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Derek H

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Everything posted by Derek H

  1. I think the Oktava figure eight head is really just two cardioid capsules wired together, back to back. It is also somewhat bulky. Still, I'd be curious to hear it. I wouldn't rule out the new Fostex "302" it actually looks quite nice.
  2. I didn't. I did inquire about this at the onset but was met with shrugs and blank faces from the hospital staff. Scanned my freqs and went to work. YMMVTesting is a great idea of course. I found in my case the Comtek m72 transmitter had inadequate power for the environment.
  3. I'm working on a hospital show at the moment where we have a few doctors wired up for long periods of time. I've taken up a new strategy.. I've started to just show them how to turn the transmitter on and off and also how to disconnect the lav. So far they have been quite diligent. It's saved me a few batteries for sure. More importantly, I think it also helps build trust somewhat that they don't feel like they're trapped in a big brother situation.
  4. Happy birthday Jeff and Eric! Jeff, thank you for creating and maintaining such a great home for discussion of all things production sound!
  5. They do sound good. I have all 50mW transmitters for mine and while usually this is adequate I wish they were 100 or 125 quite often. Also, occasionally I find that they do a mediocre job handling sibilance. Lectro 400 series still sounds a bit cleaner to my ear, but I don't mind working with these. Finding clean frequencies used to be a chore but I'm used to it and with the FreqFinder app it is much easier. The benefit of the 50mW version though is that 2 lithium AAs will get you through an entire day! I've gotten quite used to never changing batteries.
  6. The physical design of the "buddies" seems to give a nod to the Blackbox Timecode sender RF system. Especially the Compact Tx unit with it's loop through Hiroses and BNC and antenna placement. Clearly the insides are very different! Looks like a smart system. Somebody should write up a formal shootout of all the new timecode systems on the market... a compare and contrast between the Zaxcom system, the new Ambient Lockit RF system, and the Timecode Buddy would be a very interesting article. they all seem to have similar operating principles.
  7. For the rest of the month I'm working on a program at a "level one" trauma center in Chicago, I worked on essentially the same program two years ago as well. I would second all of the above as invaluable advice. There are a few different angles to approach a job like this I think. Big multitrack would be one. That is, a 788 or the like tracking many lavs. This would minimize on your booming which will be good for your back! However you will inevitably miss a few things if you're not out there with a boom. If you're working for a rich (or smart) production company see if you can go this route and also have them agree to an A2 or boom op so that you have help wiring the docs/nurses etc and also have a dedicated boom op out scooping up great nat sound and lines from non-mic'd people. Go wireless for everything. There is no room for cables in a frenetic hospital situation. The other strategy is to go lean and mean. Build the lightest, simplest rig you can and prepare to boom your ass off. Wire up 2-4 people and boom everything. Again, everything wireless. I'm currently practicing the 2nd option here but with a 552 and 4x wireless mics so I'm kind of breaking my own rule. A 302 and 2 radios would be much better. I rarely need more than 2 wireless mics up at one time anyway. But.. this time around I'm required to record TC mp3s and I find the 552 handles this more elegantly than other options. Scrubs are easy to mic. Take care mic'ing before a surgery, everything already said above about noisy smocks is 100% true. I found that no one had a problem with me booming during surgery. I wouldn't try to use a softie or other hairy wind cover though, keep the mic clean looking and you'll probably get away with it. I would recommend a 12 foot boom pole. I'm finding my 9 footer painfully just too short. Many arguments can be made for different mics on the end of the pole. For awhile I was convinced my Schoeps on the GVC "low ceiling" style was the way to go in order to sneak around equipment. Lately though I've switched to the CS3e for the reach. A CMIT would be a great choice, if only I had one! Stay out of peoples way during important moments and you will gain respect quickly. Have fun, don't look at the gory stuff if you can help it. But you'll want to anyway.
