Sound for Video Session: Q&A - Timecode Generators, Sennheiser vs. RODE Wireless, and More

In this week’s sound for video session, we answer your questions!

00:20 Can I use the timecode generator in my recorder and then just buy generators for each camera (GH5 and GoPro)?
02:13 What is the difference between the Zoom F8n and Sound Devices MixPre-10T?
04:26 Can I use a Tentacle Sync connected to my computer with Screenflow?
05:43 Sennheiser G3/G4 vs RODELink for long interviews (4-8 hours)?
06:38 Connect audio recorder to an ATOMOS video recorder?
08:19 How do I power all of this stuff for 8 hours since I will not always have AC power?
10:20 Small Traveling light recommendation? (Aputure F7)
11:38 How do you transport your camera/audio recorder when flying?
13:44 Sennheiser 416 or RODE VideoMic Pro+ & Ursa Mini Pro?
17:09 How do you control the order that effects/plugins are applied in a DAW?
21:26 Is there such a thing as an acceptable amount of timecode drift?

Previous episodes referenced - Sound Devices MixPre Re-mix Demo:

ZOOM F8n First Impressions:

Sound Devices MixPre-10T Review:

Previous Sound for Video Session where we covered batteries:

Sound Bag Tour:

Please consider my sound for film classes available over at http://school.learnlightandsound.com

Gear and links discussed/used to record this episode: 

Dummy Battery adapter for Panasonic GH cameras (D-Tap to GH camera) - power your Panasonic GH camera for hours with a cine style batter like the JuiceBox below.

JuiceBox V-Mount Battery - cine battery that can also power your recorder
 
Zacuto Zwiss Plate V2 to attach the cine battery to your camera rig (requires rods)

V-Mount Battery Plate to hold the battery to the cheese plate

Aputure COB120D LED Light

Sennheiser MKH-416 Shotgun Microphone

RODE VideoMic Pro+ - Camera shoe mount shotgun microphone

Sound Devices MixPre-3 Audio recorder/mixer

Sound Devices MixPre-6 Audio recorder/mixer

Sound Devices MixPre-10T Audio recorder/mixer with timecode generator

D-Tap to Hirose Adapter Cable - to use a cine battery with your Zoom F4, F8, F8n or Sound Devices MixPre-10T

Electrovoice RE20 Dynamic Broadcast Microphone - used to record this session

Sound Devices 633 Audio Recorder/Mixer - Used this as the preamp for the microphone and then fed the audio to the camera in this episode

Copyright 2018 by Curtis Judd

Outro music licensed from Artlist: Sunday by Young Pixies - Amazing Journey. Artlist provides high quality music tracks for your film and video projects. You can receive two months off an Artlist account by using our link.

Sound for Video Session: ZOOM vs Sound Devices, Timecode Generators, Essential Gear & More

In this week’s sound for video session, we answer your questions!

00:40 Zoom F8 or Sound Devices MixPre-10T if I also record music?

03:29 Zoom F8n vs Sound Devices MixPre & getting location sound jobs

08:54 Choosing Timecode Generators: NanoLockit, Tentacle Sync E, Timecode Systems

13:12 Wired Lavalier recommendation (Audio Technica AT899)

14:01 Batteries for powering recorders with hirose power inputs

16:15 Recording audience at live performance

18:10 Essential gear for location sound

Previous episodes referenced - Sound Bag Tour:

Recording live performance sound with Mike Stranks:

Ambient Sound NanoLockit:

Tentacle Sync E:

Timecode Systems Overview:

Sound Blanekts:

Gear and links discussed/used to record this episode: 

Audio Technica AT899 Wired Lavalier microphone

JuiceBox V-Mount Battery & Charger

D-Tap to Hirose Adapter Cable

Electrovoice RE20 Dynamic Broadcast Microphone - used to record this session

Blackmagic Design Ursa Mini Pro Camera - Used for the talking head clips

AJA U-Tap SDI - Turns any camera with an SDI output into a webcam. Used to record the talking head clip

Sound Devices 633 Audio Recorder/Mixer - Used this as the preamp for the microphone and then fed the audio to the camera in this episode

Copyright 2018 by Curtis Judd

Outro music licensed from Artlist: Sunday by Young Rich Pixies - Amazing Journey. Artlist provides high quality music tracks for your film and video projects. You can receive two months off an Artlist account by using our link.

