MP3 player

[Ty Ford]

[Robin Probyn] “On a recent job we used a mini plug feed from the mixer into a consumer MP3 player.. to mic in.

The sound was very distorted,but ok for transcription at low volume… would that be a line to mic level problem? the player is consumer but was over $100.. so I think its a fairly good one..

Also there was a request for same time code as camera onto the MP3 audio… is there any way to do this with a consumer level player?”

Hello Robin and welcome to the Cow Audio Forum.

Yes, you probably fed line level into a mic level input. There could also have been impedance problems and mono/stereo problems.

Tough one, but doable. Where’s the TC coming from? Can you pad it down to mic level? Then get some sort of Y cable to get TC on one input and mic level audio on the other. You want the TC to be lower in level; maybe -12. You’d need a mixer with a spare mic level output.

The Sony MZ100 Minidisc recorder can be adjusted from mic to -10, I think. I know it records at 44.1 16-bit.

Regards,

Ty Ford

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[Will Salley]

[Robin Probyn] “Also there was a request for same time code as camera onto the MP3 audio… is there any way to do this with a consumer level player? “

I’m fairly sure this won’t work. I’ve tried to record audio time code to a recorder and the reader had a hard time resolving the time code. I think it might have to do with the heavy compression encoded in the recorder. The recorder I used had no way to increase the bit rate, which was fixed at 128kbs stereo, which means the mono TC track was 64kbs. A much higher bit rate may yield satisfactory results, but I’d certainly do some tests.

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[Robin Probyn]

Thanks for the replies.

At the end of the day it sounds like a hassle,and with all the other hassles I just dont need it 🙂

Is this a common request?

Thanks

Robin

[Ty Ford]

I recorded split audio/mp3 on my Sound Devices 744T for a client who asked for that. They wanted it for transcription purposes. I asked them about the compression issue and if they had done it before. He assured me they had. I did it as described before and got n complaints from them.

Regards,

Ty Ford

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[Ty Ford]

Hello Robin,

It is when you’re doing extemporaneous interviews and you have no idea what people will say. You send the time code stamped files to a transcription service and they type out what was said with time code so you can read whet they said, pick the ones you want and locate them on the source tape by using the time code.

The system works pretty well, but sometimes the best takes on paper don’t look so good on camera.

Regards,

Ty Ford

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[Robin Probyn]

This mixer has a mini plug out for A channel and B channel… besides the usual XLR out.I can change the out put from line to mic but then my main XLR out sound will change to that level also.. but I want to keep the sound going onto tape as line level out from the mixer.

No idea how the TC would be got from this miniplug out,or I would need a BNC to mini plug from TC out from the camera? I can see why people want it,but what did they do before MP3 players and broadband?

Thanks again

[Ty Ford]

What mixer?

They used audio cassette in the past.

Regards,

Ty Ford

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[Robin Probyn]

Its a Japanese one made by Sigma, 302,they sell in the US under the Kame name.. sort of standard one in Japan..good mixer..

But dont know if the TC would come out from the miniplug .. is there such a cable as BNC to mini..and would that work from TC out?

Could I take audio from mixer..TC from camera… into a Y connector into the MP3 player… sorry if this is totally mad.!!!

[Ty Ford]

[Robin Probyn] “Could I take audio from mixer..TC from camera… into a Y connector into the MP3 player… sorry if this is totally mad.!!!”

That was my suggestion. TC is nasty and may bleed in your mixer. Try it and see.

Ty Ford

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[Robin Probyn]

so when I down load the file into a computer.. how do I see the TC?

Thanks