Audio in Rich Media
Audio Gear for Rich Media
This article is the second in a series exploring how audio can be integrated with other media to create richer, more dynamic journalistic features on news websites and beyond.
In the first installment of our series, we looked at how some forward-thinking journalists and photojournalists are adding audio to their coverage, enriching both their work and their bank accounts. This article outlines the gear you need to follow their lead.
We’ll look at the essential hardware, software, and accessories. You’ll get an idea of how these things work, how much they cost, and what sort of performance you can expect at various price points. Most important, you#146;ll know what questions to ask before revving up your credit card.
The Rich Media Toolkit
Chances are that no two media pros carry identical sets of tools. But it’s easy to summarize the basics:
- An audio recorder
- One or more microphones
- Headphones
- Recording media
- Accessories (cables, mic stands, pop filters, batteries, etc.)
- Audio editing software
Most of today’s multimedia mavens rely on dedicated digital recorders. But first, a few words about some of the old-school alternatives.
For decades, the journalist’s audio tool of choice was the portable cassette recorder. These can still get the job done, though cassettes are gradually going the way of the main street general store. There are other disadvantages to cassettes: They’re noisier than digital recorders, thanks to their mechanical parts and the inherent noise of analog tape, and their built-in microphones are merely adequate on all but the most deluxe models.
These shortcomings may not matter if you’re recording an interview for transcription or archival purposes. But when it comes to capturing immersive ambient sound, pristine digital beats noisy analog.
There’s another drawback to tape: You have to transfer the material to your computer in real time, a slow process that may also require an external audio interface. With a digital recorder, you simply connect the device to your computer via USB and drag your recordings directly to your audio/video application. It takes seconds.
That’s also why new-school digital recorders have the edge on earlier digital devices that record to MiniDisc, CD, or DAT tape. These offer clean, quiet sound, but don’t support USB file transfers or quick drag-and-drop file management.
Portable digital recorders fall into two general categories: less expensive and more expensive. Low-cost options include ultra-compact memo recorders like the Olympus WS-100, which sells for about $60. Like many budget digital recorders, it saves files in Windows' .wma format, but it's easy to convert these to Mac-friendly .mp3s using an inexpensive shareware convertor such as EasyWMA. Another budget option is a small microphone that snaps onto your iPod, such as the $94.95 XtremeMac MicroMemo or the $69.95 Belkin TuneTalk Stereo.
Both solutions let you load files onto your computer via USB. But the sound quality, while adequate for, say, recording a college lecture, may not be suitable for broadcast. The same goes for recording directly into your laptop. Even if you can situate the computer’s built-in mic in the right location to capture voices and other sounds, the computer’s tiny mics generally don’t deliver pro-quality results. Most serious laptop recordists rely on both external microphones and a hardware audio interface.
(To hear what these options sound like, check out the audio clips in the “What They Hear is What You Get” sidebar.)
The Olympus WS-100, a low-priced digital memo recorder.
Higher-quality digital recorders sidestep all these pitfalls. The leading models (see “Four Digital Faves” for feature-by-feature comparisons) are compact and reasonably rugged. They record to either CF or SD media cards, the same ones used in most digital cameras. They can be powered by batteries or AC power. They offer good visual feedback: meters to safeguard your recording levels, time counters, and more. You can use their built-in stereo mics, which offer cleaner, crisper sound than the ones in lower-priced gadgets, or connect external mics. They capture sound at CD quality or better, but also let you record to various MP3 formats when you need to conserve memory.
The Right Mic
For a quick and dirty introduction to microphones, see Apple’s Microphones 101 article. For a super-quick intro, read on.
Microphones are grouped in several overlapping categories. The two most popular types are dynamic mics and condenser mics. Dynamic mics are usually less expensive and are practically indestructible. Condensers tend to offer better sound quality, but they’re more fragile, and they require external power. That’s no problem if you use a modern digital recorder, since these supply phantom power through the mic’s cable.
Condenser mics can cost thousands of dollars. But those ultra-high-end models are chiefly used for music recording, and they’re overkill for most journalistic applications. (If you expect to work in rough-and-tumble conditions, you might consider a higher-end dynamic such as the Beyerdynamic M 58, which sells on the street for about $240.)
The Beyerdynamic M 58, a high-quality dynamic microphone good for rough-and-tumble recording conditions.
Another factor is the microphone’s pickup pattern. An omni (for omni-directional) mic hears sounds from all directions equally, while cardioids emphasize sounds coming from the front while deemphasizing sounds from the back and sides. (You might compare an omni to a wide-angle camera lens, and a cardioid to a portrait lens.) Hypercardioid and supercardioid mics are like cardioids, only more so. Supercardioids are sometime called shotgun mics. They’re good at zeroing in on one specific sound from a distance. (Think telephoto lens.) Omnis are good for recording ambient sound. Cardioid mics are better for focusing on a single subject.
Most mics record in mono. Some record in stereo. You can also make stereo recordings using a pair of mono mics. See the sidebar “Are Two Channels Better Than One?” for more on mono vs. stereo.
