this old stero and average speakers or decent Sienheizer headphones. Well it took awhile for my to realize why they sounded just as good timber wise for me at home while everyone else was choking on them. I was doing what we all do now with our studio recordings, I was adding my own warmth back in with my wonderful old tube amp. Now most engineers and producers are adding tube pre-amps to their signals before the board to gain back some of that old fashioned lost warmth that only good old analog had to offer. So what is "good" for the human animal is not always what is best for the computer.
Heck you know just how many of us audio guys are half deaf and have a real notch in our hearing right around those really important 1-4K hz frequencies that bring out the intelligbility in speach. But hey if you and I agree that is a kicking snare drum then whether or not our hearing is obviously different, then it is still a great snare drum. Sure I care about basic specs but one thing I learned was to pick what worked, I've used all sorts of against the rules, the standards, mics. Sometime because I was being forced to punt, I didn't have access to my first or second choice. And the second thing that recording and live sound reinforcement taught me was mic placement combined with understanding one's house, once out in the air as you well know the house, the people in it all play heavily in the final outcome. I'm like Mr Scott, I respect the laws of physics and try to work with, not against mother nature.
Just sort of thinking out loud and throwing it to you since you work with these things all the time. It's beeb awhile since I could talk this kind of shop with someone. Thanks much.
Last edited by hockeyref; 05/26/2008 5:01 AM.
