The Immoral Mr Teas

Day before yesterday? No idea either Malcolm! Eela also completely new to me, and I'm a sucker for vintage gear. Maybe someone will come up with some pictures. Jez

Damn it. It doesn't ship to the UK. No matter, I just got a little pot of enamel and painted my U87 pink. Job done.

Malcolm, was that not possibly the Sela? Jez

Interesting. Can the F8 currently do the same? (Or might there be a software update to do so in the offing?) Thanks, Jez Adamson

Hi Randy, just thinking off the top of my head here, but based on above two comments I might consider trying to rig some kind of 'enhanced' wind protection over a DPA on a headband - something like a fur covered decent sized mic foam ball, maybe half the size of a small softie. Also, if headbands or even 'wooly-style' hats might end up being comfortable and far easier to rig (= put on) than standard theatre / PA / film solutions. Jez Adamson

He's on a flat trolley, so not so dangerous after all. And then there's the camera op's brother (out of frame, right) holding the angle of the speeding car with a length of thin wire. These guys are pros, and probably punch kangaroos for fun on a weekend!

You've already stated the drift is not consistent - and it won't be anyway - so do as already suggested and take a start and end sync point to try to squeeze / stretch the (least important) second file into 'sync' 1 minute sections might help - or might just drive you mad. It depends on how much you want to rescue the 6-track and how phase accurate the multitrack needs to be. If it was just a case of a commentary or unrelated 2-track on the D100, you'll be fine. If it's true multitrack I'm afraid it wouldn't have worked for 5 minutes, let alone 4 hours ... Two 744s, if not linked by word clock, would be no better. Dig audio is itself a pretty good self clocker, but not good enough for true phase. Jez Timecode is irrelevant - it is a sample rate issue (ie 96.0000000000 vs 95.98687688799 vs drift). Everything will drift, nothing is perfect, but word clock (in its various forms) will continuously reclock and help keep sync between two or more clocks. Wandering Ear's advice really is the best you can do here - it just depends on how much discrepancy can be tolerated between the two sets.

You'll definitely need a name, a face and a place of origin just to get through customs ... we've become rather strict since Farage got pally with Trump. But since I'm replying without any of these factors of knowledge I'll just have to say, "Yes you very likely will." If on the other hand you are British or from the EU, the answer is "no" Jez

Looks like I will get a regulated cup anyway - I'm just using it to power the R4, not anything else.

On paper, yes I know, an unregulated np1, xlr4, should be fine. Can anyone confirm this for me before the hire truck makes the 400 mile journey (so I don't end up burning through 80 aa batteries?!) J

No, they'll just reallocate and sell off the entire tx spectrum to a French (Belgian even?) mobile phone giant. We may become Europe's best place to play Pokemon Go though.

A hello to all existing R4 Pro users and to the memories of those of you who have moved on. I am just about to use my R4 Pro on a short shoot and I've only ever used it on FX gathering with AAs or inside with the lead. I don't have my own NP1 or other battery set as i don't usually or often production record (so i can't test things). I'm also currently miles away from any big city hire place. I plan to ask the cameraman to hire and bring a couple of Hawk woods NP65 or 70 batteries with an unregulated NP1-XLR4 cup. Will this do the job? Should I get an unregulated cup/lead? Forgive the perhaps obvious question - the manual is pretty scant on info for external batteries (suggesting pretty much anything would work perfectly ...) Thanks in advance, Jez

I don't think I'd really like to risk a CMCXT for recording that porpoise - something more like a DPA 8011 might be more suited? SORRY SORRY! I couldn't resist, and had to get that one in first! But - correct me if I'm wrong but I thought the extra HF response with the XT only came from front address capsules so the MK8 (or any side address capsules including ANY Schoeps fig 8. ) will only have the normal response? Whilst I'm at it I'll ask (and other Schoeps fig 8 users here) if you might also consider the MK6 capsule? Switchable between omni cardioid and figure 8 It doesn't answer your question I know - I have not compared the three capsules / mics. Jez

