Louw Verwoerd

Hi Henry What about the 5 section mini Panamic did you find disappointing? Is it noisy, too bendy with a proper wind shield and rifle in the basket? Any elaboration on your $1000 disappointment would be appreciated. The collapsed length is what I find very attractive.. I'm a Panamic fanatic (even after my Ambient pole acquisitions) I was about to make the purchase when I saw this thread... Best

The answer, 'juice'. Correct. My 5V feed from a 12V source turned out to be faulty. It's powers up like a current hungry disco circus. I'm looking forward to taking it for a spin

Howdy folks, Seldom do I take the liberty to appeal for help on these boards, but this occasion is something special. I'm starting a feature this coming Tuesday (with a maximum ISO track count of 12). I imported an SD CL-12 Alaia for this occasion. So basically I'm maxing out the SD 664. Here's the skinny: Brand new, out of the box, I plugged it in as per the literature and with the 3.10 Firmware still loaded, the 664 picked up the CL-12, installed the drivers and recommended the additional 5V mini USB power (I already supplied it). Just to note that before even powering up the 664 for the first time, the extra 5V feed would light up the small green power light on the Cl-12. The console powered up and I ran a quick couple of checks with the short cut keys, all great. Satisfied, I powered down and disconnected, focusing my attention on prepping the wireless workflow. On the side I decided to update the 664 firmware to 4.01, since I would probably get a Wingman in the future. A couple of days later (today) I reach the point of fine tuning my bagged mixer with receivers combo to work with the Alaia I installed in a flight case. Plug everything in and power it on... No Cl-12. The lights don't cycle on (except the green power LED). The 664 displays the menu option for the CL-12 in gray, so it can't be selected. I've tested different cables. Tried the machine on my SD 633, exact same results (gray CL-12 in the menu). Curious: previously the 5V feed would light up the green power light. Not so any more. Only once the 664/633 is connected, does the green LED light up with an inconstant pulse. Could it be that the 5V power port is bust and because of it, the CL-12 can't 'boot up'? The port of the 664 is not faulty. A keyboard works fine on it. I even rolled back to firmware 3.10. No difference. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Sincerely Louw

Very impressive setup, Brian. Thanks for the share True inspiration!

Nice job Looks strong and helluva 'cumfortable', as opposed to an aluminium flight case.

Curious... Photos please. Which throw faders did you use? P&G 's are more than 33$... Would love to see your creation

Good job, John. I love a good DIY project that comes out pro. Keep up the good work

Secure your parking space right next to the camera truck. Having your sonic artillery close by is essential when working on a set or location. Whatever your vehicle, if you are the Sound Head of Dept, you need to be as close to set as possible.

Hi Marc I purchased a pair of these Rode Lavs for use with my G-3's some 4 yaers ago. They were a cheaper option than going witht Sanken Cos-11's (almost half the price!). Unfortunately I started having trouble on the first doccie style run and gun shoot where a presenter had to be mic'ed up. Sudden cracks and breaks in sound would occur. Absolute nightmare stuff. I replaced the micon cable with a spare, but same story there. It turned out to be the connection into the locking mini jack. Just by slightly touching it -CRACKLE POP!!- The only good thing about Rode's lapels are the 2year warranty. I made a video to demonstrate my frustration, mailed it to the original supplier and received my cash back 2 months later. In the field, you simply can't risk faulty equipment. I've never had a day's problem with my COS-11's, excluding clothing rustle on difficult wardrobe.. Best

Hi Quicklock users I've just returned from a shoot in a stormy desert and realised that all 3 of my Quicklocks are now dust and gravell lined. Seriously, a lot of sand in there. Can anyone recommend a solvent to bath and rinse these mechanisms? Clear out all the greasy, crunchy 'gunk'. Then the most appropriate lubricant (petroleum or water based) to keep things moving smoothly afterwards? Sending them to the nearest dealer (Munich, Germany) is not an option. Only DIY advice would be appreciated. Respectfully yours

Wow. The SM58 makes that Dragon look 'legit' as a sound recording camera

Hi Stix I agree with Scott. Thing is, both the Alexa and Amira are fitted with Ambient clocks. I would rent in an Ambient Tiny lockit or ACN-204 box. Use the lockit box as your master clock and sync the two cameras to that box (double, tripple check with a camera rental company that you know how to do this in the menus) and then use the lockit as master clock on your 552. A re-jam after 6 hours would be safe. Unless the cameras are going to change their frame rates all the time, you should be fine with 1 lockit box. Save some bucks. Note that when the camera frame rates are switched, you would have to re-jam every time when they go back to 23.976 or 24 or 25 or...whatever rate the production is being broadcast at. Cables. the newer Ambient boxes all have 5pin Lemo's on their end (output). For the Alexa you'll need a 5pin Lemo to 5pin Lemo, for the Amira you'll need a 5 pin Lemo to BNC and for your 552 you'll need a 5pin Lemo to TA-3 connector. Be sure to test all these cables propperly and that the direction of signal flow is correct. Enjoy

I've had the pleasure of working some days as 1st Boomer on the latest series (shot on location) of "Better call Saul". 95% Lavs in the mix. Their shooting technique was textbook 'bad news' for using a proper mic on the pole. 200mm and 18mm (both zooms, so anything in between). I would always try and get as close as possible with the boom, but this proved impossible, especially in the 'headquarters surveillance hub'. The mixer wasn't really concerned with the boom either. All about the Lavs, sadly. Have a listen and see what you think about the success with this technique.

