What Equipment is Necessary?
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SREV1 Sampling Guide
What Equipment is Necessary?
In order to perform sound-field sampling, you’ll need microphones and microphone
preamps to pick up the sounds, speakers and power amps to output the test pulses, and
the necessary connecting cables. Of course, you’ll need the SREV1, and depending on
the type of I/O being used, you may also require A/D and D/A converters to get signals
in and out of the SREV1. You’ll also need the CD-ROM containing the SREV1 sampling
software, PC Card memory for storing the impulse-response data, a PC running Win-
dows (95, 98, 98SE, 98ME, NT 4.0, or 2000), and a serial cable.
Is the Quality of the Equipment Important?
Since sound-field sampling involves recording the reverberation information that
occurs between an audio source located in the space being sampled and a pickup point,
the sampling equipment (i.e., the microphones, preamps, speakers, power amplifiers,
etc.) does have an effect on the acquired data.
Basically, you need good-quality microphones with a wide frequency response. Those
that you use for hall or studio recording should be adequate. The PA system should have
a wide, flat range and enough power to energize the reverberation you want to capture.
The better the equipment, the more faithful the end results will be.
How about Microphone & Speaker Placement?
Typically you want to set up your speakers where the sound source would otherwise be,
and it’s probably worth experimenting in order to obtain the desired results. If you are
sampling a hall, for example, the center of the stage is a good starting place. Also con-
sider the directionality of the speaker so that it corresponds to the directionality of the
instrument whose reverberation effect you are trying to capture. You could use several
speakers to mimic an instrument that distributes sound in various directions.
If you are sampling two channels, start by trying the microphone setup that you usually
employ for stereo recording. If you are sampling four channels, use the same miking
techniques as for 5.1 channel recording.
With your speakers and microphones setup roughly where you think they should go,
play some dry instrument sounds or vocals through the system and adjust the micro-
phone position, direction, height, and the left and right spread. When you hear the
sound you want, you can proceed to the actual sampling.
