Toy Robot

Love the last one Jim! Awesome!

This is a known 'thing' to have happen with that camera model and an SRb in particular. Myself, as well as a few other mixers just had this discussion via a FB thread and the end result is run your SRb at mic level into the camera and re-gain stage. I believe the last setting I used on the SRB into those cameras was -25 output level from SRb going into camera, again, if memory serves me well. Bravo for trying to run hot line level, but with that camera and an SRb it will not work. So off to mic level madness, and move along with your day. Don't worry about the increased noise at mic level, if you gain stage it out properly you will be good to go. Final note, we don't know yet why those cameras will not accept line level from an SRb, and I'd love to know why. It bothers me that I don't have an answer. Anyone? Larry? Best of luck.

My pleasure guys. Glad it helped you Matt, and it was fun doing it!

Made a down and dirty strain relief for my Nomad's SMA right angle antenna. Cheap and easy for those of you who might like to protect your antenna from stress in the bag. Went searching the shop for something to make a relief out of and found this. I needed something that I could fasten to the Nomad without drilling holes in the body or permanently altering the machine, and this fit the bill when I saw it. Dremmel tooled the locking bolt shorter and came up with this first iteration. Tested it, but the bolt on the right slipped through the hole, so I re-trimmed another bolt and this time added a washer where the arrow points to prevent it from slipping through. Here is the second version that works well so far. Longer bolt so as to sit past the SMA antenna. Note that it is simply using the existing Nomad housing as an anchor point. Also note that pressure applied to this part will cause the part to press up against the body of the Nomad, as shown in this photo where the arrow points. That means even if it comes slightly loose with great pressure, it will press on the body of the Nomad instead of slipping through and failing to do its job. Side View: Top View: Hopefully in the long run this will prevent major stress on the antenna from my Kortwich bag. I very much hope the next version of Nomad has this antenna placement moved to a safer and more functional space, but until then this should do the trick.

As a follow up to the test I did a few days ago, I repeated the test with the same batteries after a full recharge, but this time with multiple tracks being recorded simultaneously, phantom power being used to power an actual mic and mirroring turned on during REC. Test Concept: Run-flat test of internal batteries on Nomad similar to previous test. Curiosity test of old Sanyo Eneloops, as well as informational test for Internal Battery Warning voltage threshold for Nomad 10. Tested heavily used 4 year old Sanyo Eneloop Ni-MH rechargeable AA batteries (1,900mAh min. - Gen 1 and 2). Nomad was powered up using NP battery and set to record one (1) Mono Mix track plus six (6) ISOs per the screenshots. CH-6 was left with phantom power ON, with an MKH-60 attached and a speaker playing music just to show levels on screen. Other channels just set to record and left alone. Mirroring on Nomad was ON and set to 'Continuous'. Findings: Just prior to the pull of External Power External power warning as battery is pulled - Nomad already in REC Shortly after battery pull. Internal voltage reads 6.7V Internal voltage again stabilized at 6.6V for quite a while. Still mirroring and recording all tracks and internal voltage at 6.6V after approximately 30 minutes of REC After over an hour and 3 separate recording segments the voltage starts to drop fast. Now at Internal 6.1V In ~4 minutes after that photo the voltage drops to 5.7V. It's danger zone now and surely about to shut off. Which it did before I could take the next photo. What I learned: I'll now be setting my Nomad's internal battery warning voltage alert level to 6.5V. I will do this because I know that Nomad will stabilize at around 6.6V+ for almost one full hour of run time with these batteries, and because I know that after these particular internals fall below 6.5V they will begin to de-stabilize and drop voltage fast after that point. In other words, I can keep rolling if necessary until I hear the warning, then I have to force a cut or hot swap NPs. I like Sanyo Eneloops and they are doing very well IMO after years of heavy use. Again, power management is part of our job so I don't plan on getting into a hot situation by running out of external power, but in the off chance it happens I'll much better be able to confidently judge the appropriate course of action based on the situation. Hope you enjoyed.

Andy, I did this with my Nomad and although it works I never use it. I find with the proper fitting ear piece as Wyatt mentions above it is simply not worth it. There are too many times throughout the day when you'll take the bag off or set it down for a rest or a company move and you still need the walkie in. The earpieces work just fine. I'm keeping the headset that is wired that way since it could serve another purpose in the future, but for now I just run with the earpiece. Just my experience, YMMV.

Appears to be a duplicate thread, any way we can get Mr. Wexler to merge these threads?

Apparently you have never shot reality before. You HAVE to have a walkie in or you will have NO IDEA what is going on with those shoots. Period. This idea of no walkie is for narrative, commercial, etc. type work. In reality style shooting you just get used to it and suck it up. In fact I find it useful on those types of shoots to know what's going on (camera coming out of bathroom, staying on talent X, for example let's me know where to be in the apartment, or more importantly, where NOT to be and who's mic to keep in the mix). That's just a super simple example. I also think if this is in fact a reality shoot scenario then you are prematurely blaming Bigenboom. He had cans on AND a walkie in the ear. The field producers and camera operators on set are the ones who should have heard an open walkie and shut it down. This mistake, as explained by the OP is unfortunately something that could easily be made by a reality mixer. It is the entire crew's job to lock down things like that. Team effort and all. No offense to you afewmoreyears, but you seem to be posting harshly to a member here about a field shooting style you have never even been a part of. Gentle on the OP unless you have been there at the very least.

Also makes perfect sense. Thanks!

Thanks!

Wonderful explanation. Thank you. [emoji41]

Please excuse my ignorance, but why are you all adding voltage meters to bags with digital recorders which tell you your external battery voltage? I'm seriously not attempting to be condescending, and I'm a huge fan of DIY projects. Just want to see what I'm missing. Is this just a user preference for a massive voltage display? Obviously it solved the USB power issue which is great, just wondering about the metering. Thanks.