Hi Nytkim Your all round best option for interior and exterior is probably a small Rycote blimp with furr. Stay away from your listed option 3: I have the Rycote BBG and it is pretty useless. Way too heavy on any suspension, especially if you furr it up. Personally, I resorted to your option 4. Cinela is amazing. I added the Leonard with fur to the combo and I'm very happy with it. Only thing is that I don't trust this setup for outside. Wind can still slice through the Leonard with fur and I wouldn't try this setup in the rain you've mentioned. Whatever your choice, know that the MKH 50 is very susceptible to bass, handling noise. A good suspension is absolutely necessary. Don't bother with a rubber ringed pistol grip. The mic needs to be in a floating suspension rig. Good luck and have fun!

664 can also add CL6 and become 12 inputs 14 tracks. ...You don't need the CL6 to enable 12track (ISO) mode with firmware 2.02, Philip

For me, an internally coiled cable is out. The convenience of not 'having to worry' about handling an external cable is a plus with EPK styled shoots and interviews (with experience this 'worry' falls away and becomes technique). . BUT, on an extended pole, running along with a steadicam operator, I find it's very hard to prevent the internal cable from 'CLACKING!' aroound the inside of the pole. I prefer the HM on the pole when the obstacles on the set is tricky and a cable where I can. As far as poles, K-TEK is nice, but fully extended gets a bit bendy (probably depends on the model). Can't go wrong with a PANAMIC. Built like bullets Best Louw

Good job, Simon Matt gives a solid explanation for turning off the source of noise when in the close up. We're all about clean dialogue here. Remember the golden rule, Vas: 'If you don't see it in the shot, you don't want to hear it'. This helps in achieving a clean recording more often than you'd believe... Rubberised hog's hair? Great recommend. I've had some good success with bales of hay when shooting on location in a rainstorm and under a naked corrugated roof (no gutter fitted!). We don't always have the luxury of hay bales laying around, though

Hi Greg. I recently did a gig where they were shooting on 2 5DMK3's. Using the the RAW output via HDMI to 2 PIX 240's as recordesr. I didn't bother with feeding the camera with my mix. I simply plugged into the PIX and adjusted the offset with about 200 Milli seconds. As long as you have timecode to back up your sync with the footage, they don't need the sound on the picture (inside thar camera) This work-around worked great for our setup. The tricky part it figuring out the picture to sound delay. With help from the DIT it should be fairly easy to establish how many frames it is out (by checking a test shot). Then simple maths. Remember that 1s=1000ms This is crucial when navigating the frame rate of the camera

Sorry to hear about your bad luck with the Wigs, James. With regard to: I'm going to treat the earwig with tape to make sure it sits further out from his ear. Any recommendations for material? I've had great success using thin strips of Moleskin to help seal the unit after switching it on and locking it into the first volume setting. This tends to keep it together and bulk out the unit for a tight fit in a wide ear canal. With regard to batteries. Many brands are trustworthy and should not affect the unit's operation, provided they are from a known manufacturer (Phonak batteries are not necessarily the best). Good luck. I hope this was usefull...

Thank you, Eric. Your help with those pin arrangements are worth gold to me right now! Wandering Ear, your site is on my shortcuts list : ) All the best

Hi folks. I love DIY and the satisfaction of using an effective creation. Does anyone know of an online site/page with schematics for soldering up different connectors and cable arrangements? Here are some cables that I need to make up (from the previous threads I have a fair idea of which cabling to use): 1. 10 pin Hirose (male) to Neutric SC8 (m; pull quick release plug) (I need a looong loom extension) 2. XLR (f) to TA-3 (f) ...line level 3. XLR (f) to TA-3 (f) ...mic level Any notes on the required resistors to achieve either number 2. or 3. ? It's always easier to buy ready- made, but I prefer bumping my head and learning along the way. Thanks for a great thread!

The Cylons are coming!

Hi This isn't a suggestion, but rather a question regarding affordable "old technology" A local guy is selling his Electro 187 RX and TX with 2 tram mics. It's been through some fair share of war fare, so he wants the equavalent of $300 for the lot. I checked it out and it works, but I'm not convinced. That's old technology, tranmits in the VHF bandwidth at a FIXED frequency (can't scan and re adjust). It seems like $300 in the water to me. Has anyone had good experience with these units out there? At most I would use it as a wireless feed to camera (out of the bag style shoots). For EPK shoots I use 2x EW100 G3 units. their range are very surprising! Lecrto's are the quality standard here in South Africa. One or two guys swear by their Microns...