HHB comm FlashMic DRM85 User Manual

FIELD REPORT

HHB Flash Mic

DRM85

WWW.BERADIO.COM

By Chris Wygal

e live in a time when electronics are shrinking in size, while at the
same time they are providing unprecedented availability to endless

W

sonal media device that adds functionality to our lives. Fortunately, the broadcast
industry has followed suit, because capturing audio is easier today than it was
just two years ago. Who would have thought that CD and Minidisc technologies
are already facing obsolescence?

HHB has teamed with Sennheiser to place the cart behind the horse so to speak,

and economically employ a familiar item from the news gathering industry. At

media sources. The Ipod is a prime example of a downsized per-

press conferences, print media reporters put flash
recorders in front of the interviewee, but a radio
news reporter would hardly consider using these
types of devices to capture on-air material. But
what if HHB was to take the idea and combine
a premium Sennheiser hand-held mic and a user-

Performance at a glance

Switchable AGC

Internal 1GB flash

memory

USB Interface for

file transfer

Up to 10 second pre-

record buffer

Omni-directional

Sennheiser mic capsule

18.5 hours of

recording time

Nine user templates

for settings

Uses two AA batteries

Headphone amplifier

friendly flash recorder into one unit? It is called
the Flash Mic DRM85. It’s a news and interview
gathering powerhouse the size of a typical wireless
hand-held mic. Weighing 13 ounces, the Flash
Mic changes the way reporters capture the news
and it fits nicely in the palm of your hand.

Few people enjoy tough learning curves and
lengthy instructions, so when the mic arrived with
its thin 40-page booklet explaining features and
specifications, it was a breath of fresh air. After
leafing through the manual (to find out what the
three buttons and jogswitch do), my goal was to
insert the batteries and use the Flash Mic until I had
to read the enclosed literature. I simply pushed
the red record button, and put the mic in front of
co-workers and asked them to talk. I used the
AGC function to ensure good levels and to see
how the processing affected recorded material.
To my surprise, the compression and limiting in
the mic AGC were transparent. I heard great
levels and good sonic response from the soft­spoken and loud-mouths alike. The LCD display

indicated that the flash drive was recording and
clearly displayed audio levels. After stopping
the record function, the Flash Mic automatically
saved the material and assigned each file a track
number. To test the user-friendliness of the mic, I
gave it to our afternoon drivetime host to use at a
speaking engagement. She recorded her speech
with no problems. I officially deemed the Flash
Mic a true plug-and-play device.

In the field

On July 2 at an Independence Day concert I took
the mic backstage to grab some interviews with
producers and talent for a radio segment. Most
were confused by my only holding a microphone,
but after a brief explanation even the seasoned
audiophiles in the group were impressed by the
concept and design. In addition to its novel ap­peal, I found that the Sennheiser omnidirectional
microphone capsule captured clear and true
sound. As an added bonus, handling noise is
suppressed by solid and stable construction.

Windows and Mac recognize the mic as a
removable storage device (connected using the
supplied USB cable) and dragging and dropping
is quick and easy. However, on July 2 I didn’t
have non-linear editing capabilities. So with
some patch cord creativity using the headphone
output, the Flash Mic became a playback unit.
Of course, the headphone output is traditionally
used to monitor recording levels. As far as inputs,
the Flash Mic uses the omnidirectional condenser
microphone only. There are no auxiliary line or
mic inputs.

Sometimes noting a particular spot in interview
material comes in handy. The Flash Mic makes
this task easy. While recording, tap the record
button to create a “marker.” When the audio file
is opened, using software such as Adobe Audition
or Sound Forge V4, a flag is placed on the file
making the marked portion easy to locate.

46

September 2006

FIELD REPORT

More features

The Flash Mic is packaged with a Flash Mic Manager CD-ROM
application, which is Windows and Mac compatible. The Flash
Mic Manager is not necessary for standard operation, but it al­lows for detailed control and customization of the Flash Mic. For
example, Flash Mic Manager allows the user to upload as many
as nine presets to the Flash Mic and it comes with an interface

that imports audio to a PC
or Mac.

HHB

PHONE [phone]

WEB www.hhbusa.com

E-MAIL [e-mail]

ing), to compressed 32kHz MP2 (18 hours and 25 minutes of re­cording). A record lock feature prevents accidental stoppage during
recording and levels are manually or the automatically controlled.
The mic also features a switchable 100Hz high-pass filter and an
internal real-time clock.

The big question concerning the mic dealt with battery life. It takes
two AA alkaline or nickel metal hydride rechargeable batteries. I
conducted a battery life test with fresh alkaline batteries and it re­corded continuously for seven hours. When the battery life begins to

With 1GB of fixed in­ternal memory, the Flash
Mic offers six available
16-bit linear PCM or MPEG
recording formats ranging
from uncompressed 48kHz
WAV (three hours of record-

Detail of the operating
controls, display and
connections.

dwindle,

the LCD display

and backlight begin to

flash. Changing batteries does

not erase recorded material, but the
batteries must be changed within 60 seconds or the internal clock
will reset. The mic does not have an automatic shut-off function.

Having used the latest technology in media storage and transfer,
this product is a considerable milestone for HHB and Sennheiser.
Reporters, public speakers and anyone looking to capture audio
on the fly now have an easy, economical avenue. Not only is the
Flash Mic a great idea, it delivers excellent sounding audio with
no strings (or wires) attached.

Wygal is the programmer, engineer and Web designer for WRVL in Lynch­burg, VA.

Editor’s note: Field Reports are an exclusive Radio magazine feature for radio broadcasters.
Each report is prepared by well-qualified staff at a radio station, production facility or consulting
company.

These reports are performed by the industry, for the industry. Manufacturer support is limited to
providing loan equipment and to aiding the author if requested.

It is the responsibility of Radio magazine to publish the results of any device tested, positive or
negative. No report should be considered an endorsement or disapproval by Radio magazine.

September 2006 47