Railroad sound recordings

[Anonymous]

I have been thinking of taking up recording passing trains, but am not sure what the best approach will be. Specifically, I would like to know what equipment would be useful. I would like to be able to record sounds on something that will give me better results than a handheld tape recorder, any suggestions?

[Anonymous]

If you want to get some real nice high quality recordings, you should use a portable DAT recorder, that's what I use. The DAT (digital audio tape) and 1 microphone, a good condenser type mic is good. I sometimes take a Shure SM58 though to get good engine sounds as trains pass. Playback quality is excellent, but you have to keep recording levels in mind or you'll hear fried eggs on playback. I bet a portable minidisc would work good also, a lot more cost effective than DAT also.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the info! Where would I go to purchase a quality DAT recorder? How much should I expect to pay? Also, what is a good condenser type mic to purchase?

[mikeyuhas]

You might want to read http://www.trains.com/Content/Dynamic/Articles/000/000/000/364ehsjd.asp

[Anonymous]

Check out that article, it has some real good info. I work at a studio, so I was lucky enough to have a portable DAT available, although I have bought one for home. Sony makes a high quality portable DAT, model# PCM-M1. I use a TEAC DAT at work and bought a used PCM-M1 DAT for $400. The PCM goes for $600-700 new. You can get them at Guitar Center or a good music store, you sometimes find used ones there at a good price. Circuit City sometimes carries DAT portables (rarely though), but they usually always have portable minidisc recorders. These minidisc MD units are very good, we use them in the studio also. The quality is excellent, you can re-arrange tracks on the MD, and if you have another unit you can run digital copies of your recordings. You can buy them new starting at about $300, or get a used one in a pawn shop for less. Make sure they are can record as well as playback though. I like to use a Shure SM58 mic most of the time. It's a standard music mic but it works great for recording, great for live sound. New they run about $85.00 for a SM58, and a Beta58 runs about $150. You can buy a used SM58 in a music store as well for $40-50. A great mic, not a condenser mic though. A good condenser mic picks up all sounds that it hears in all directions around the mic. The SM58 ( a cardioid dynamic mic) picks up sounds in a certain pattern around the mic, mostly sound from the front. I like the 58 because if I hold it out, it won't pickup much of the sound I make behind the mic. A couple tips that I learned. Get a mic stand with a soft rubber base and pad the area around the microphone clip (or get a shock-mount clip for your specific mic). Sometimes you might be holding the mic out or the stand out, make sure you don't shake it too much or it sounds like an earthquake. Also use a windscreen on a windy day, but too much wind and it isn't worth recording because you'll get just wind and it does sound great like it does in the movies.
I'd recommend you get a used Shure SM58 ($40), a real good mini-disc recorder (300) and a short mic stand ($20). Get the right cables and you might need adaptors for the minidisc too ($25-35) and a few minidiscs ($3-5 each) and you'll be setup in great condition. Watch those levels too! Email me if you need any more info. I do this kind of thing for a living. I'll check back. Good luck and have fun, Pete

[Anonymous]

A couple more notes. If you want to save money and still get some pretty good recodings, you can buy a used Marrantz cassette recorder. We used to have one here, journalists and news reporters like to use them a lot. You can adjust the levels on recording as well. Not a bad option if you are looking to save some cash, with a good mic you can get some very useful sounds. Also I forgot the mention, headphones! You can get a good pair of (full ear sized) headphones at Circuit City for $20-35. Later, Pete

[Anonymous]

Wow, thanks alot Pete! You have given me alot to start with here. Another question I didn't think to ask, how would I record a stereo effect? I would suppose I would need at least two microphones, but would I need some sort of mixing board to go with them?
I think that this weekend I will make a trip to Best Buy, Circuit City, and a couple of music shops in my area to check out some prices of the gear you mentioned. Thanks again for all of your help!

[Anonymous]

I'd use 2 SM58 mics with 2 mic stands. Then I'd put the mics about 15-25 feet apart or more and have them both facing the side of the tracks, or both pointed toward your subject. A DAT will have 2 mic inputs for left/right stereo recording. On a minidisc recorder you've got that little 1/8" stereo plug (miniplug), and you would be using a stereo cable to come out of that plug and split to 2 separate cables for each mic. (There would be a few adaptors to get for the minidisc too, it's like adaptor hell). I've got a few pages on other ways to record in stereo, but I rely on this method alot, it works great for recording live music as well. To save the most ca***hough, I'd try renting the equipment for the weekend if you get the chance. I used to live in PA in Poconos, went to Philly alot and I know there are a few decent sound companies around there. If you call around on Friday, you can probably get a rental DAT with mics, stands and cabling for a decend 1 day price and use it the whole weekend & return it Monday. In Seattle I can rent a DAT & goodies for about $50 a day. The bigger sound companies can probably get you a better deal. It's about the best way to save the cash and get sounds what you want. Have fun and Good luck recording.
Pete