Zoom F8n Audio Recorder: Initial Impressions

At the National Association of Broadcasters meeting earlier this year, Zoom announced their update to the F8 audio field recorder - the F8n. The focus of this update was to address many of the things that users complained about on the original - hybrid limiters that were ok, but not perfect, line inputs only on 1/4”, mediocre headphone amp, and consumer line level output among others. I had a chance to work with the F8n for a few hours. Let’s see how they did addressing these items. From my point of view, it looks like the F8n is a very nice step up from the original F8.

Links to gear discussed and used to shoot this episode:

Zoom F8n Audio Field Recorder

Zoom F4 Audio Field Recorder (similar but with 4 microphone inputs, monochrome screen, no app control)

Zoom F-Control surface with linear faders - my favorite way to mix when working from a table or cart.

Juicebox V-Mount Cine Battery - good way to power the F8n, F4, F8 all day long

D-tap to 4 pin Hirose Cable - to feed power from cine battery to F8n, F8, F4

Remote Audio BDS V4 Battery Distribution System

Remote Audio Hi-Q Battery (98 watt-hours) - this is a battery that is better suited for use in a sound bag, smaller than most cine batteries but still lots of capacity

Sennheiser MKH8050 Boom Microphone - this is the microphone I used

Schoeps CMC641 - this is the microphone my daughter used

Aputure COB 120t - This is the light I used as a key in the talking head clips

Aputure Light Dome Soft Box - Used to soften the key light

Lupo DayLED Fresnel Light with Barn Doors - Used for the “rim/hair” light

Blackmagic design Ursa Mini Pro Cinema Camera - used for the talking head clips and some of the product shots

Sigma ART 24-70mm f/2.8 OS Lens (Canon EF Mount)

Panasonic GH5 - Used for some of the product shots, the crispier shots

Panasonic 12-35mm f/2.8 OIS Lens - incredibly versatile lens that is on the GH5 most of the time

Copyright 2018 by Curtis Judd 

Music - MzA by Cary Judd, used with permission

Sound Bag Tour

Let’s take a look at my sound bag setup. If you’ve never used a sound bag for your audio recorder/mixer, my hope is that this will give you some ideas on how to set yours up so that you’re comfortable and able to record some great sound for your film project.

Links to gear discussed and used to shoot this episode:

Orca OR-30 Audio Mixer Bag

Sound Devices 633 Audio Recorder/Mixer

Audio Limited A10 Dual Channel Receiver - with pro wireless systems, you buy each piece separately

Audio Limited A10 Transmitter (version for bag use)

DPA 4160 Lavalier Microphone - Great lavalier microphone but a little too sensitive to my sibilance. Will need to bury it under more clothes next time. You will also need the microdot adapter for your particular wireless system.

Remote Audio BDS V4 Battery Distribution System - you'll also need cables for the battery and each device that you're going to power.

Remote Audio Hi-Q Battery (98 watt-hours)

Sony MDR7506 Headphones - a little on the bass heavy side, but very comfortable and they fold when transporting so these are usually what I use on production days (but not for mixing in post)

Beyerdynamic DT770 Pro (80 ohm) Headphones - also very good, even more comfortable and better outside sound isolation, not as bass heavy, but they don't fold. Sometimes I just want the greater comfort these have to offer.

Aputure COB 120t LED Light - still my go-to key light

Aputure Light Dome Soft Box - Used to soften the key light

Lupo DayLED Fresnel Light with Barn Doors - Used to light the battery charger, for a focused, moody look

Blackmagic design Ursa Mini Pro Cinema Camera - used for some of the product shots

Sigma ART 24-70mm f/2.8 OS Lens (Canon EF Mount)

Panasonic GH5 - Used for some of the product shots

Panasonic 12-35mm f/2.8 OIS Lens - incredibly versatile lens that is on the GH5 most of the time

Copyright 2018 by Curtis Judd 

Music - MzA by Cary Judd, used with permission

Consumer vs Pro Wireless Microphone Systems

Why do professional level wireless microphone systems cost so much? Do they just have audio quality that is that much better? Or are there other features that pros need that enthusiast filmmakers don’t need? What am I missing if I go for one of the consumer/prosumer wireless systems?

