Today, I took a little trip outside and had some fun recording a train passing by.  I was at the corner of Lake and Wabash and recorded the 'El' passing by.  To do this, I used a Zoom Handy Recorder H2n and a kick drum microphone.  The first thing I did was use the onboard mics that the Zoom has on it to record a track of the train taking leaving.  Next, I hooked up a Shure Beta 52 kick drum mic to the Zoom as my own little experiment in capturing the lower frequencies that the onboard mics may not have picked up.  This wasn't as successful as I was hoping for, but I think it is because the Beta 52 is meant for up close recording and I had distance safety guidelines to adhere to on the train platform.  Even still, I'm glad I got to do this experiment with microphones I don't have readily available at home.

Pacific Rim

            As my first post, I’ll give a little review of my experience watching Pacific Rim this weekend.  First off, I was able to see it at an IMAX theater.  One thing they advertise for IMAX is their “earth shattering sound.”  They did not skimp on the shattering for Pacific Rim.  It was exactly what I would expect to not only hear, but to feel if I were to witness 300 ft. tall robots and monsters fighting.  Every blow landed throughout the movie felt like an earthquake underneath me from the bass alone.  I honestly couldn’t settle my nerves until the next morning. 

            I imagine putting myself in the seat of the guys adding the post-production sounds.  A lot of it would seem so obvious: huge explosions, deep bass, twisting metal.  What really impresses me is how they are able to create a soundscape that takes you out of the theater and throws you down under the ocean for example.  For obvious reasons, such as not being able to hear much with ears full of water, the underwater fighting couldn’t be 100% accurate to how it would sound in real life.  What they did was create a different type of “template” type sound, in which a lot of the higher frequencies you would hear naturally out of the water were taken out for the under water scenes.  You know you’re underwater while listening to those parts.

            One more, small thing that I liked is common with many movies.  Ron Perlman’s character wore shoes with metal armor or plating that would sort of “jingle” when he walked.  That was his calling card.  If you heard that, you knew he was around.  It reminds me just a little of Darth Vader’s breathing apparatus.  You don’t have to see him to know he’s coming.  I enjoy seeing that and I imagine that would be a lot of pressure, but a lot of fun to come up with iconic sounds such as that. 

            Those are just a couple of things I noticed throughout the movie.  I enjoyed it and I can honestly say I had fun being there watching it.  I strongly recommend going to see it in theaters if you get a chance.  Maybe if you read this beforehand, you’ll be able to hear the things I noticed.