Getting better audio from zoom whithout rode VM...
- Thread starter dr stilly
- Start date
Finding someone who can swing a boomed mic properly will solve half of your audio problems. If you consider your sound person the equal of your DP you go a long way towards improving the sound quality of your projects. This is even more important when you're working with cheap gear, and you'll have to expend a lot of extra time and effort to get the sound right because of the cheap gear. No amount of editing can fix a lousy shot or poor acting, and that applies to the audio as much as the visuals.
Audio may be quite technical, but mostly you really have to LISTEN all the time. How often do you have the headphones on while you're shooting? If it's not for every single rehearsal and every single take you're not listening enough.
Audio may be quite technical, but mostly you really have to LISTEN all the time. How often do you have the headphones on while you're shooting? If it's not for every single rehearsal and every single take you're not listening enough.
First thing first, you cannot fix bad audio. You can sweeten a bit, match levels, tweak EQ, dynamics and effects to help match the audio to the screen but if you kill your audio when recording it's gone. Taking audio is about passing through every stage from the mic to the speakers perfectly. If just one stage is no good, you're audio's no good no matter how well the rest of the chain went. About the only thing you have a chance with is filtering out a hum or tone but even then you are damaging your audio, ripping a great dirty trough through it.
As for basic gear let's start at the beginning. You are looking for a proper shotgun mic, one designed to sit on a boom not a camera. It should be mono and equipped with a balanced XLR output and be a true condensor mic. Having said that I get good results indoors with a Sennheiser ME-66 which is an electret but that is a very, very good electret. A clue to look out for most proper shotguns will not run off a battery. Rode do do a series of affordable shotguns under the NTG range. Basically you should really be buying your mics from an audio store, camera stores tend to sell on camera mics that are just a bit of an upgrade from built in mics for shooting the kid's school play.
Next a good quality XLR cable. Don't overlook this, your cables get dragged around, stuffed in bags and share floor space with other cables. Good cables will reject more interference, get tangled up less (so you don't have to hold everyone up while you try and tame your cable) and less likely to break (right in the middle of that perfect take that took all morning to nail).
Next is the recorder. With the right cables you can go straight to camera. I find the audio lacking in definition and dynamics but for some things it's OK. You also run the risk of the boom op or a passer by bringing down the camera and force the cameraman to take on a second, equally important, job. Also your boom op won't be able to actually hear what he is doing, imagine a camera man without a viewfinder.
Best bet is a seperate recorder. First up is the Zoom H4N or the Tascam Dr-100. Both can take fine audio with the right mic but these both have very little input gain and when paired up with a mic that gives a weak signal hiss will creep in as you whack up the record level to get decent levels. They are also cumbersome and inconvenient in use, designed as they are to be hand held with internal mics. A homemade sling or somewhere to rest them on if possible goes a long way in making them easier to handle. Next stop up the quality ladder would b recorders like the Marantz and fostex Alcove mentioned earlier. Although on paper the quality looks the same with sample rates etc I'm guessing the mic amps are much better and better suited to dialogue. The way they are configured make working with them much easier with built in slings and input levels visible when slung. Without looking it up I would expect more professional interconnects, ie balanced line outs which may not seem like an obvious advantage but is worth having if you ever get caught up in a more complicated set up.
Always get the best boom you can afford. They are not all just long sticks. The better booms will be lighter, much easier to adjust in the field and less likely to not lock out properly and come sliding shut as soon as you raise it. An internal cable and a curly XLR hookup to your recorder may cost a hundred more but it will make your job so much easier and quicker on set. Believe me when I say 1st AD really do not appreciate waiting on boom ops as they struggle to untangle themslelves also bear in mind if a cable becomes tangled there is a good chance you will break it or the gear connected to it.
I've said it before and I'll say it again, just as there is there are people with cameras dying to be part of a short film production there are people with exactly the gear described above looking for an opportunity to get some experience on a film project and attach themselves to a production team and will happily work for pizza and credits.
" If you consider your sound person the equal of your DP you go a long way towards improving the sound quality of your projects. "
Yep, they are equal positions of equal importance.
Yep, they are equal positions of equal importance.
It's why the sound guy is always perceived as the anti-social weirdo...
He's in sound guy world with his headphones on all the time, only interacting with people when he has to say
"I've got a train in the distance" or ""Bob is delivering that line into the wall I'm losing it", etc...
Just don't forget he hears everything.....
He's in sound guy world with his headphones on all the time, only interacting with people when he has to say
"I've got a train in the distance" or ""Bob is delivering that line into the wall I'm losing it", etc...
Just don't forget he hears everything.....