In this episode we explore these questions by talking about 3 wireless microphone systems I use: RODELink, Sennheiser G3 (and now G4), and the Audio Limited A10 system.  We clarify the important differences so you can understand when a consumer grade wireless system is everything you need for your projects and when it might make sense to rent or buy a pro-level wireless system.

Links to gear discussed and used to shoot this episode:

RODELink Filmmaker Kit - Good digital wireless consumer/prosumer system - Been a useful part of my kit for 3 years.

Sennheiser G4 112P - Good analogue prosumer wireless system (If you buy this, be sure to choose the block that is legal to use in your locality. Buy through a dealer that can help you if you’re not sure. Also, it does not appear that the older G3 is retailing for less at this point. I’d go for the G4. The technical differences are negligible):

Audio Limited A10 Dual Channel Receiver - Pro level all-digital wireless system for lavalier and boom microphones. This receiver supports two channels (i.e., two separate transmitters can transmit to this receiver which then sends two separate audio channels to your audio mixer/recorder).

Audio Limited A10 Transmitter - body pack transmitter for the all-digital A10 wireless microphone system. This supports lavalier microphones plus boom microphones, even those needing phantom power (via 3-pin lemo to XLR adapter cable)

Sennheiser MKH 8050 Microphone - used to record this entire episode

Aputure COB 120t - This is the light I used as a key in the talking head clips

Aputure Light Dome Soft Box - Used to soften the key light

Lupo DayLED Fresnel Light with Barn Doors - Used for the “rim/hair” light

650, 1000, & 2000 in daylight, tungsten, or bi-color

Blackmagic design Ursa Mini Pro Cinema Camera - used for the talking head shots in this episode

Sigma ART 24-70mm f/2.8 OS Lens (Canon EF Mount)

Panasonic GH5 - Used for some of the product shots

Panasonic 12-35mm f/2.8 OIS Lens - incredibly versatile lens that is on the GH5 most of the time

Copyright 2018 by Curtis Judd 

Music - MzA by Cary Judd, used with permission

Timecode Systems Demo: Pulse, UltraSync One, SyncBac Pro

In this week’s Sound for Video Session, we demonstrate how timecode works with the Timecode Systems series of timecode generators and wireless sync devices: Pulse, UltraSync One, and SyncBac Pro. In addition to wireless syncing which keeps all of the timecode generators for each cinema, DSLR, or mirrorless camera and audio recorder perfectly in sync, the SyncBac Pro also allows you to use GoPros to perfectly sync the footage and audio from all of your cameras. With reality shoots being so common these days, having a good option for automated synchronization is something I wanted to show you.

Gear and links discussed/used to record this episode: 

UltraSync One Wireless Timecode Generator for cinema, DSLR, and mirrorless hybrid cameras

SyncBac Pro Wireless Timecode Generator for GoPro Cameras

SyncBac Pro for Hero 4
SyncBac Pro for Hero 6

:pulse wireless basestation - Transmit timecode from your bag or cart to all of the Timecode Systems devices on set & control your Sound Devices 6xx series mixer/recorder (with ethernet ports to hardwire connect to your Mac, and soon, PC)

:wave wireless basestation - Transmit timecode from your bag or cart to all of the Timecode Systems devices on set & control your Sound Devices 6xx series mixer/recorder (without ethernet ports)

Sound Devices 633 Mixer/Recorder - My main production audio recorder/mixer

Sennheiser MKH 8050 - This is the microphone I used to record this session

Copyright 2018 by Curtis Judd

Outro music licensed from Artlist: Keep an Eye by Back to Dream. Artlist provides high quality music tracks for your film and video projects.

Sound for Video Session: Microphone Preamp Self-Noise

In this week’s Sound for Video Session, Julian Krause joins us to talk about pre-amplifier self-noise and other places in the audio signal chain where self-noise can be generated. My hope is that this will help inform where you may want to invest in your audio gear to solve any self-noise issues you’re experiencing.

