suitable minidisc recorder to use while filming

dentman8 · Post by **dentman8** » Fri Dec 04, 2009 7:39 pm

I am looking for a minidisc recorder that allows uploading the pcm files to the computer without converting to analogue.
Can anyone recommend a suitable minidisc recorder with this facility?

dentman8

mitchell65 · Post by **mitchell65** » Fri Dec 04, 2009 7:43 pm

Sorry but what's this got to do with Video Studio? Think it needs to be moved to another Forum

DVDDoug · Post by **DVDDoug** » Fri Dec 04, 2009 9:12 pm

You might try posting your question at HydrogenAudio.org (a digital-audio forum).

They still make MiniDiscs??? OK... a quick Google search turned-up a MiniDisc player/recorder with a USB port.

You might consider some other type of digital recorder. Or of course, you can record directly to a computer, but computers tend to get unreliable at the most critical times.

dentman8 · Post by **dentman8** » Sat Dec 12, 2009 2:50 pm

Hi again
Thank you DVDDoug for those websites. I have reshearched the subject further. There is an article in Camcorder magazine(issue 11 Winter 2009) page 79 under Must-have accessories about Sony Mini Disc Recorders (50GBP) which is misleading for movie makers. The article states the recorders will record audio in the same Pulse Code Modulation (PCM) format used by most camcorders, which is compatible with all editing systems. Unfortuneatley the majority will not allow you to upload these digital files onto a computer. I have only found two models that allow this feature. If you have to convert to analogue to load your audio there is no point using a recorder that records in this format. The two Sony models that I have found that allow direct transfer are Sony MZ-RH1 and MZ-M200. They are hard to obtain as Sony have stopped production.
Amazon(UK) are selling the RH1s for 198GBP at present.
I appreciate this is nothing to do with VideoStudio however video programme makers who use VideoStudio may find this of interest.

Regards
Graham

Post by **Ron P.** » Sat Dec 12, 2009 3:57 pm

Moved to the General Discussions>Video & DVD forum.

I appreciate this is nothing to do with VideoStudio however video programme makers who use VideoStudio may find this of interest.

Perhaps, however the VideoStudio forum is reserved for discussions concerning VideoStudio.

PCM or LPCM does not mean that it is an analog format. If that be the case, then how is it that camcorders recording in a digital format, ie; digital-8, or Mini-DV, using tape, records PCM? Wikipedia PCM.

Pulse-code modulation (PCM) is a digital representation of an analog signal where the magnitude of the signal is sampled regularly at uniform intervals, then quantized to a series of symbols in a numeric (usually binary) code. PCM has been used in digital telephone systems and 1980s-era electronic musical keyboards. It is also the standard form for digital audio in computers and the compact disc "red book" format. It is also standard in digital video, for example, using ITU-R BT.601. Uncompressed PCM is not typically used for video in standard definition consumer applications such as DVD or DVR because the bit rate required is far too high.

dentman8 · Post by **dentman8** » Sat Dec 12, 2009 6:24 pm

Hi Ron
I don't think that I inferred that PCM is not a digital format. The Sony Mini Disc recorders do record this digital format. The problem being you can't transfer these digital files from the recorder into the computer or the editing softwarefor that matter.
I hope this clears up the misunderstanding.

Graham (dentman8)

bgamd · Post by **bgamd** » Sun Dec 13, 2009 12:08 am

I thought I might throw in my 2 cents on this subject.

Minidisc recorders can be expensive. I have one and have not had great experiences with it. Money might be better spent on another camera to do the same job, possibly better.

I'm not sure what quality/format audio is being sought but I often use a second camera as a sound recorder. For example, if I am shooting a play from a distance with camera 1, I set another camera close to the sound source with a shotgun mike. In videostudio, I use the video/audio captured (camera 2) source in an overlay track.

As you may be aware, you can separate the audio from the video.
I do it differently. I keep the video/audio together in the overlay track.
I use the video in the overlay track as a visual reference to help me align the audio with the (#1) video track.

Once aligned, I set the mask and chroma key transparency (in the overlay track) to "99" thus making the video transparent.

To go just a bit further, (no commercial advertisement intended) you can get a Canon FS 100 for $200 used or the newer similar models for about $300. They have a mic input jack. They capture to a SDHC (MOD extension) card which means you can just drag and drop the file into Videostudio.

No need to play back in real time to capture the audio!

Good luck.

Post by **Ron P.** » Sun Dec 13, 2009 2:04 am

I re-read your 2nd post, and stand corrected..

This is obviously one of Sony's "stingy" features, where you can record on their media, however can't do much else with it..

skier-hughes · Post by **skier-hughes** » Sun Dec 13, 2009 6:52 pm

More a record company requirement!!!
http://www.minidisc.org/very_faq.html#_q111

YOu might be better off looking at other ofrms of digital audio recording, such as solid state
http://www.dolphinmusic.co.uk/shop/brow ... 1ab48&pg=1

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suitable minidisc recorder to use while filming

suitable minidisc recorder to use while filming

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