Recording - December 2010 - 6

Note to faithful writers: When sending your letters by email, please remember to include your name and where you hail from.
Sample rate woes I’m recording a band demo using a MOTU 8pre with an Alesis AI3 lightpipe interface, for a total of 16 inputs. In order to get it to record, I had to set Digital Performer’s clock to ADAT interface. When I listen back using internal clock source, the tracks are slow and a whole step low. Even when I bounce to disk, the tracks are the wrong speed and pitch. I recorded at 44.1kHz, 24-bit. Help!
Hal Logan via email

in general large-diaphragm mics tend to be a little more beamy on the top than a small-diaphragm equivalent. But it is the pattern that is making the proximity boost, not the microphone technology. A large-diaphragm mic with a wide pattern would have the same proximity effect as a smalldiaphragm one with an identical pattern, and likewise a dynamic mic with the same pattern as a condenser would have the same degree of proximity effect. You can make generalizations to some extent but only to the degree to which the microphone pattern is reflected by your generalization, because it is exclusively the pattern from which the proximity boost is derived.
Scott Dorsey via email

Hal, thanks for writing. Not having the gear in front of me, I have to go with this sentence of yours: “The tracks are slow and a whole step low”—that sounds like the typical thing you’ll hear when dealing with the difference between 48 kHz and 44.1 kHz sample rates. Something was set to record at 48 kHz (the ADAT clock rate, most likely) and from then on you heard it playing back at 44.1 kHz. Just to see if that’s right, set playback at 48 kHz and check tempo and pitch.—LzR SM57 loading Hi Paul, after reading your article on impedance loading for the Shure SM57 [May 2006 and available on www.recordingmag.com—Ed.], I am very eager to give it a try. I am wondering how to determine which wattage of resistor I should use?
David Taylor via email

Paul J. Stamler replies: Thanks for writing, David. It won’t matter, as no significant power is being transferred or dissipated. A 1/4W or 1 /8W will be fine. The more important spec is the resistance itself, and how consistently you can rely on the labeled resistance being accurate. I recommend using a 1% metal film resistor, and 681 ohms is a good starting point for most preamps and boards. Peace—PJS Proximity validity The review of the Earthworks SR40 in the July 2010 issue has a reply from Earthworks that talks about proximity effect in a way that is sort of right but sort of not right. What people need to know about proximity effect is that is is completely a function of the microphone pattern. An omni microphone that purely responds to pressure changes will not have any proximity effect; a figure-8 mic that purely responds to air velocity will have a lot of it. A cardioid that responds to both will have something in between, and the more directional the cardioid pattern gets, the more proximity effect it will have. When Earthworks says that “large-diaphragm mics have an exaggerated or boosted low frequency response,” this isn’t strictly true except as regards the pattern. A large-diaphragm omni will tend to actually be directional at high frequencies and will correspondingly have a little proximity effect, and

Aw shucks I have been a faithful subscriber to Recording for the last three years and will continue well into the future. I just wanted to send a much appreciated kudos for April 2010’s articles on mastering. As a home-studio owner who does his own “mastering”, I found the articles both informative and useful. Things as simple as using different mics to make a track separate acoustically is something I wouldn’t have considered. Then June 2010 and the articles on mics, their function and application... well, that just took the proverbial cake. Excellent! I would like to see more of these “what they are and how to use them” articles in future issues. I would guess that 99.9% of your readership is just like me, nonprofessional makers of music, for fun and enjoyment. I think the reason those articles worked so well is quite simple: they cut to the chase, how these items work and common applications for them. Thanks again for the fine and informative work.
Michael Kinser via email

Michael, thanks for writing. We’re glad we’re hitting your sweet spot in terms of teaching what you need to know, and plan to keep on bringing you more articles of this type. Of course, as you get better at your craft, you’ll eventually come to know the elementary stuff... and then we hope you appreciate the more advanced applications articles and high-end product reviews we also publish! It’s a delicate balancing act, and it’s good to hear from readers who appreciate the material we’re providing. Good luck and have fun with your recordings!—MM Aw shucks (redux) Dear Todd Gascon and Bruce Kaphan: I want to thank you both for taking the time and energy to contribute the “It’s Your Music—Know Your Rights” series to Recording. I’ve really gotten a lot out of the pieces you’ve done thus far. You’ve been addressing the material with just enough depth to get some real good meat and potatoes, and yet still explaining it with through everyday language that even someone like me can grasp what you’re talking about. Thanks again to you both,
Chris Burton Jácome via email

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RECORDING DECEMBER 2010

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Recording - December 2010

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