The Game Composer’s Blog

Keep those recorders handy!

A tip for all you sound designers: keep your portable recorders handy! I have mine ready to go on a tripod next to my main computer. If I hear something somewhere that would be useful to have someday, all I have to do is pick it up and start recording. Make sure the batteries are good by testing it once a month or so and you’re sure to capture all those sounds that you’ll be glad to have one day.

I was motivated to write this after a couple nights of thunderstorms. You can never have too many authentic thunder booms in your sound effects library. And let me just recommend one of the coolest little recorders I’ve ever had: the Zoom H2 Handy Recorder (no, I’m not getting money for this mention) Its sound quality is very good and it has 4 mics inside so you can do mono, stereo, or surround recording. A single 2GB SD card holds tons of audio and its user interface is very easy to learn and use. It even has a metronome and tuner built in.

I’m very happy to get rid of my puzzling minidisc recorder. Anyway, that’s the tip for the day. Keep those recorders within easy reach. And get a good backpack or case for when you’re out in the wilderness or on vacation, or simply strolling around your neighborhood. You’ll be glad you did.

July 8, 2008 - Posted by thegamecomposer | Sound Design Advice | sound effects, tips