I would second the criticism of the combo jack (if indeed they function the same as the F8 - xlr for mic and TVs for line ... at -10 level too?) Although I haven't looked closely at the F4 nor looked at a manual, so forgive me if I'm wrong and jumping in too soon, the inability to go line in from XLR and the lack of pro line level choice were early and major criticisms of the F8 - so did anyone listen? Jez

At last we're finally getting somewhere! "Are you visiting the set? Do not forget a blanket!" Friedrich Nietzsche , Ecce Sono

Nick, I look like that now. Jez

Since Nic Roeg's The Man Who Fell to Earth has just been discussed on BBC Radio 4's The Film Programme, I'll nominate the final scene of that film. Also, many films by Borowczyk - who specialised in a chaotic apocalyptic ending - such as Blanche (1971) and Dr Jekyll and Miss Fanny Osborne (1981). Jez

Well I give a thumb up, like the F8. Especially if already owning a 552 or a nice mixer front. Like the F8 a decent mini upgrade until the max/nomad/633 etc is in someone's range. And the screen reminds me of ... a macintosh!

I certainly would have laughed, Nick. Perhaps that is why I would never be able to become a BBC presenter. And my last interview several years ago for (internal) BBC work was similarly po-faced: they didn't like my questions regarding the contract (he obviously doesn't WANT to work at the BBC ... ) J (Actually, a disclaimer - I'd say most of the several presenters / talent I've worked with would have laughed at that one. You obviously had an unlucky crapshoot that morning).

Ha! Horrible memories of last night's hurdles, watching a Utility rescuing an 816 ... Another 'cheap' idea ... cut a little circle of about 2 inches in the front of that matted worn out windjammer and sew in a new bit of clean windjammer for the 'sweetspot'. Actually I haven't done this yet, but I did intend to sew up a similar rain cover adding some budget sponge/'rockwool' scourers across the top ...

Tycho CN3 (for the Nagra III) and Tycho CN4 (board to fit inside a IV). ? Jez

+1. I'd just add that the fluffy windjammer over the blimp should be clean, fluffy and fairly regularly combed out to keep it so. If it's matted it will do the job much less well, both in terms of wind protection and transparency (and that goes for an old matted softie too). I tend to keep hold of my 'awful condition' worn out windjammers and softies for truly dreadful conditions (downpours etc) but really that's just because I'm cheap - I would recommend they're thrown away! Jez

Ah, there you go ... my memory! So the two shotgun mics (two separate mono positions, not stereo) were purely 'distance' mics and he did what he could to avoid the echo! If you did end up setting up a distant echo mic, I'd be tempted to try a pair of widely spaced omnis - wide enough to hopefully get some noticeable 'stereo' effect, so really quite far apart, several meters at least. I've never actually yet used my two 100m cables which I made up a while ago for this sort of thing! My first port of call might be to try that 'slapper' software though ... Jez

I remember a report in RAMPS a while back by the bloke who recorded some multichannel gunshots for Thin Red Line I think. Can't remember off the top of my head who it was but I wouldn't be surprised if he was a semi regular here on JW. Anyway, I think apart from the usual close and mid distant collection of dynamics and condensors he had a pair of 816s way way back - I mean WAY back - for this slap. Might be worth trying a search for the OP on RAMPS - try 'recording gunshots' or 'thin red line' ... or maybe he'll chime in here if we're lucky. Jez

Try to find out (from the production mixer) what the tracks are - also if you cannot see for yourself ask if they contain metadata with track info. Then it should be OK (even preferable) to just edit with the mix track(s) and keep the picture edit and omf simple. If there are poly files with metadata, these will be reimported in protools (and several other DAWs) and all the tracks accessible to the dialogue editor. Any 'one-offs' of 'best track' clips also in the omf for clarity shouldn't be a problem - they'll just be resourced and replaced with the 24bit masters and these incorporated into a full dialogue tracklay. But really - I'd say any workflow with this level of complexity should have a dialogue between all departments (recordist, edit, post sound) and preferably some decent notes and/or metadata. Jez