iphone recording

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Evan73
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iphone recording

Post by Evan73 » Fri Mar 08, 2013 11:59 am

I was comparing handheld recorders and someone suggested an iphone adapter (Tascam iM2).
Has anyone used or compared these adapters or mics made for the iphone?
With an adapter or mic will my iphone 4 ever be able record with the quality of the m-audio microtrack and create files that I can export to my computer?

I am at the start of my search, I looked around the forum and couldn't find a thread, and I've been looking online as well. I found recommended handheld replacements, but I wonder if the iphone will become a handheld recorder the way its become a camera i.e. good not professional quality.

I'm a musician, and I discovered that I only want to spend a little time and money recording my band and song ideas.
I had an m-audio microtrack and it was perfect, I liked the sound quality, I could dump the files into ipod or burn cd's, and if I wanted to plus I could put files into garageband and mess around (overdub, EQ...for personal use not pro)
The microtrack battery died, I tried to replace it and failed, probably destroying the unit.

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ott0bot
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Post by ott0bot » Fri Mar 08, 2013 7:56 pm

I also researched this quite a bit, as I needed a to-go way to overdub and sketch out demos.

the IM2 seems like the perfect device for this. analog controlled pre's, a blend knob for latency issues, dual xlr, line or instrument inputs, plus headphone and line outputs. Sadly it's a poorly built piece of cheap plastic, with faulty connectors. I can't imagine the input jacks lasting more than a couple months and the potentiometers are such poor quality they'll fail shortly after. I returned after 30 minutes of use.

I ended up buying a Sonoma Wire works guitar jack 2. solid piece of metal, extremely durable. inputs are rock solid as well. it also does 24 bit. as a DI, it's perfect. for use with mics, you'll need a 1/8 inch TRS-> dual female xlr for use with mics or trs for a line in from a pair of preamps. no phantom power, but enough gain for dynamics. it's annoying that you have to use their guitar tone or four track app to control the gain, but it works all right. the latency can be a bit difficult on higher track counts...but it's one of the lower latency iOS devices out there.

I'm using Harmonic Dogs multitrack by the way.

I also found this:
http://www.audiocontrol.com/60168/72036 ... rface.html

but for $400 bucks...and no reviews, not a gamble I'd take. plus that's really just too much money for what I'm using it for.

Evan73
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Post by Evan73 » Sat Mar 09, 2013 9:23 am

Thank you. The Sonoma Wire works guitar jack 2 looks great and a good price.

I have a couple of questions for you:
Do you use the Sonoma Wire works guitar jack 2 with iphone4?

If I recorded with my old microtrack 1/8" omni "T" mic into Garageband that is on the iphone, would that make an file that I can add to itunes or garageband in the computer?

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ott0bot
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Post by ott0bot » Sat Mar 09, 2013 3:08 pm

Evan73 wrote:Thank you. The Sonoma Wire works guitar jack 2 looks great and a good price.

I have a couple of questions for you:
Do you use the Sonoma Wire works guitar jack 2 with iphone4?

If I recorded with my old microtrack 1/8" omni "T" mic into Garageband that is on the iphone, would that make an file that I can add to itunes or garageband in the computer?
I use it with and iPhone 4S....pretty sure the 4 still works fine, I'd check their site for more info.

I'm not sure about GarageBand, but I hope so....otherwise it would be useless. With Multitrack I can just transfer it by sync'ing it up to iTunes, going to the app menu, and I can drag it to whatever folder I want.

Evan73
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Post by Evan73 » Thu Mar 21, 2013 10:48 am

It's hard to know when to pull the trigger on new technology,
any stories or advice?

Tape Op #94 has a review of the RODE ixy stereo mic for iphone or ipad.
Sounds good, but I bet a lot more of these will be coming.

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Post by Bro Shark » Thu Mar 21, 2013 10:59 am

Evan73 wrote:It's hard to know when to pull the trigger on new technology,
any stories or advice?

Tape Op #94 has a review of the RODE ixy stereo mic for iphone or ipad.
Sounds good, but I bet a lot more of these will be coming.
I understand the appeal. Always having your phone on you, and being able to plug a little thing into it and make it record. But is this really any better than just carrying around a dedicated handheld recorder? The advantage there is that ultimately it's a dedicated device. The battery is meant to support recording for a longer period of time, and it isn't made of glass, and it's designed specifically to do one thing well. Seems like a more reliable option. I dunno, the whole concept seems kind of gimmicky.

iPhones tend to last 2-3 years. A handheld thing by Zoom or Tascam or whoever is probably gonna give you 10 years of service time if you treat it right.