Julian’s videos on self-noise:

How to measure preamp self noise
Preamplifier noise explained
Comparison of self noise on 4 preamps

Gear and links discussed/used to record this episode: 

Zoom H5 Audio Recorder
Sound Devices MixPre-6
Sound Devices MixPre-3
Zoom F8
Zoom F4
Electrovoice RE20 Dynamic Microphone - used to record this session

Copyright 2018 by Curtis Judd

Outro music licensed from Artlist: Keep an Eye by Back to Dream. Artlist provides high quality music tracks for your film and video projects. You can receive two months off an Artlist account by using our link.

Sound for Video Session: Q&A Stretch Time & Pitch, Poly Wav, Balanced vs Unbalanced, Zoom F4n

In this week’s Sound for Video Session, we cover the following topics:

0:11 Retime & Pitch Shift to fix an old recording

1:35 Resompling

3:00 Poly Wav Files

6:40 Unbalanced vs Balanced Cables/Interconnects

9:03 Zoom F4n?

Gear and links discussed/used to record this episode: 

Difference between balanced and unbalanced cables/interconnects

Wave Agent application from Sound Devices:

Zoom F8 Audio Recorder

Zoom F4 Audio Recorder

Electrovoice RE20 Dynamic Microphone - used to record this session

Copyright 2018 by Curtis Judd

Outro music licensed from Artlist: Keep an Eye by Back to Dream. Artlist provides high quality music tracks for your film and video projects. You can receive two months off an Artlist account by using our link.

Sound for Video Session: Headphone and Output Routing Demo - Zoom F8 Recorder

On your audio recorder, what is headphone routing? What about output routing? And why would you want to change it? In this session, we cover the purposes of routing and show a couple of examples of routing for specific production situations. We demonstrate this on the Zoom F8, but the same principles apply on the Sound Devices MixPre series of recorders as well as the professional level recorders from Sound Devices, Zaxcom, and others.

Gear and links discussed/used to record this episode: 

Zoom F8 Audio Recorder/Mixer

Zoom F4 Audio Recorder/Mixer

Sound Devices MixPre-3 Audio Recorder/Mixer

Sound Devices MixPre-6 Audio Recorder/Mixer

Sound Devices MixPre-10T Audio Recorder/Mixer

Sanken COS-11D Lavalier Microphone- used to record my voice in this session

Sennheiser G3 Wireless Microphone System (you will need to buy the right frequency block for your region - call B&H if you need help)

Sound Devices 633 Mixer/Recorder

Copyright 2018 by Curtis Judd 

Music - MzA by Cary Judd, used with permission

Record Live Event Sound from a Mixing Board

How do you record sound from a mixing board at a live event? Here are the basics!

Recorders I’ve used and that can record line level from a mixing board (links to B&H, Amazon, or DVeStore):

Zoom H4n Pro (use 1/4” input only)
Zoom H5 (use 1/4” input only)
Zoom H6 (use 1/4” input only)
Tascam DR-60DmkII
Tascam DR-70D
Tascam DR-701D
Zoom F4 (use 1/4” input only)
Zoom F8 (use 1/4” input only)
Sound Devices MixPre-3
Sound Devices MixPre-6
Sound Devices MixPre-10T
Sound Devices 633

1/4” to 1/4” TRS Cable

XLR Female to 1/4” TRS Cable (XLR connects to mixing board, 1/4” to your recorder. Good choice for Zoom recorders)

XLR to XLR Cable (do NOT use this cable for Zoom recorders)

RCA to 1/4” TS Cable

Anker USB A & C Battery Bank

Radial Engineering Ice Cube Line Isolator/Transformer (need 2 for stereo mixes, one for mono)

Blackmagic design Ursa Mini Pro Cinema Camera - used for the talking head shots in this episode

Sigma ART 24-70mm f/2.8 OS Lens (Canon EF Mount for the Ursa Mini Pro)

Panasonic GH5 - Used for some of the product shots

Panasonic 12-35mm f/2.8 OIS Lens - incredibly versatile lens that is on the GH5 most of the time

There are more sophisticated live show recording techniques. We discussed some of these with Mike Stranks here:

Copyright 2018 by Curtis Judd 

Music - MzA by Cary Judd, used with permission