chris_bollard

I set it to 30fps as the 744T do not recognised any other frame rate

Sorry if this is going over ground previously covered - but I have the production on my butt for a solution. I recently recorded a TV show. Most of it I was able to mix and record (via cable straight to the camera - Varicam). On a few occassions it was decided it was unsafe to cable up (boat stuff usually) so I transmitted timecode from the Varicam to the 744T. Weeks after the shoot has finished I have got a call from the Line Producer telling me there a sync problems on the 744T material - this is after I asked the assistant editor specifically to check the sync on rushes from Day One of the shoot. The project is PAL - posting at 25P. The only timecode rate I could get the 744T to read coming out of the camera was 30fps. The head tech at Panavision was unable to offer anything up about this. I figured that the Varicam, being a 60Hz system, was running at 30fps - then for the 25P post there would some kind of frame rate pulldown. Was I wrong in thinking this? I'm also confused as I thought that the 744T only puts a timecode stamp at the head of the data stream. I believe there is a frame offset between the Varicam and the 744T. Can anyone confirm what that is? Why is sync being lost if the offset has been entered? Does some correction need to be made for the 25P (vision) versus 30fps (sound)? Love to hear from anyone that has struck this problem. Thanks Chris B

Thanks Andy I did email Susan. She got back to me quickly but directed me to ENG Gadgets in the US Guess I'd like to check one out before I order Chris B

Mine is relatively new - 16 months. It has the coated circuit boards. It seems to be that moisture in the switches is the problem.

Thanks Yes, The Toff does indeed make camera covers, and he has been promissing since the last series of the Loser to make us all wet weather covers for our kits. He has been blessed with a new baby, on top of our 12 hour days - result, no time to actually come up with the needed goods. Having had to pull the 442 apart and use the hair dryer twice this series I'm looking for some quick fixes. Also dumbfounded that the mixer succumbs to such as small amount of water. I'm looked at the Audioslicker. Looks just the ticket. But no Australian distributor. Thanks to everyone on the forum for their input Chris B

Greetings to all on the Forum Bad, wet weather continues in Sydney, Australia. My 442 has stopped again due to rain getting in underneath the Petrol apron. Anyone know of anything to keep the rain out - while you work in the rain? Thanks Chris B

Hi anyone from current US Biggest Loser series on the forum? I'm on the current Australian show and would like to have off forum chat.

Haven't explored the tech side but suspect that the problem has something to do with impedance of the cans. On to my third set - they are not with out their problems - but nothing comes close. Yes the connectors are a pain. Yes the plug drops out on the mixer. (Impedance issue?) But for isolation/separation and uncompromising response (ie, hard to make sound good) not much else matches up. Buy some replacement leads. Cheeper than a new set. Or buy a new set from the US - less than half the price than from Panavision

Hi All The wet weather continues (in Sydney - still no talk of the drought being declared over) and was looking for comments on ways to waterproof Rycote zeppelins - with 416 under heavy rain everything usually stops after 20- 30 minutes. Really surprised the mic lasts that long. I've got 4 camera units (in the rain, if it's raining) with 416 full zep/windjammer combo and would love to hear from someone that has used or sells something that will keep them ticking over. Not so worried about the sound of the rain hitting the blimp (it's obvious it's raining) but would like to keep the 416 nice and dry so the fun can keep on happening. Thanks

