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Scratch track for the Alexa


tomhartgeorge

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Hi Guys,

I have been filming with the Alexa and using a double system of recording on my 788 and sending a stereo hop with my zaxcom, however I'm considering simplifying by sending a mono guide track with a G3 rather than the bulkier zaxcom. Has anyone got a good system for this?

many thanks

I am currently sending my mix to 3 Alexas so that the end of day iPads rushes that the DoP and director get have guide sound. I am not a fan of sending to camera and I initially resisted. With the G2 / G3 30mW kit that I am using, the cameras sometimes go out of range but generally we are OK. Production seem happy. I had the kit in the van and they are paying extra for it. We had to make up output cables with right angle 5 pin XLRs for the Alexas and we have to battery up the receivers each morning - but all in all not too much hassle. 

 

Tim

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Ive made up a cable that will screw lock into the Senni G3 receiver and the other end is a 5pin male xlr for the alexa BUT - the g3 outputs at mic level so even with the out put boosted to max +12db on the g3 and turning up the alexa inputs to max the tone is still down at -30 - which is ok for a scratch track but if you wanted usable audio you would need to be sending in at line level.

 

This is a mono feed so I tried to put the right channel on both tracks but when I did this I heard nothing coming out of headphones - as if the L and R were out of phase and cancelled each other when the same thing was on both channels?  The separation betwen left and right didnt seem very good either, turning off 1 channel was still giving me audio in both ears on the headphone output

 

Also the headphone out of the Alexa is has no obvious volume

 

Im going to do more tests tomoro

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I am going to go against the grain here and say I am happy to send sound to the Alexa and I am happy for them to use it as there primary audio if desired. I am confident in my equipment, the camera and that I have set every thing up correctly. Double system, single system, it's all the same to me. It is a better camera sound wise than many cameras used in the single system world. Yes I hit record on my machine and hand over the files and reports at the end of the day. What they decide to do in post is their choice.

 

I'm with Nate.  Pretty much every Alexa shoot I've sent a mix track either through a beta snake or stereo RF

and rolled on my end.  But all of my gigs consists of camera's that can take some form of audio.  Unless the camera op., producer, upper management insists of not having it, than I won't feed it.  Otherwise if it has inputs, I'll feed it.

 

Gabe

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It's a scratch track, not a final production mix. Hang a comtek on it and stop trying to make it something it's not designed to be.. Sent from my HTCONE using Tapatalk 2

+1 on the shows I tend to do,

Obviously different on shows that want to record to camera

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I'm with Nate

 

I cable feed and did a job recently that used that audio and not my separately recorded files.

 

But we should always remember that we cannot always monitor the Alexa as a recorder

so a monitored backup is essential.

 

mike

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The last couple features I've done on the Alexa, I've been asked to provide reference audio in camera for dailies.  I put an ERX on it, feed timecode and audio, and everyone's happy.  The ERX output is a little weak, but the Alexa has plenty of input gain to compensate.

I don't see audio in camera as my decision.  If they want it for their workflow, then give it to them.  If they don't, then don't.  We are not the ones putting this whole thing together, we are just one step in the massive process.  I always try to give production what they need to make the agreed upon workflow smooth and efficient.

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