Help Recording bird song

futt101 · #1 (**permalink**) 03-12-2010, 01:32 PM

Hello!

Please can anyone advise some affordable equipment to record bird song? Ideally I'd like to record in MP3, maybe using directional mics. Does anyone currently use an easy, affordable set up that is suitable for recording bird song and nature sounds? Thank you!

RKB · #2 (**permalink**) 03-12-2010, 03:16 PM

It depends what you want it for. Making sonograms, i.d., or just listening to? What species, where and when?

The cheapest option is Remembird, but you wont get high quality sonograms or recordings off it, it's more of an audio note-taker. To get good quality recordings, you need good equipment such as Sennheiser shotgun microphones and good quality recording equipment (I've got a Fostex FR2LE), which is not cheap. So it depends on what you mean by affordable. My set up cost about £800, but you might be able to get set up for less than £200 if you buy second-hand and go for less high-end kit.

Even with top of the range stuff, getting good recordings is not easy. You need good fieldcraft, and the weather and ambient noise will often mess things up. Planes going over (very common), cars going by, Wrens constantly alarming, breeze/wind (for which a windshield is a must), your own breathing and footsteps....

Getting CD quality recordings is tough, so think carefully about what you want to do before you splash out.

have a look around this site for info and reviews: Wildlife Sound Recording Society | Animal Sounds | Bioacoustics

quippy · #3 (**permalink**) 04-12-2010, 11:12 AM

I use a Zoom H4 recorder for capturing soundscapes like the one here: Chris Whitehead - Dalby birds on SoundCloud - Create, record and share your sounds for free.

These small handheld recorders are superb for lots of things as well as bird related projects, such as natural soundscapes, recording lectures or messing about with contact microphones and generally exploring hidden sound worlds. I have hydrophones for recording underwater too. They record onto memory cards.

The Zoom H4n costs about £200 at the cheapest.

To focus on individual birds though, you do need a shotgun microphone and good widshielding. Or at least a parabolic dish and a condenser mic. I made my own wind protection because the one that came with the Zoom was rubbish. I wish I could afford a Sennheiser shotgun, but I can't, and the main thing to do is RECORD STUFF. Its the only way to get good at it.

Chris W