IronFilm

Just double checking here, you had set the timecode level on the Tentacle to line level and not mic level before attaching it to the TC input on your F8n? As that would be the first possible explanation which pops into my mind as to why your Tentacle works with the output of the F8n but not the input. And yes, damage to the BNC connector isn't normal, did you force it too hard or otherwise damage it, how was the F8n sitting in your bag? Were you using the supplied cable from Tentacle or some other cable?

2x Sanken CS3e? Or go even shorter with Sanken CS-M1 or CS-1e

Jan, how did you remove the B3 once it was glued on? Could you just melt it back off again? Didn't this damage the mic or the tank top?

The mark of the beast!

The Tascam DR701D has a timecode BNC input, so he doesn't have to lose a mic input. Buy a handful of timecode boxes (such as Tentacle Sync E, or Timecode Systems Ltd Ultrasync ONE), make one of them as your "Master". Sync all your other timecode boxes plus your DR701D to your "Master" TC box. Done. Easy as! No need whatsoever to fluff around with crazy contraptions (that don't even exist yet, you'd need to invent it yourself!) trying to extract timecode from an HDMI input.

The Rode NT-SF1 is the best budget ambisonics mic at the moment. Is only US$999, and you'd probably have to spend over triple that if you wanted something better. And if you're serious about ambisonics then clearly a Zoom F8n would be the best pick for you. An F8n would be a massive and I mean MASSIVE leap forward from your current H6

If our equipment also requires a truck/van then surely it is reasonable we too should get portal to portal?

I know that a Chinese Production shooting a feature film here in Auckland at the moment just went and purchased a new sound cart to be sent to here in NZ rather than shipping one over from China! :-o Bit odd I thought, but yeah, probably worth looking into, if you're traveling a long distance then perhaps renting/buying one closer to the shoot itself might be a "better" path to take than bringing your own from home.

I'm not disagreeing with you at all :-) Of course I agree. Just am reinforcing the point and helping the OP out.

Yes, you need to set your gain staging right otherwise you'll be bringing up the equipment's noise floor when you normalize (or at the other end, you'll be hitting the limited too hard. You need to be in between those two extremes)

Been years since I last used a G3/H5, not a kit I'd use myself today, but the core of you question is: Would reducing gain then reduce the background noise? Technically yes. But does this do absolutely anything practically useful? NOPE! Because it would also pull down the gain of the dialogue as well. What you really care about is the Signal/Noise ratio ("noise" here including noise such as the background noise which you don't want"). And turning up or down that gain does absolutely nothing in changing that S/N ratio, that remains the same. (except at the extreme ends of too much or too little gain, when the S/N ratio gets worse once normalized).

If you really have no control over location or timing (as you need to work around other people's work schedules) then I'd have a careful thought about your framing, as that can at least physiologically make a difference. (as if you can see the source of the noise then it tends to be somewhat less obnoxious than if it is just some mysterious unknown source) Depends on what is appropriate for your video though, if for your SaaS product to see a busy office background? For example of this at work of "seeing the noise source vs not seeing it": imagine filming a builder with an empty lot behind him vs him turning around to face the opposite direction and instead having the busy construction site behind him? Both videos may have the same amount of background noise in the video (well, perhaps not... as the body blocking one side of the lav could help the 2nd video be better), but the first video will "feel worse" than the 2nd video where you can see the context of where the background noise is coming from because you can see the background construction in the video itself. So in short, a good rough rule of thumb to keep in mind is: "if you can't kill a noise source, then include it in the frame". (so at least there is context)

In the sense it is a box with knobs on it and XLR in/out? That is a very generic similarity. I can see tonnes of differences in the details, for instance with powering: 4x AAA + Hirose is what the Marenius C-148 has (quite different to the MM1!).

My first recommendation is find a better location! But if that isn't possible (really?), then how about a better time? Maybe instead of recording during the middle of a busy working day, then could you instead record the video during the weekend when it is quiet?

How small is "small"? There is the Sound Devices MM1 (and the older/cheaper MP1).

https://www.fullcompass.com/prod/567530-sanken-cms-50-compact-stereo-condenser-shotgun-microphone-with-mid-and-side-component-output I had to look that up to check! Maybe they've got a mistake on their website

A DEVA IV would be fine?

Nobody (outside Zoom / some testers / etc) owns a Zoom F6, thus there are no comparisons out there. However, from memory I do believe they're the same as in the F8n/F8/F4. Which are already very good for what they are, nobody could in a blind test tell the difference vs recent releases from say for instance Sound Devices such as the MixPre6/10T

I would've been keen!

With TC boxes being so dirt cheap to rent, it seems penny wise and pound foolish to go to that extra hassle/stress/distraction of not using them.

I'd blame Gremlins?

I've worked with the SXT, is the same as all the other full size ARRI S35 digital cameras (aside from the AMIRA, which has BNC)

The subscription model sucks, I reckon it will flop unless they either 1) make the app free or 2) at least make it is a one off life time purchase of the app For every who who doesn't need the app then the Tascam DR10L/CS would be a better buy (on which point, I'm considering buying the Tascam DR10X as an affordable and very very compact/lightweight back up recorder to run simultaneously in my bag to back up the boom track or an automix) When it comes to prosumer gear with potential, the kings are: Zoom F series and SD MixPre series.

My last video I recorded during 48HOURS:

Why can't the electronics be shifted elsewhere? Or are the connectors bulky and on the sides? Anyway, the core point is: we live in a day in age when almost everyone has a small compact cellphone in their pocket, which even a 5" screen on it is regarded as "small". To have a screen which is even smaller than our smallest of small screens that we all carry in our pockets, seems.... rather old fashioned? This isn't 2009 when 3" screens still seemed like a reasonable size!