GBIII Scotish photo and sound tour

Some pics and sound clips of this superb tour, if anyone would like to have a look/listen, some lovely stuff from Cromwell and the K4 on Ravens Rock was rather special.

http://crjennings.com/preserved steam main line/Main Line 9 Index.html

 

We have been re-living the nine days of following the tour with your photos and great sound recordings, thanks.
Maggot

 

Some nice sound clips there. What equipment do you sue?

 

Glad you both enjoy the sound clips, for once the weather was near perfect. I use a marranrz soild state with CF card and a Sony mike with a huge home made Zeppelin on a Manfroto tripod, (previous tripod was retired after it blew over while 6201 was roaring up to Shap, I was not amused!!!) wind noise is always the major problem with sound, so long as you can keep most of it out even the most basic of equipment will produce good results, if it has a manual record level, automatic levels for steam recordings are not ideal.

 

I used to run a Marantz Superscope back in the days of cassette tapes. Since then I've gone through Sony Minidisc and Edirol solid state units with vary degrees of success but have now settled on a Sony PCM D-50. Very nice piece of kit with some superb on board mics. The custom Rycote "fluffy" is ok in light winds but for the stronger stuff I still use my Røde NT-4 inside a very effective "Zeppelin." The Sony mics are so good though I'm tossing around a few ideas of how to make a more effective windshield so as to do away with carting around the Røde set up.

 

i have always done well with Sony gear, a very trusty WMD6C in cassette days which travelled from Penzance to Wick and everywhere in between, minidisc which was ok and have always been happy with Sony mics, I have a lovely Beya mic, but being X,Y, config its not happy with passing trains.
Have you seen this site? A good starting point for building a windsheild.

http://martinpaling.com/articles/home-made-microphone-windshield/

 

Thanks for the link. I'll give the gardening mesh a try. If I can construct a cage to go around the Sony's mics, the "fluffy" will fit over it and I should have something like the wind protection afforded by a "Zeppelin." It would no doubt be fairly easy to construct a "Zeppelin" big enough to house my Sony unit but that would have the disadvantage of not being able to get at the controls in a hurry. Can't say I've had trouble with x/y configured mics so am intrigued by your comment. The mics on board the Sony can be angled at 120º and that
gives a nice wide stereo image on lineside recordings.

 

The recording of 61994 at Achterneed is superb. I had the speakers turned right up because I couldn't hear anything at first - it nearly blew the speakers up in the end!

Also, image 23, the b&w photo at Strathbran, is absolutely stunning! I'm so annoyed that I decided not to bother heading up there now, due to the fact it would've taken me 12 hours each way for the possibilty of, at most, about 4 shots. Damn it!

 

Thanks for your comments it makes it all worthwhile, esp your appreciation of the sound, the Kyle morning was perfect, no wind, fresh and sunny, couldnt have asked for more....

 

Not sure if I have got my X and Y mixed up, but I think the Sony is middle and side and like you say can be angled at 120 which is just right for steam, the Beyer is X and Y, which will distort the sound as the train passes unless you are a fair way away, great shame as its a few hundred pounds of lovely mic, cant say I have tried other X and Y mics so not sure if they all act the same.

 

I do try to put some reasonable distance between the mic and the nearest approach of the loco so that may explain why I've not noticed any problems with the Røde set up. Not that many people do sound these days so always interesting to chat to a fellow sound enthusiast. One of the biggest problems these days is how noisy the countryside has become since I first started recording 40 years ago.

 

Interesting that you not had a problem, for instance with the Achterneed recording it would have been hopelessly distorted as it passed using the Beyer, even with the levels well within acceptable limits.
Haha the quiet countryside! I been recording for nearly 35 years and it is not easy these days, apart from cars, people, photographers, planes etc, everything is mechanised in the country, tractors, quad bikes, mowers, chainsaws, microlites and they are always started just as the steam approaches, having said that modern rolling stock is much quieter if something goes the other way and continuous welded rail and deeper ballast helps to cut rail noise.
I dont think photographers reaslise just how easy their job is.....

 

Just listened to the sounds again but this time through headphones. Even better.

 

Yes, cracking stuff Chris - both photo's and sound. I especially enjoyed the New Luce recording

 

The comments about spontaneous noise are absolutely correct.

Mrs TBF has taken up videoing - quite well I may add, but the ability of the quietest most discreet location to become a haven for noise, the village idiot, or "Is that the Flying Scotsman - Tornado etc, straight down the mike, at the most inappropriate time, is legion

 

QUOTE=Linesider;347657]Yes, cracking stuff Chris - both photo's and sound. I especially enjoyed the New Luce recording [/QUOTE]

Thaks David, glad you enjoyed. The New Luce spot is a great location, totaly deserted and just into the climb, despite the tender first running I sure you would get a great vid there, 45305 & 70013 maybe?

 

I was recording at Didcot the other day. Not the easiest location but normal background noise and chatter is to be expected and as long as it isn't obtrusive, it helps build the overall sound picture. My task was not helped by the chap who came up and asked if I was "capturing Firefly" and then went on to comment "how impressive my mic set up looked." Thank goodness there was plenty of repeat action as that sequence was completely ruined.

 

I often compromise location quality for a quieter location,i especially try and avoid the really popular places because 9 times out of 10 somebody states the obvious when it comes round the corner "Ooh look,here it is!"

 

Brilliant.