Audio/Hardware Response

1. Discuss your experiences with building your microphones. Was this process more or less what you thought it would be? How did your microphone rig work on your Drift walks? Were you able to capture both overall ambiance and extreme closeups? Describe your ideal microphone and recorder setup, with unlimited time and money.
I had a rather pleasant experience building my microphone. I was worried throughout the process however, because it turned out I bought the wrong type of cord, a more thick one, which made the first couple steps of stripping the wire a little more difficult than they had to be. In the end though I successfully made a fully functioning microphone on time. The microphones worked perfectly well on my drift walks and I was able to capture both ambiance and close-up material. My ideal set of microphones would have the mics attached to the top of my wrists and the recorder attached to the side of my belt buckle, with the headphones around my neck, all of this wireless of course.

2. How was your experience with operating the MiniDisc recorder? How does this recorder compare to other audio equipment you've used? In an ideal world, how would your recorder of choice function?
I never really experienced any problems with my MiniDisc recorder. It is basically the only piece of audio recording equipment I have ever used, so as a first impression with that sort of electronics I would say it went over quite well. My ideal recorder would be more like an iPod. A larger screen for easier to understand menus with larger buttons and dial.

3. Discuss the audio-editing software you chose and your history with this application. If you used this software for the first time, explain why you chose this particular application and how you think it helped you to accomplish your creative goals (or proved detrimental). Will you use this software again for future projects?
I chose to use GarageBand to edit my audio recordings. I had never used this program before myself but had always seen other people using it. I downloaded Audacity and tried playing around with it before hand but it seemed complicated. I opened up GarageBand, had a friend point out a few tips, and marveled at how easy it was. I thought it helped me accomplish my goals due to how easy it was to understand and use. Sometimes I can become frustrated easily with technology and give up but after giving Audacity and GarageBand an equal tryout I knew I would have a better a experience with GarageBand and now that I have worked with it before and gained familiarity with it, I’m sure I will use it for projects in the future.