So why do I need an H4N?

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paulbrighton

OK this is probably a stupid question but I'm getting an DSLR (Panasonic GH2) and I know I'll need a shotgun mircophone. But what exactly does one of these H4N's do and why can't I just plug the microphone into the camera to record the sound - and what would happen if I did? I've seen pictures of this device and it looks very complicated with lots of dials and buttons on it.

Is it very hard to use? Should I just use it with a normal microphone and worry about stereo sound in post production?
 
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Not a stupid question at all.

You can plug in a microphone into the camera and it will record the audio.
But this specific camera doesn't record audio as well as an audio recorder.
You will notice that when looking at the specs on the camera audio barely
mentioned. This is a fine camera - it's a poor audio recorder. It has a 2.5mm
mini plug. No decent mic has that plug so you will need to adapt down
from XLR to miniplug. This greatly reduces the quality of the audio.

Yes, recording with an audio recorder is more complicated - it also gives you
better quality.
 
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Largely, it depends upon what your product's final output source will be.
GH2 and most DSLRs are in that twilight prosumer area between dad/kid with a camcorder and some junior professional equipment where festival entries are likely.

If over the working life of the camera for the next five years or so your film products are likely going straight to youtube and not to film festivals then screwit - the onboard audio recording system is probably just fine.
No one's going to givadam about the relative narrow audio range and inconsequential minijack plug snapNpop interference.

But...

If you're going to try to make film festival entries or commercials for your local businesses to air on local TV then... you'll need/benefit from getting equipment with more comprehensive audio recording capabilities and low impedance lines with XLR jacks.

To mix metaphors:
- The camera records video in HD, but audio in SD.
- With a H4N or Tascam DR100 you'll also capture audio in HD.

But none of this is capturing anything approaching RAW 4K quality, so don't get too excited. :)
 
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So is it to do with the electronics in the audio recorder that means it can record sound better? Rather than the microphone itself? i.e. the electronics take the microphone signal and transform it into 1's and 0's better on the recorder than on the camera?

^I've just seen the above reply. So also the camera itself just saves it as low quality sound too.
 
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paulbrighton said:
So is it to do with the electronics in the audio recorder that means it can record sound better? Rather than the microphone itself? i.e. the electronics take the microphone signal and transform it into 1's and 0's better on the recorder than on the camera?
Click to expand...
Yes.

Just like there is a difference in digital images (just 1's and 0's) in cameras,
there is a difference in audio recording. I'm not good with the tech numbers
so I'll allow the others to dazzle you with those. But it's obvious to me that
an XLR input is better than a miniplug and that a piece of equipment designed
to capture audio is better at that than a piece of equipment designed to capture
video. The mic is important, too but the very best microphone recording to a
DSLR will not give you the same quality as very best microphone recording
to an audio recorder. Just like the very best camera on the market will not
give you excellent quality without a great lens and good lighting.

It all works together. But if you can't afford an audio recorder now or just don't
want the complication you can plug your mic into the GH2 and still get audio.
 
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There is no reason to get GH2 if you don't study the hacks. Yes, it's a good camera without patches, but not so good as hacked. T2i is better than GH2 without hacks. So, get yourself informed about it, including audio hacks - which allows you to record audio with higher bitrates. It's not a hollywood's solution, but it helps a lot.
 
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You don't want to plug the mic into the camera really under any circumstances.

But that doesn't necessarily mean you need to buy an external recorder (or mic).

I bought a shotgun mic and H4N and I used them once. Then, when I started doing semi-serious projects that required sound, I hired sound people and they all had their own equipment. So my sound equipment sat and gathered dust, having only been used on one shoot. Ended up giving Phil_UK my H4N...
 
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paulbrighton said:
Although... I would like to learn about sound recording just so I know about what the audio people are doing.
Click to expand...

The Location Sound Bible by Ric Viers is a good place to start.

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_n...ld-keywords=Location+Sound+Bible+by+Ric+Viers


The focus of a camera, if you'll pardon the pun, is to capture great pictures. The function of an audio recorder is to capture great audio.

A DSLR camera is made to capture still pictures, and is being co-opted into the role of video camera. The audio implementation is extremely substandard; there isn't even a way to monitor what is actually being recorded.

The H4n or DR-100 (which I prefer) are low impedance (low-Z) devices. Low-Z devices are much, much less prone to RF (radio frequency) and other forms of interference. They allow you to hear what is being recorded. They allow you to record at various bit/sample rates (24bit/48kHz is standard for video and DVD). They can supply phantom power to microphones, although with budget units like the H4n or DR-100 the batteries drain very quickly. You are not tethered to the camera, and the reverse is also true; the camera is not encumbered by clunky audio adapters.

For all intents and purposes a DSLR camera - and most camcorders - should be treated as film cameras that do not capture sound at all. You have to sync the audio to the picture in post, but you will have advantages over film. Softwares like PluralEyes can partially automate the process by syncing the audio from the recorder to the scratch audio from the camera. If you can't afford PluralEyes you can manually/visually line up the sound waves from the audio recorder with the sound waves from the camera. If you slate properly and keep detailed audio & video logs this should be a very simple if boring task.
 
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In the filmmaking, nothing can be better than see a lot of people working in your film. Then you see you don't need to understand everything. You just need to get people who understand about each thing that you don't. And they are living their lifes only to know it, to serve you and you are living to serve them.

I was yesterday in a set with 2 Red One, 1.200/1.500W Arri lights, travelings and cranes, and like 20 workers. It's amazing and made me think truly better about team. If you need something for a movie, call people. :D
 
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