Basic Use and Setup of Recorder and Mics
This is the Sony MZ-R55 recorder that will be used by the community. This model comes in two colors: blue and silver; so you may receive a blue one if a blue recorder is owned by the community. If you do get a blue recorder, everything is exactly the same as in this tutorial. All of the buttons on the front are pretty self-explanatory, as well as not necessary for our intentions. These buttons are for playback mode and we are only concerned for recording functions. The only button that may be applicable is the "END SEARCH" button which is the far right button right below the screen, but we will discuss the purpose of that in recording later in this tutorial.
Another vital item beside the recorder, microphone and (obviously) minidisc, is the battery box that connects to the top of the MZ-R55. Without this, you'll only be able to record a maximum of maybe 15 minutes of audio with the battery inside the MZ-R55. Two AA batteries fit nice and cozy in this box and provide enough juice to record the show and power the microphones. You should try to use the nicest AA batteries you can get, making sure that they are 1.5 V (printed on the batteries). To be on the safe side, use a fresh set of batteries for each set recorded.
The battery box connects to the MZ-R55 as pictured above and is locked into place by turning the knob on the box to the left.
There is basically only one setting that you have to make sure you set, and that is the "MIC SENS" setting. This adjusts the sensitivity of the microphones when they're plugged into the microphone jack. Since you'll be attending concerts that are very loud, you want to set the switch to LOW sensitivity to avoid overloading the mics and getting distortion. This is something you need to double check before you start recording, as it is very imperative. When your recording is done you will notice that it sounds very quiet, but that will all be attended to during the mastering that I do.
The three jacks on the left side of the MZ-R55 are (from left) Line In (optical/white), MIC (Plug In Power/Red), and Line Out. You'll be wanting to plug the microphone into the middle jack, which is the red one labeled "MIC."
With the microphones battery pack connected, mic sensitivity set to low, and microphones plugged into the red jack, you're ready to go. Just make sure you have a blank disc in and all you have to do is start recording. Microphone placement and where to stand in the venue will be covered in another tutorial.
To start recording, just slide the red bar, labeled REC, to the right. You'll know it's recording by looking at the front of the MZ-R55 and seeing a flashing red light above the letters "REC" next to the screen. You can see the small indicator on the picture of the front of the MZ-R55. It is to the right of the screen and right below the MiniDisc logo.
Once you start recording and verify by seeing the flashing red indicator, it is suggested that you slide the hold button to the right. In the event that someone bumps into you or hits your leg (you'd usually keep the MZ-R55 in your pocket while recording), buttons tend to be hit. If the hold bar is pushed to the right, the recorder will ignore all buttons, including stop. I have lost 5-10 minutes from concerts in the past for not having HOLD activated.. take the extra precautions so that doesn't happen to you! When you want to stop recording, simply slide the hold button back to the left and hit stop. If the band leaves the stage for an encore, it's common practice to stop recording on that disc and put a new blank disc in and start recording again. This ensures that if the band plays a set longer than 80 minutes, you'll record the whole thing instead of cutting off. Make sure, though, that after you hit stop, you give the recorder a few seconds to write the table of contents before popping it open and switching discs right away. This is just another precautionary measure to make sure the recording isn't lost.
This concludes the tutorial for the basic setup and use of the MZ-R55.