What are you trying to record? Engine noise and wind?

Sorry Jack. Engine noise is what i'm after. The wind noise overpowers everything. I think a mic under the dash should be out of the wind plus get a good combo of engine and exhaust. So a small recorder with inbuilt mic would be fine. I could fit it into a foam lined cradle to reduce the noise of the recorder itself rattling around and fit a wind sock. Just not sure if I need to spend 1 , 2 , 3 or 4 hundred dollars I don't really think i need the ability to plug in an external mic but then this leaves voice recorders which I imagine are not really what I should be using??

ZoomH2. Lay it on a thin sheet of foam. Tape it to the firewall or if you really trust your tape, underneath the hood. If in the car put a very large mixing bowl over the top to cut wind too.

I figured you were after something like this but your initial post wasn't clear to me.

Perfect! Thanks mate.
Tim

Hey Jack, I have an idea, but don't know if this would work or not. Could he strap a piezo mic on the dash, on the under side of the hood, or to the engine block itself? I was just thinking of ways to eliminate wind noise completely and a piezo mic came to mind.

I suppose that depends about the quality of the Piezo. Plus he still has to buy a recorder. That was why the H2 recommendation. Probably any pzm would work well enough for that matter.

Bought a H2 , second hand for $100 bucks with an extra little lapel mic. Going to make a dead cat for it. Been looking at some how to's on You Tube. Then because I often drive alone I can stand the mic on the passenger side foot well. Should be well placed for the side exhaust and some engine noise plus easy for me to get at without unbuckling. Hope to do a test this weekend but need to find some felt , foam and fur first .:rolleyes:
Thanks for the heads up on the H2. It does seem to be perfect for what i'm doing.
This vid is the car with a little camera and mount test I did a couple of weeks ago.
Thanks again Tim YouTube - PRB Clubman camera test 01

Wow ....not easy! I have a lot of respect for those of you who do this for a living. I'm getting either too much distortion or too muffled. Wind noise is not a problem with the foam and felt cover i'm using but the dynamic range sure is. I can't seem to get those crisp crackles of the exhaust without also getting clipping. Maybe the Zoom H2 is not up to the task? Going to try the mixing bowl idea in stainless steel and also plastic to see if I can get a bit better clarity.

The H2 should have a inbuilt limiter. Try engaging that feature. Also turn down the recording level.

Looks like a nice camera you are using. I would engage the neutral density filter feature for next time though. Although the sun glares gave it a cool effect all on its own.

Been testing various compression settings and limiters but they tend to dull the sound too much. Either get clipping or can't hear the exhaust. Thinking I might be better off using an external mic like a Sennheiser e 604 percussion mic???? Any thoughts on my thinking?? Would love you to have a look at the lastest vid here and see what you think. This was a Zoom H4 using only the front speakers in a foam dead cat in the passenger seat area. Normal auto compression setting. Fast forward to the mid section for engine sound. [[url=http://[/URL]="http://www.youtube…"]YouTube - ‪Wakefield Park Race way CDC of A drive day in a PRB S2 clubman‬‏[/]="http://www.youtube…"]YouTube - ‪Wakefield Park Race way CDC of A drive day in a PRB S2 clubman‬‏[/]

I think trial and error with what you have should be tried prior to buying more gear since that would make it more complicated. I recommend turning down the gain but I don't think the limiter is a good idea.