Reviving this thread to post a limited real-world test. I posted in another thread regarding Sanyo Eneloops, and thought this information would be better suited here. The Sanyo-curious folks should be able to find it with a proper search (I hope). I did a run-flat test of heavily used Sanyo Eneloops as internal batteries on the Nomad. Please note that this is NOT a test to see how Nomad's interal batteries can last with new batteries and it is NOT intended for folks to think I am trying to power off of internal batteries as primary. This was a curiosity test to see how my heavily used Sanyo Eneloops would fare after 4 years of use with heavy power draw in a mission critical device (just long enough for me to finish a short roll and power down). Test was as follows: Batteries used - Sanyo Eneloop 1st and 2nd generation white 1,900mAh rechargeable Ni-MH batteries. These batteries are now 4 years old and are heavily used in everything from Denecke slates to SMQVs to ERX2TCDs and more. I have used them and abused them and was curious as to how they would fare here. Nomad was powered only through internal batteries (startup also powered off of internals, not a hot-swap) and phantom power on Channel 6 was left ON (one channel). I did not put Nomad into 'record' mode or have it mirroring frankly because I don't plan on keeping a long roll going if Nomad switches to internals (which won't happen anyway as far as I'm concerned since I use battery warning indicators on Nomad for EXT power). I will do another with mirroring on and in record mode another day, and I am well aware that this is a biased test of a non-recording machine, but for now it is what I have to offer. This is an extremely unlikely scenario for me to ever be running on internal battery power, but I do keep internal backups in the Nomad for that 'just in case' scenario. I powered Nomad up and let it sit on my desk in front of me until it died. Here are the findings. Start Time: 4:44 PM - internal voltage reads 7.5V immediately after startup (this is from six (6) 1.2V rechargeable AA's). A while later: 5:35 PM - voltage of internals has now settled close to 6.7V 6:10 PM - internal voltage is now 6.3V. Note the voltage stability of 35 minutes passing and a voltage drop of only .4V. And just before the Nomad shut down from loss of internal power. 6:21 PM @ 4.2V. Note the extremely rapid drop in voltage within an 11 minute period. From 6:10PM @ 6.4V to 6:21 PM boderline shutdown. All in all I'm fairly impressed with the old Eneloop's ability to keep this machine alive for what I am sure would be enough time to shut down and swap NPs. I'll also note that my Nomad's screen brightness is set at it's highest level, and so are the LEDs on the front panel, however I doubt that affects power draw too much. Enjoy.

If you're going to buy Eneloops I do not suggest the black versions. Here is a link to info on Eneloop versions here at Wikipedia for proper model numbers to purchase before you buy. The three main points which I believe should be made regarding Sanyo Eneloops are: Buy 3rd generation white Eneloops, not the 1st or 2nd generation batteries Because they are the best value for mAh / run-time and total number of recharges allowed. The black eneloops have a much lower total recharge number (500 vs. 1,800 for white eneloops), so your long run times come at a sacrificial short battery life. Remember that in this industry we recharge our batteries constantly and they'll start to burn out. Change batteries at lunch = problem solved regarding run time. They will always last at least that long in my experience (not sure about single battery TXs, I use SMQVs or 9V capable transmitters). Basically don't be afraid of the 1,900mAh specs. I'm on year four (4) of 1st and 2nd generation white Eneloops and I've now only had 1 or two batteries of 40+ die on me in that time (and I had to throw away a couple more because I abused the insulation sleeve off of them), and I push them hard. I also regularly run them in everything from Denecke slates to ERXs, to Nomad internal backup battery trays to SM series transmitters. They will not disappoint, and I have never had them fail to fit into a piece of gear. My opinion is buy with confidence and don't look back. Enjoy.

I was working on a shoot a while ago and had an issue for one (1) sit down interview with a wireless camera hop. So I said hold one moment and hardwired into camera in less than two minutes. Problem solved, and there was NO DELAY to the day's schedule. Wrap was after that interview - an hour and a half or so. Producer gets a phone call from someone up top about something schedule related just before we roll on the interview and immediately he says to whoever he's talking to, "Yeah, we're running behind. We've been having hours of audio issues with the camera and he's still working to get it right so like, I don't know, I'll get back to you." No joke. And this producer for the most part was a nice person who seemed to do right by his crew. I think there is a culture of 'use the sound mixer as the scapegoat' in productions, and it really needs to stop. I just replied, "The problem is solved, there is no delay from sound department. I am ready to roll right now." And that comment was not-so-tactfully ignored. So I smiled and nodded, went about my job as a professional and moved along. Can't win 'em all.

This.

Dave I would encourage you not to get discouraged. Naysayers abound. Remember that certain ERX belt clips are running $40. I'd much rather pay $25-35 for a full on protective case. Just had one of my ERXs dropped today.

My latest bag. Updates coming every day.

Great thread.

Even funnier when I read this and then saw your avatar.

Agreed.

I personally would have no problem at all paying a higher price for something made for ERXs. I just haven't found anything yet that works very well. For my purposes it would be for handing out ERXs in place of Comteks. The goal for me would be protection from drops and being left lying around as careless folks often do, but with a belt clip option and not overly bulky. I'd happily pay $25-35 a case for something like that. No idea if you can have a case made that affordably and still maintain a profit margin, but if it was really well done I would even go higher.

This is extremely good advice regarding XLR connection on these mics.

awesome

Turn the +10dB input gain on. Jack showed it to me a week or so ago and it fixed all my gain staging problems except one, which is that I really wish it was channel selectable instead of universal for analog inputs. Ideally I would only need to apply it to my mic channels, and let the Lectros run hot at line level without the added 10dB of gain.