H4n: why do i have to push Level at 100?

[Brian Reynolds]

What is the incoming source?
What input are you using?
Is it only on that source or others as well?

[Olivier Prudhomme]

should have checked the message alert to see someone was helping ! ☺

Using the XLR inputs with lav and boom…
Recording lav on track 1 and boom on 2

Los Angeles – TV Promo Editor – FCP – AVID

[Tristan Chaika]

The reason you have to crank it up high is because your mics are not sending a very strong signal.

Could just be the mic just doesnt send a strong signal – some mics are better than others. NTG 2 is notoriously weak, if that’s what you have.
Could be that the mics have a pad turned on (often -10db used to compensate for extremely loud noises)
You may be able to lessen the attenuation or boost the gain on the lavaliere if it is wireless. Check the manual.

If your mics are just weak, you could invest in new mics, at875r is a good strong budget level shotgun. Or you could invest in better preamps for your H4n. Look for a thing called a “FetHead”. They are about $100 each. There are a couple kinds. Both require phantom power, but the “phantom” FetHead will pass power to your mic, which is probably necessary for your boom mic unless it also has a battery. If your lav is wireless, it probably needs the regular FetHead, if it is XLR and requires phantom power, then obviously would need the phantom FetHead.

Or, you could invest in a better recorder with lower noise preamps (zoom f4 or sound devices mixpre series, even the newer Tascams like the DR701d would be hugely better) that allows you to crank the gain up without introducing a lot more noise.

[Olivier Prudhomme]

Great info, thx Tristan

Los Angeles – TV Promo Editor – FCP – AVID