  8. I had Comtek make me one of those floppy extension antennas. It routes through the bottom of the bag and hangs down from an opening in the underside. If I'm standing it is polarized correctly. I started out with an M72 but the producer was complaining of poor reception and bad static. We're shooting in a hospital so lots of metal and electronic equipment all around us as well as some mystery RF. You know, I've heard that before but on mine (ek3041) you have to hit the menu key 3 times, then select from all the available freqs, then hold menu to lock it in. So I don't consider that fast. Maybe you're talking about a different model? Or maybe there's a cool trick I don't know?
  9. Keywolf, I'm curious how producing exact replica Lemo connectors is legal? Also, if you had to name them, what are the ways that your product is different from a genuine Lemo part? Thanks
  10. Jack meant that there is NO tip out setting in the menu.
  11. Here's my current rig for a doc on trauma doctors. 552, 4x sennheiser radios, comtek bst-75 (first time in the bag!), and a zaxcom system for camera hops to the new c300 (trx900aa-sta150,filtered antenna, qrx100qifb). Powered via single Np1 with battery bud 2 distro and all loaded in the new petrol 614 "light weight" bag... It's still heavy! The front pockets still have enough room to hold all 4 transmitters, lavs, aks, and 8 spare AA's.
  12. With a mixer attached you would just pan a channel to center with the flick of a switch and the single mic would fill both tracks. Couldn't be easier. Or leave a track empty, won't hurt anything. Also, getting paid 650/day as an absolute beginner, whether for kit, labor, or even both combined, seems ludicrous to me. Also, these days I would argue that it's more important than ever for a begginer to own some sort of recorder given the shear volume of low budget stuff being shot entirely on DSLRs. When I was starting I really only needed a mixer as all of the low budget work was invariably recorded straight to tape. That said, buy a 302 asap! You'll love it!
  13. I worked on a wildlife doc recently and was able to look inside an owl's ear. Very amazing anatomy. Massive ear canal and super fine feather fluff like a built in Windjammer covering the entire opening of the ear!
  14. I guess I'm not as cautious. I just leave the rig built and sling it over my shoulder. I carry all the AKS in a Pelican 1510 case, mics, cables, spares, batteries. If I'm flying I do exactly the same. I just carry the rig on the plane as is and it becomes my personal bag. The 1510 goes in the overhead. Boom gets checked in its own case or goes in with the tripod if I'm traveling with the rest of the crew.
  15. This is exactly where I'm left scratching my head as well. I understand the general concept but the hand-off between the two A/D circuits is where I'm confused. Maybe some sort of second gain stage to act as make up gain so that you don't hear a drop in level? Would love to see a nice power point slide show on this The other question off the top of my head regarding the 742 is how does it handle analog stereo? Does it do some kind of wiring trickery with the normal 3-pin XLR like the LTS series does or do you need to order a 5-pin version? Can it do two channels of AES? I agree on the external powering, would be a great feature.
  16. I hope they implement Neverclip for all of their transmitters. Though I have to admit I don't really see how Neverclip is different from compression, just on the front end of the chain. Still a good thing to avoid burning up transmitter pres.
  17. I emailed them and was told that that part of the c300 is proprietary info that he didn't have access to. He did say that it seemed unlikely that the line-in is just a pad switch but could not confirm. He also said he would pass on my suggestion for AES inputs.
  18. For better or worse the camera is not really designed with ergonomics in mind. At least not where traditional shoulder mount operation is concerned. It seems like it is mainly designed to be compact. The C300 does allow for a massive amount of button re-configuration though. I'm working on a verite type show now with 2 C300s and the operators have built shoulder rigs that are very modular and can accommodate just about any accessory you would want to put on it.
  19. Phil, do you recall if you were sending audio at line or mic level?
  20. What is the date of the article? When was the first Deva released?
  21. My experience has been the same so far.
  22. I've actually observed pretty stable TC with the C300. I've been working with two of them and the camera ops have been jamming together periodically and they've passed a visual check even after 6+ hours and multiple battery changes. We did not have any other means to test how accurate though.
  23. I can't comment on the nomad but I have a pillow under my 552. I think the 614 provides as much protection as any other petrol bag.
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