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pkautzsch

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Everything posted by pkautzsch

  1. This is something I'll definitely try to convince the next RED crew I'm working with to do. Thank you!
  2. You're not saying Arri copied the Epic, are you. Epic was the first "compact" cam body, yes, and that form factor proved to be handy in steadicam/gimbal/multicopter settings. Being a production sound mixer, I don't decide what cam or accessories are used. However I do notice when cam dept needs time to solve some kind of issue. As I usually maintain good communication with AC and DIT (and all other crew), they also more often than not are glad to explain to me over a beer what the issue was. Seems they find a new surprise every time with non-Arris. The Mini doesn't need additional accessories to keep cool.
  3. Because the "real" Alexa is reliable. Btw I can't remember having any TC issues with Amiras or Minis either - as long as they are set to follow EXT TC from a sync box. Keeping an eye on TC (which fortunately can be displayed in the video output too so everyone on set can see on their monitors if they are still in sync) is not much different from keeping an eye on battery level of my own gear. The other camera common around here has so many issues that TC doesn't stick out. Thinking along the lines of heat issues, fan issues (or "sound issues" in producer-speak), card speed issues, proprietary data format issues, loss-of-metadata issues, and yes TC issues too. "Do you like tuna?"
  4. With wired boom mics, maybe. When talent is close to a source of interference, the main culprit usually is the unbalanced connection between mic head and transmitter. Therefore, digital wireless would only transmit the compromised audio signal more faithfully. I doubt the induction field was strong enough to hit your receivers, you must have been a few meters away if it was an ultra-wide shot. Did you do a scan?
  5. Doesn't affect "me". It's not me having to sync everything manually later when they "forget" to tell sound dept about frame rate changes. With a sync box always on camera, everything that needs to sync will sync - without anyone needing to care. An ERX sized box might not be the ideal partner to go with gimbal rigs. Tentacles or (if ACN is needed) Nano Lockits have a much higher chance to be left on camera when going gimbal.
  6. Might be because many ACs actually are wannabe DPs or limit their responsibility to focus pulling. Those ACs that do the job because they are filmmakers, and actually want to be AC, usually know the menus very well and also know how to set up TC. These guys always have some velcro ready too and generally are nice to work with, and it's this type of AC that will always get a helping hand from a "filmmaker" type sound dept if they need.
  7. You might feed the cam hop from the mixer instead of the recorder. In your setup, cam would not get any audio if the recorder fails. When feeding the cam from the 442 directly, the recorder can fail without affecting cam audio. That's a free backup unit.
  8. I remember that Lockits/Clockits need to be re-tuned after a certain time, using the Ambient Clockit Controller, because any crystal drifts a bit over longer time periods (we're talking months to years here). Does anybody know if this is still true for "blue" lockits and ACN, and how it works with Tentacles? Do Tentacles tune themselves when connected to the app and GPS?
  9. The 8070 is more along the lines of the 816. It has improved noise figures and a cleaner (though still very dark) off-axis response, but it has about the same very strong directivity and reach that the 816 has. 816 has weaker bass at the same distance, it can sound a little thin. 8070 sounds very natural to my ears. I use 816s regularly on outdoor shoots, and would use an 8070 very much the same way. The 70 is a completely different beast. While having a clean off-axis response too, it has the same rich "radio voice" type bass response and treble crispiness that the MKH 50, 60, and 30 have. This is not always what I'm after. I've used a 70 outdoors too, but usually it stays in the car and comes out for large indoor locations such as churches or warehouses - where I need something more directional than a short gun or hyper but without the strong room coloration of the 816/8070 variety.
  10. Using C.link you'd only have to press REC on one machine. Unfortunately only the newer 788 firmware versions will automatically enter corresponding metadata into both machines, but at least your files will be sample-accurately synced and TC stamped. Record to multiple mono files (what's called "WAV mono" in the menu) and have WaveAgent auto-assemble them into poly files if post wants that. Do charge properly for the gear. They pay for lights and for cameras (and chances are high that they have more than one camera) so a halfway decent sound budget should be there too. Assuming everything goes through the 442s first, out of their line outputs into the 744Ts, you can actually record 7 isos and a mix. Four units of that size, plus at least 3 dual-channel receivers (what kind will you be using?) or 6 mono receivers, IFB transmitter, battery compartment, stuff... I'd prefer a cart setup for this. See if you can go wireless on the boom too.
  11. If there is not enough budget to get the gear that's necessary, well, then they'll have to cope with what they can pay. The good thing is that a boom will, on a halfway decently planned and executed shoot, get them at least 80% of what's possible, at less than half the cost of a full-blown "wire everybody" setup. If the show really needs 6 wireless and a boom on iso tracks, well they need to pay for the gear. Chances are high, especially on low budget projects, that overlaps and impro scenes make on-the-fly mixing impossible. - At least someone in post will make a fuss about "missing iso tracks", and that fuss will fall back onto *you*, not onto those who didn't pay for the gear that would have been needed. You will have a boom op, will you?