Hi Must say that being in Sydney, Australia, at the end () (hopefully) of one of the longest droughts in recorded history that having to worry about wet weather cover almost did my head in. After not really having to worry for the past 10 years - rain my current job (a 16 weeker) with loads of exteriors is a daily worry. On the first day of production, in the middle of a semi-tropical downpour, my custom rig sprung a leak on a seam and put my 442 out of action. A quick swap to my SD 3 channel backup got the job finished and the sound assist and I pulled the 442 apart and dried it out with make-ups spare hair drier (Thanks to the wet weather it now lives permanently in the sound dept). As it's mostly showers (not torrental downpours) and the start of summer I've been a bit reluctant to pull out the full poncho with clear cutout. Got on the net after finishing the agreed 13 hour day (plus 1 1/2 hour travel time) - spent some quality time with the little lady and the little people and did a spot of midnight shopping online. A few hundred dollars later - proud owner of small Petrol bag (for light weight rig) and the PERC wet weather cover. Apart for some members of the crew referring to it as my masonic apron (and pass the ritual goat jokes aside) I have to say it's been great for the "occasional show" the weather boys call up. I can squeeze it into my bum bag if the weather looks dodgy and keep the 442 and the Zaxcom running. Love to hear if anyone has other suggestions. As an aside, for those weather watchers, we're expecting our 1st tropical cyclone of the year in the next few days (in the top end, not in Sydney) -- but the storm front is expected to run from South Australia (bottom bit towards the Southern Ocean and Antarctica) right up through Sydney to the Northern Territory (Darwin) - canoe distance from Indonesia. "Intense micro bursts" are expected anywhere inbetween - they give you 25-50mm (2/3 to 1 1/2 in) rain in 10 minutes along with hail stones the size of baseballs. Hope Xmas weather is looking better where ever you are. Thanks for the forum Chris B

Saw a new Porta Brace bag wet weather cover over at B&H. As the longest drought in white history seems to breaking at the start of a 4 month (mainly exterior) shoot I was wondering if anyone has actually seen it and can pass comment on it's effectiveness. Cheers Chris B

Thanks for everyone's input. The comments on the VR Field size and placement of connectors is really helpful -- out here in Australia NO ONE has them is stock -- So I can't have a look at one - for sale or hire. Unfortunately I was working when SMPTE was on and couldn't get to have a look at what was on offer there. I appreciate that when in the bag "you need to get as close as possible" --- but sometimes you just can't do that -- when it's a "live" event and there are 6 roving cameras, 2 cameras on cranes and a 3rd up a 150m tower! and the producers want ALL the audio recorded from 16 participants from an area covering the Olympic athletics field. Has anyone run the VR system successfully in a situation like this? And am I mad even thinking that an in the bag - using sharkfin (or whatever) antenna into a splitter/amp to feed four 411a's - might work. These producer's what the option of recording ALL the sound from everyone ALL the time. Situations like this - and just as crazy - in surf boats, in and out of the water and then 500m (2/3 miles) up the beach! Thanks to all on the forum Chris B

A general question to the power RF users I'm after real user feedback about the Lectro VR Field system - or antenna split system for multiple 411a receivers in over the shoulder bag system I have a set up with 3X four 411a receivers (block 28) in an over the shoulder bag configuration. I want to increase the range at certain events and was wondering what members experiences are with the VR Field - ie, extra range. Or if anyone has tried a split dipole/sharkfin system with 4 receivers with an in-the-bag setup. Or anything else..... that has better distance results Thnks Chris B

I've had 14 Lectro 411a in block 29 running at the same time. Difficult and maybe not ideal but it can be made to work. On the camera hop front I would check very carefully to make sure there is no interferance from them. I had major problems with a similar setup before I got a Zaxcom to use as my camera link. I is possible to get it to work - requires moving the Tx as far away from the receivers as possible. Lectro techs told me a minimum of 12in between Tx and Rx. Had when you're working in the bag. I would also be interested in your results working with the 211s. I had been told by the Lectro techs (again) that the 211s are not designed for in the bag use - due to IM tuning in the Rx - they recommended the 411s as in RF input stages have better filtering. Keep us informed of your results. Chris

Silly me. Just saw Phil's post - same topic as mine. Sorry bout that.

