Tips for Audio Recording

General Tips

The key in getting good audio is to choose a sheltered location for interviews. An external microphone is recommended as this greatly enhances recordings in comparison to the internal microphones on digital recorders.

For any field situation, turning off the automatic control feature is recommended. Instead find a relatively quiet place to record and set the gain manually. The ideal is to record a good, strong but not clipped signal to start with. Recording levels should be controlled manually and a wind screen should always be used on any microphone.

Recording at higher bitrates, or using plug-in power or phantom power for your microphones, will tend to reduce battery life considerably. Academic/archival standards for field audio dictate 24 bit, 48 kHz recording minimum. We recommend this if possible, though if space really is at a premium, 16-bit, 48kHz might be acceptable for survey use.