  12. The "usual suspect" mics like COS-11, Tram, B-6 or MKE-2 Gold are industry standard for a reason (being reality proven). Rode stock mics might not be worse sound wise, usually Rode stuff is great bang-for-buck, and the Rode Lavalier isn't much cheaper than industry standards, but they are just not that much used and therefore less reality proven. Another aspect to look at is size. Do you need to hide them in light clothing? Are big visible lavs with good wind protection allowed? Anything between? You need to check a few things when you want to use a given TX with a given mic, compatibility wise. Knowing what to look for, the product specs and manuals will tell you everything. 1. connector pinouts: From a buying point of view, this is the most irrelevant point. Any connector with any pinout can be soldered to a mic cable. However, it is a very relevant point to get right. For example, Sennheiser EW has mic on tip, line on ring, ground on shaft - so that's what I'd assume when buying a Mini TRS "for Sennheiser" mic. If you get a great deal on a Sanken "for Audio Ltd.", and know how to solder, you can swap the connector yourself. 2. operating voltage: Most lavs require some kind of voltage to work. Often this is a range around +5 Volts, some mics need a separate pin, others use the signal pin. 3. Levels: The TX's on-board preamp must handle the mic's output. A weak preamp with a low sensitivity mic will be noisy, a high output mic into a very sensitive pre will distort. This is the least obvious number in a manual, since it can be stated in different units (voltages or dB levels).
  13. Strongly depends, but 50% unusable seems quite high, and seems like a solution should be worked on. Certain types of fabric are very noisy and don't just pose a problem to lavs but also to booming. Sometimes a multi-layer combination of different fabrics needs some collaboration with costume department to be quieted down. Sometimes you have to fight for the time you need to get it right first time, keeping calm and not upsetting the actor while AD is breathing down your neck. In certain situations time may be better spent with a bit of politics. Camera, do we really need to shoot that ultra-wide C while A and B do medium shots or closeups? Yes? Alright...VFX, can we drop our boom into the ultra-wide frame after giving you a few seconds of "clean plate"? No? Ok...AD, do you want to give us 10 minutes to wire everyone, or do you prefer to do one separate take of that 1:30 ultra-wide establishing shot? Sometimes, it's a timing thing. A hit doesn't matter if it's not on a line.
  14. I'd probably only have the radio on auto, so the boom's more natural background always is on. If I hear "phasing" from boom + lav, I can always turn one of them down manually. As RPSharman just wrote, automixing can't adjust levels. That's why I think SD's term "Mix Assist" is better suited to production sound use. It saves me from having to exactly time when to open or close an actor's mic when that actor's un-rehearsed performance is different each take. I can concentrate on adjusting levels. The more "proper" a shoot is going, the less lavs and the less automixing is needed.
  15. ... and therefore I'd 2nd the advice to have a boom mic with good reach that enables you to pick out your source from the crowd - plus on-camera mic, and something with a wider pattern for general ambience. Don't rely on wireless hops (neither being allowed to use them nor being able to make them work reliably), and don't tie yourself to camera with a cable. Use properly configured and jammed TC boxes - in the general hectics on such an event you want to cut down on things to take care of.
  16. One is deemed award worthy for a certain set of features, the other for another set of features. Now if someone fitted the zaxcom functionality into a belt pack of SSM size and power consumption, working at 48 kHz.
  17. Ordered a pair last November. Jan himself handled the order really fast, was very friendly in his e-mails, and threw in a pouch too. Free shipping at least to EU! Now after a few weeks using them, I'll say they've always given me great range, and setting the gain is easy as well as secure. They feed an Audio Ltd. RF-DA that splits to DX2 and SRb units. My old passive fins now transmit comteks when farther away from set.
  18. +1 to lack of set protocol. Some people seem to think that actors' performance was impaired by yelling out "roll sound" or "cut". Well you don't need to yell, it just needs to be loud enough so all involved can hear it, huh? IME that usually ends up with actors complaining that they don't know if it's a rehearsal or a take, and sometimes don't even know when to start performing - because nobody said "action". I've found that I really need my monitor screen on discipline-lacking sets. You have the rec/standby indicator (1), frame rate, and card/clip number (2) displayed, always correct since it's what the camera is actually set to, and more than once I've discreetly asked AC if it was on purpose that cam was still rolling. -------------- (1) that's basically that portable tally light (2) on discipline-lacking sets usually there's also a lack of proper slating. Naming my files so they match cam card/clip numbers then.
  19. Probably your inputs are set to line level. IIRC it's a hardware switch on the small 7 series recorders. You set the gain range (normal/low) in the menu, as the manual tells you. Select one, and that's the one you'll be using.
  20. Looks like you and the lab can decide what the editors will have to work with. Once it's all int the computer, it's no big deal what framerate you choose, and here in Europe "straight" 24 or 25 fps is the usual workflow. To us, the choice would be obvious since it doesn't involve any speed changes. What's the end product supposed to run at? 24 or 23.98?
  21. You always have to take a politician's pre-election promises with a grain of salt, why does everyone think this is an exception?
  22. Indeed, the mic is being held at the very end by that strange-looking solid mic clip. Looking closely, the lyres only hold the pair of rods that on the other end has the actual mic clip. The same principle, just with a nicer design IMHO, has been in use for decades in the original Neumann KMR suspensions. The advantage of this concept is that no part of the interference tube ports is blocked by a mic clip - with those tiny Rycote clips this might rather be a theoretical issue however. A foam windscreen would indeed touch the lyres. To enable windscreen use, the lyres would have to be upside down like in the "shaver recorder" suspensions. However, both the "INV-6 with grey lyres" solution (in my case with CMC 641) and the "cut into the foam windscreen for use with INV-7" approach (in my case with KMR 81 and MKH 416) have successfully been reality tested. So why bother.
  23. I do rent out stuff to people I know, though I won't tear my main setup apart. It's just too much hassle to re-configure and re-wire everything. So it's mostly a mic, a boom, the small ENG bag, or my backup recorder. If I need something that doesn't justify buying, I call my favourite rental house.
  24. On my cart, I need one 5400 mAh NP-1 for a normal shooting day to power the Smartview Duo and a LED lamp. About 9 hrs of actual power-on time.
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