[bahner]

Hello all,

Ive joined this forum in search of some help with a school project. I'm currently in my last semester at business school and have been assigned to a senior project for a company that has developed an application for the iPhone that records at 48kHz (hi-def). I just watch "The Big Year" and thought that recording bird songs could be a great use for this app so I'd like some information about recording bird songs :)

About the app:
The app records at 48kHz. You can title recordings before making them. It offers EQ presets for gain, highs, mids, and lows. There is an auxiliary cord you can use to attach the phone to a mic to make recordings. You can get a recording and send it to an FTP site or email it and then drop it into a timeline in an editing system with out having to make any conversions. I'm not aware of any other apps like it that offer such a high kHz recording option.

My questions to you are:

*Does or has anyone here used an iPhone app to record bird songs?
*If so, what were the pros and cons to using the app?
*If not, would you be interested in an app that can record at 48kHZ?
*What do I need to know about recording bird songs to understand where this product stands with people who are looking for top quality recording in the field?
*What are my next best options price (sub $100) wise for getting a quality recording in the field?

I don't want to seem as though I'm marketing to you so Ill leave the company and product names out. Ive joined a number of forums to hopefully learn a bit about this topic in a short time period. Any and all feedback would be GREATLY appreciated!

[fugl]

Can't help you on the technical side, but I'd sure be interested in such an app & would be willing to pay something for it. Am awaiting with interest what others have to say about the project.

[bahner]

Its a real app that's available in the iTunes store right now. I'm just obeying the forum rules and not pushing it out to all of you.

Id love to hear from anyone with experience in field recording and what they are looking for in a recording device.

[bahner]

So are many birding enthusiasts actually interested in recording bird songs? Im guessing not too many at the moment

[Mono]

Most hobbyists use one of the many small hand held recorders available, that have decent mics built in and offer 48kHz and more. Any one taking it more seriously with external mics has already got a solid state recorder or wants something more capable still than the pocket recorders.

This app seems to offer features that the hobbyist doesn't need, most just want an MP3 they can post online. Just using the phone mic isn't going to make the most of fancy recording formats. If you take sound recording seriously enough to lug about parabolic mics then you are going to have a full recording package and do your editing on a computer. A look at the other threads on this sub forum will tell you folk either want a pocket recorder with decent mics built in or a full on professional rig.

[bahner]

Thanks for your feedback!

Most hobbyists use one of the many small hand held recorders available, that have decent mics built in and offer 48kHz and more. Any one taking it more seriously with external mics has already got a solid state recorder or wants something more capable still than the pocket recorders.

I just thought with the growing amount of iPhone's out there that people would like the opportunity to carry one less piece of equipment with them since they can just put it on their phones which they will more than likely have on them. I suppose the this would be most applicable to the users that would like a pocket recorder, right?

This app seems to offer features that the hobbyist doesn't need, most just want an MP3 they can post online. Just using the phone mic isn't going to make the most of fancy recording formats.

The app in question offers them just that. One can send the recorded file from the app to an editor via email or an FTP site. Also, through the use of an XLR cord, you can use a better microphone. Sure, it doesn't have phantom power for parabolic mics but it will support more than a few mics of better quality than that of the phone's mic and it offers EQ settings to tune it in.

If you take sound recording seriously enough to lug about parabolic mics then you are going to have a full recording package and do your editing on a computer. A look at the other threads on this sub forum will tell you folk either want a pocket recorder with decent mics built in or a full on professional rig.

I have learned just that through interaction with other recording and hobbyist forums as well as here at birdforums.net. All are very informative!

I believe that this app could act as a sort of "plan b" for those moments when you simply don't have your professional recording equipment on you but would like to get a quality recording. Agree?

[fugl]

Originally Posted by bahner

Its a real app that's available in the iTunes store right now. I'm just obeying the forum rules and not pushing it out to all of you.

What's it called? I'd like to have a look at it. If you don't want to post the name here, please PM me.

[gandytron]

The thing that is going to sell well (once it has been developed!) is an app that can identify bird song - ie it compares your own recording with a database of sonograms and finds a match. That will be hugely popular!

[Ghostbat]

I'm a bit of a latecomer to this thread but I'll stick my oar in.
I am involved in bioacoustic recording through my work in bats and I do dabble in bird recordings, which puts me ahead of 99% of birders who want to use bird recordings but rarely bother to make them.
I use an iPhone app called 'quickvoice' for recordings in the field when I don't have anything else. It's ok- my main gripe is it records in a weird Mac format which needs converting. I see it as producing 'record calls' in the same way you'd describe a low end camera taking 'record shots'. It has the advantage of being in my pocket on every single trip- proper gear is too bulky to carry around in the hope you find something of interest calling.
High sample rates are a good feature if you have birds with high-range calls- we have a group here in Australia called 'Malurids' which do a lot with the higher frequencies so it may be handy for us. I run a sonogram viewer on the iphone which can sample up to 48Hz so I know the inbuilt mike is capable of capture in that range, the main problem though is any movement by me while it's running drowns out the high range sounds meaning a external mike is needed for it be much use. But then we are back to the 'too much gear' problem.
Regarding amps etc the key for me is control- by all means have filters etc but don't impose pre configurations on me- I may want to go from recording frogs and bitterns in the low frequencies then switch to songbirds then audible bats later on. Let me choose the settings! Also- capability to make WAV output would be best for me- MP3 output would be a waste of the high frequency capability your program seems to offer.
Regarding gandytron's comment on automated bird call IDs, this is something which many researchers are working on now, but it is far far harder than anyone has anticipated. Even the best programs take a huge (ie.500+) amount of call references to properly recognize calls, and even then the number of false positives is depressing. The amount of computer CPU required is staggering. And even a system is built which works 99% of the time for a given location, it will be a lot less fun than you think to use. it will be just like astronomy- a few years back automated starfinder tripods for telescopes came out which find objects for you, saving you learning constellations and using star maps. Everyone thought this was what they wanted but many people found it really unfulfilling and after a while stopped using it. It made astronomy more boring, and cut out the reason to bother learning your way around the sky, which is a huge part of the point for many people. I think call ID for birding is the same.