I interview and record people's life stories. I have an Air, which I love, and am seeking advice in purchasing 3 clip-on mics and an audio interface. Does anyone have any direct experience with this set-up? Which mics/interface would be best for this situation? Budget limited to approximately $200. Thanks.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Interview mics
- Thread starter raykay22
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
It will be hard, no impossible to buy three microphones and an auto interface for $200 total. The budget is unrealistic.
A decent audio interface with four mic inputs will cost over $200.
One other thing, Ar you shooting video or is this just audio? If there is no video that why use the smaller microphones?
I have been using an Akai EIE Pro 24 bit 4 channel interface with my MacBook Air and have been happy with it. But it cost $250. They make a similar product that only records in 16 bit for about $150 and it might be good enough: http://www.guitarcenter.com/Akai-Pr...-Interface-With-USB-Hub-106700560-i1826039.gc
But the $45 you have left isn't going to get you very far with microphones and cables....
If you could scale back to two microphones you might come a little closer to your budget. I also have one of these and it's fine. Also has the advantage of being USB powered so no "brick" is needed: http://www.guitarcenter.com/Alesis-iO2-Express-Audio-Interface-105918080-i1533961.gc
That would leave $125 for the mics and cables. I still doubt that you could do it for $200 though. You definitely need a bigger budget.
But the $45 you have left isn't going to get you very far with microphones and cables....
If you could scale back to two microphones you might come a little closer to your budget. I also have one of these and it's fine. Also has the advantage of being USB powered so no "brick" is needed: http://www.guitarcenter.com/Alesis-iO2-Express-Audio-Interface-105918080-i1533961.gc
That would leave $125 for the mics and cables. I still doubt that you could do it for $200 though. You definitely need a bigger budget.
It wouldn't be a high-end solution (by today's standards), but since you set a $200 budget, you could check out the Alesis iO4 4-Channel, recording interface, which can usually be found for around $100 online.
Add some inexpensive lavalier/lapel microphones and cables and you'd still come in under budget.
Add some inexpensive lavalier/lapel microphones and cables and you'd still come in under budget.
Question:
Is the interview audio your finished product or simply a means to an end (i.e. is it reference material with which you write a story or something)? What I'm really asking is if high quality audio is particularly important or if a solution that simply provides acceptable intelligibility is good enough.
If the finished product is just the audio recording, then the previous posters are quite right: your budget is insufficient. Like ChrisA mentioned, I would highly recommend against lavalier-style microphones unless they're entirely needed.
Is the interview audio your finished product or simply a means to an end (i.e. is it reference material with which you write a story or something)? What I'm really asking is if high quality audio is particularly important or if a solution that simply provides acceptable intelligibility is good enough.
If the finished product is just the audio recording, then the previous posters are quite right: your budget is insufficient. Like ChrisA mentioned, I would highly recommend against lavalier-style microphones unless they're entirely needed.