A quick question. I'm looking for a cost effective RF Spectrum analyser - preferably with USB interface - so that I can quickly scan for the best spaces for a multiple radio mic (Lectro) setup. As I only use it once or twice a year I can't really see any sense in spending a huge amount - also, it's something I can't bill extra for. I know I can scan using the 411 units - but as I need to co-ordinate up to 4 recordists at each location - something more visual - and separate from the kits is of interest. Had a quick Google but the results were confusing. Thought someone out there might have found the right and brilliant thing. Thanks Chris B

Hi This might be a rather stupid question.... but if there's an answer then it will make my time spent and the JW Forum even more fabulous. (BTW - thanks for putting on this great and generous forum. Much rather hang here than the alternative spaves) Is there a way when I open a topic that the messages are listed from oldest to newest, rather than newest to the original post? Thanks to everyone Chris B

Hi, Not sure if I'm breaking etiquette here - but I've also posted this on RAMPS. If I have, my sincere apologies. Got a question regarding transmitting timecode using a radio link and running the SD 744T in Ext TC/cont-Auto Record mode (where in coming stream of timecode automatically puts the 744 into record). I tried this using several of my radio links/mics with fairly ordinary results. Had no luck with surplus to requirements Comtek and Audio-Technica rads. Lectro UCR190 worked - but had to come out of the headphone socket and crank it right up. I know I can buy a dedicated timecode from Black Box - but I was hoping to put one of my older RF units back into service for the job. Also, it's not a setup I'm using everyday so wanted to try it out and see if it's worth it. So help from anyone who has tried and succeed will be greatly appreciated. Thanks Chris B

Grant, Like you said. Sometimes it works and sometimes it's back to the drawing board. And you're right about chest hair. It's a bugger - sometimes the faux fur works - sometimes it doesn't - especially when the chest hair get stuck in the double-sided/sports tape. Yeow! Chris B

I have a some more to add from the DIY side of COS-11 taming. The Rycote system is great - but the cost. Another recordist and myself devised our improvisation of the Rycote method to deal with windy conditions when mic'ing up 12 people. I bought quarter of a metre of fake fur fabric from Spotlight (fabric and homewares chain) - looks like Windjammer fabric. It's 1.6 metres wide. I cut little rectangles out of it - roughly one inch by 3/4. Then using one inch wide double sided gaffer tape sandwich the mic head (with or without the Sanken pop stopper) between the faux fur and the tape. Peel off the double sided outer protector to stick it on. If needed I reinforce the setup with Leuko sports strapping tape. At a rough guess I can probably get 250 out of the one piece that cost A$10. Hard to argue against on the cost front. Anyone else tried this method? Chris B

Hi All Pretty sure the method is pretty much the same on Reality shows in Australia as the US. Before starting my first large reality show (the Oz version of Project Green Light in 2005) I spoke to the series producers of the US version to get an idea of how it was done there. That spawned a Lectronics 411a system - group system - where we could mic up to 16 people. There were up to 3 sound recordists on at any time. We each had 4 receivers in our bags - so depending on the situation it was 4 rads or 3 and the boom. We stereo linked to DigiBetas - so it was mixed to two tracks following the action. I was blessed with a great DOP who wanted to wear headphones - to follow the dialogue as a cue for what he should be shooting, and as a safety check on the link (two Lectros). As the shows have 'gotten bigger' - and the gear has appeared - requirements (often at the request of network EPs) have grown. It's now de rigueur to be asked to mic absolutely everyone up. (Even when there is a substantial risk to the mic heads and the transmitters - the production company wears the risk. ) It's all still in the bag - a new bigger bag. Four 411a receivers and the boom option - all iso'd to a 744T (cameras etc on Lockit boxes). A rough mix is linked by Zaxcom to the DigiBetas. Because it's all descrete mic'd the producers all want IFB feeds so they get a head start on writing their interview questions. There are usually 3 or 4 main unit sound recordists. On the bigger set ups this blows out to 7 or 8. The additional units run their own systems separate from the Lectro block system. I'd love to get feedback from anyone in the US doing these kinds of shows to see what they're doing in these situations. There's certainly very little mixing - the focus is on capturing everything as cleanly as we can. My current job ('Saving Babies') is a crazy alternative. Because we are following a number of surgical/medical cases at one time in Sydney's main maternity hospital I have had to fall back to booming almost everything. It's been great challenge - really noisy, modern live hospital rooms. No time to be putting and taking off radio mics. I only run rads in the operating room where it's an absolute necessity - sterile area etc. I've come to love the Sanken CS-1 & CS-3.

