Tutorials/Audio recording/Radio mic transmitter

From The Science Media Network

If the mic is not already attached, attach the clip microphone to the transmitter: The mic plugs in at the top, and there is a screw to secure it. Turn both the transmitter and receiver on by pressing the on/off button, which is situated underneath the flap for the battery compartment. The flap lifts by squeezing either side to release it.

Have a look at the picture above, and do this check:

• On both transmitter and receiver: Has the display lit up, and are both powerlights showing?
• On the receiver the RF light (green) should be on and and the upper black bar on the screen should be on full (indicating full radio reception).
• When you talk into the mic do the level indicators (on both the transmitter and receiver) flicker?
• Now mute the transmitter and look at the receiver: Has the "radio reception bar" fallen to zero? If not, change frequency (see the trouble shooting below).

There are usually several stages that control audio levels and two of those stages are on the radio mic set.

• The mic/transmitter has a sensitivity setting. Locate the sensitiy setting in the menu, and explore different settings. With the sensitivity set to say -6dB, you will find it quite easy to distort mic signal (the yellow led on the front will flash). A good, conservative setting is -20dB.
• The receiver has the 'AF out' setting, which determines the power delivered to the recorder. This can range from -12dB (mic level) to +12dB (line level). Again you should explore this and see how it affects the input stage of the recorder (see below). Many recording devices expect a mic level, so it is safer to set the 'AF out' level to -12dB (mic level).