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Post by kayagum » Thu Mar 21, 2013 11:46 am

I may be showing my age, but using iTalk with the lofi setting (and the built in iPhone mic) sounds a lot like boombox cassette demo minus the dropouts and wow and flutter.

I still like that sound ....

.... but that being said, I'm intrigued by the Auria app on an iPad, especially a Mini.

Evan73
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Post by Evan73 » Thu Mar 21, 2013 11:55 am

kayagum wrote:I may be showing my age, but using iTalk with the lofi setting (and the built in iPhone mic) sounds a lot like boombox cassette demo minus the dropouts and wow and flutter.

I still like that sound ....
Ha ha, love that sound.
I was just thinking of trying the mic already in the damn phone!
I bought the garageband app already.

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Post by dgrieser » Thu Mar 21, 2013 2:08 pm

Auria is a great DAW. I use it for capturing and dump AAF projects into Logic for mixing. It can be sitting right next to me while I record a quiet acoustic instrument--no noisy fans.

I like that iXY mic, but I'd want a cord to use it with the iPad.

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Post by Gregg Juke » Thu Mar 28, 2013 3:21 pm

Nothing fancy by any means, but I've done some iPod recording with the Blue Mikey 2.0. It is currently in a holding pattern as "back-up" recorder for my Zoom digital handheld/bit-bucket.

The recordings I did try came out good, but the Bluefire app's file extraction protocol (goes to the web first, then your computer), is a bit of a pain to access/transfer.

Also, if I was going to get serious about iPod or iPhone recording, I've decided I'd need a dedicated iPod for just that purpose, as the files take-up a lot of memory, of course. I like using my iPod as an iPod, mostly.

Re: iPhone camera; well, I'm of the persuasion that no phone or multi-tool pod type device is going to make a "great" anything; at least not as good as a dedicated device, but I do know that some pro photographers are now using the iPhone as a "back-up" camera, and they even make a lens adaptor and lenses for the iPhone now, so who nows what you'll be able to do with it in a few years. I've taken some pretty good pictures with an old crack-open "Instamatic" cheabazz camera, and I've seen some pretty terrible photos taken with the latest and greatest DSLR, so, it's like anything else-- the image source, and the skill (and sometimes "luck") of the person capturing the image are everything. A lot like audio recording.

GJ

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Post by mrufino1 » Wed Apr 03, 2013 9:03 pm

The IM2 is a mic for the iphone/pod/pad similar to the new rode ixy. It is $29 on amazon right now, I've been thinking about getting one, the youtube reviews look good. It is better than the built in mic, that's for sure.

The unit that was referred to was the IU2, which I understand was a terrible execution of a great idea.

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Post by ott0bot » Wed Apr 03, 2013 9:10 pm

mrufino1 wrote:The IM2 is a mic for the iphone/pod/pad similar to the new rode ixy. It is $29 on amazon right now, I've been thinking about getting one, the youtube reviews look good. It is better than the built in mic, that's for sure.

The unit that was referred to was the IU2, which I understand was a terrible execution of a great idea.
yep. you're right. IU2 is crapola. IM2 looks ok. just can't do 24bit, 48k like the rode unit. I don't see that as a deal breaker for recording demos on an iPhone.

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Post by Evan73 » Mon Apr 15, 2013 2:23 pm

Anyone know how to get the 1/8" mic input on the guitar jack 2 to work?

I Bought the guitar Jack 2, using my 1/8" "T" mic from my original microtrack 2.
I cannot get any signal from the 1/8" input.
I've downloaded guitar jacks 4track app and set it to the 1/8 input.
Could not find any help on the Guitar Jack FAQ, going to email them.

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Post by ott0bot » Mon Apr 15, 2013 9:11 pm

I used it via the free Guitar Tone app. set it to 1/8" mic and it worked with a y cable and some dynamic mics. not sure if you t-mic need "plug-in-power" (a weaker phantom power) or not. if it does, it won't work. no phantom or pip on the guitar jack 2.

I usi it as a line in from a set of preamps....that works amazingly well.

Evan73
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Post by Evan73 » Tue Apr 16, 2013 8:13 am

ott0bot wrote:I used it via the free Guitar Tone app. set it to 1/8" mic and it worked with a y cable and some dynamic mics. not sure if you t-mic need "plug-in-power" (a weaker phantom power) or not. if it does, it won't work. no phantom or pip on the guitar jack 2.

I usi it as a line in from a set of preamps....that works amazingly well.
Thank you for the help. I made the mistake of buying this thing on ebay, and the 1/8" doesn't work. I tested it by plugging an ipod directly into the input.
1/4" worked, but 1/8" received no signal.
I used the 4track app and tried every configuration I could find; mono, stereo, L/R gain, and no signal.

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