Hi All I've had more reality TV than I can poke a stick at. Finished last year/started this year doing the 2nd Series of the (Australian) Biggest Looser. Big crew with 4 full time soundies. Peter Clark, Chris Lakeman, Frank Harrold and myself. Squeezed a month or so of corporates, Sydney Fashion Week & TVCs in before starting the 2nd Series of Saving Babies, and a spin off show (working title) Kids Hospital. Not so big. 3 soundies. Paul Finlay, Marty Butler and good-self. Squeezing a week away in Port Douglas (hopefully in the warmth) before starting the 2nd Series of From Here to Maternity (with Antonia Kidman - sister to...) for the Fox Network in Oz. And that takes me to the end of the year when rumour has it there's the 3rd Series of the Biggest Looser. No real complaints - great crews, tons of great gear. Enough said BTW - love this forum. Very little background whine. Keep it up

Cameras (comsumer/pro-sumer) keep shrinking and my sound kit keeps getting bigger (as I was repeatedly told at the start of my current job). Yes, I could work with tin cans and string but prefer to try and get the Zaxcom to run for long enough on rechargable AA on the production Sony Z1. As I've been told repeatedly by station execs - "Make sure you get ALL the sound. Make sure it's clear. We know our viewers can read - but we don't want them to have to read sub-titles on this show. If we don't have pictures for it and it's good we can still use the sound"

As a recent draftee to the world of Reality TV I second Darren's observations. Having, in the last 18 months recorded the Australian version of 'Project Greenlight', then 'Australian Princess' and just finished the Australian edition of 'Biggest Looser' - I sometimes find myself saying - thank god for Reality TV. Not only is there plenty of it and it has long production runs, more importantly it's a professional challenge and I get to work with other experienced recordists. 'Looser' had 4 full time recordists. To that was added 4 or 5 additional recordists for big events. We ran a 411 system of 16 within one block - a pretty mighty feat - that required some tweeking. We were able to dial these up as required - recording to 4 744Ts - we each had one of these and 4 receivers in our bags. A stereo mix was linked to the cameras by Zaxcom systems. On the big events, weigh-ins and noisy locations IFBs were run so the trusty band of producers could be listening in and typing up their interview questions. A challenge to all - lot's of co-ordination. But really enjoyable. Not often you truthfully get to say that.

I mainly work on docos and tv series (and the ever popular reality series). So everything has to go over the shoulder - tho maybe my shoulders need to be a lot bigger than they actually are! Once apon a time I used to pack everything in silver cases and pelican cases. After an internal US flight where my alum case looked as if it had been run over by the baggage truck I revised this procedure. Now I carry on my shoulder kit - in the sizable Petrol PEGZ-2. I usually jam as much in that as I can comfortably fit - SD 442 & 744T, 3 to 4 Lectro receivers, Zaxcom stereo link and NP1. It can be a pain to get thru security - and I have been asked to pull 'everything' out. But at least I know that these bits haven't been trashed in transit. Everything else (extra radio mics, shotgun mics, stereo mic, microphone cables, adapters, motorola 2 ways, torch, mini playback system for checking rushes in the field - or playing sound tunes, and batteries, batteries, abtteries) goes in a couple of Pelican cases (a brief case and a 1600) - sometimes I break out the big silver if I need to take a 2nd Rycote zep for the stereo mic, cold/wet weather gear and the coffee machine. I also always squeeze in a tool kit (with soldering iron) if I'm travelling anywhere off the main circuit - always good to have when camera/lighting gear needs a quick fix, too. No pics... but maybe next time I load it all up.... hope this is off some interest.