<p>Hi. Ok, I am having trouble making my prescreening cds for my auditions. I have accompanist but im not sure how to record it. Does anyone have any advice on any devices or gadgets that worked particularly well for them?? thanks!!</p>
<p>The Zoom H-2. Great recording quality, and easy to use.
[H2</a> Handy Recorder](<a href=“http://www.zoom.co.jp/english/products/h2/index.php]H2”>http://www.zoom.co.jp/english/products/h2/index.php)</p>
<p>Also find a good “live” space. We used the sanctuary at church which has phenomenal sound qualities.</p>
<p>If you have a nearby college with a music department, there should be plenty of students who have access to equipment and do great recordings for a reasonable one time fee.</p>
<p>I use my macbook with a good microphone plugged in. In a nice space the results are better than some recordings I’ve done in recording studios and paid 100s of dollars for. Have also heard good things about the zooms.</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>Flip video cameras record music well and are easy to use, and not too expensive. I agree to choose a venue that has good acoustics and a decent piano.</p>
<p>In my experience, the sound quality on a flip camera leaves much to be desired.</p>
<p>I’ve used the flip camera for piano and pipe organ and sound quality for both has been very good. In fact, my son used it to record his prescreen audition cd’s, and was accepted at Eastman and Oberlin. Maybe it’s not as good for string insturments; I haven’t tried it for that.</p>
<p>Does anyone know how user-friendly the Zooms are? I’m thinking of giving my daughter a H4 as a holiday gift to upgrade from the Flip she uses to record lessons etc., but I don’t want something that will be too complicated to deal with on the spot.</p>
<p>We bought the H2 the day before the company announced that they were releasing the newest model Q3HD (video + audio, with HD Audio)… The controls on the H2 and H4 are similar, I believe, as are the controls on the Q3 and Q3HD.</p>
<p>My daughter does not like to read manuals. And I find it often difficult to read the manual and hold the new device. So, we made it a family affair. My husband and I each read thru the manual to familiarize ourselves with it. And, during a car trip, my daughter learned a bit about it. She got the hang of it, but the first couple of lessons that she recorded were not at the best choice of settings, so there is indeed a learning curve.</p>
<p>So, the short answer is that the settings are not easy, but they are do-able. If I were upgrading from a Flip, I would get the Q3HD. When my DD is accepted at a music program, I plan to sell the H2 and get her a Q3HD.</p>
<p>I highly recommend the Olympus LS-10. Very user friendly.</p>
<p>a little out of date and practice with this, but I recall enough to recommend to make the very best recording you can, to double check the rep and specific labeling requirements for each CD (or DVD), and to LISTEN to it before sending, of course, too.</p>
<p>Just to add to Lateparty’s advice … be sure to have your music teacher listen to the CD (or DVD) before you send it out. (If at all possible, have your music teacher listen while you still have plenty of time to re-record, if necessary). </p>
<p>Having someone with a critical ear listen can help ensure that you’re sending out the very best recording possible.</p>
<p>I agree with what lateparty and cambridge mom said, make sure you have everything done per the instructions. My other comment is unless you are sure of your recording skills with whatever you use, you may want to think of getting the recording done professionally. Pre screens are big deals, and you want to blow them away with it, as you would on a live audition. Yes, it is pretty easy to do high quality recordings yourself these days with the many digital recorders or through a laptop with a good microphone but when it comes to something like this, might be worth the extra money if you can afford it to get it really polished.</p>
<p>We love our Zoom Q3 - I had no idea the HD one was out. That was the only issue with the Q3: the sound is amazing, the video not so great. Knowing there’s an HD video one out is all I needed to hear.</p>