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Noisy pro-sumer cameras?
Hi sorry for the bad subject heading, for lack of better wordings…
I recently tried Single-System on a Sony HVR-A1P with my SD302 mixer & my ENG cable. I set up the usual unity gain and 1k referencing on the cans & the headphone feed returned from the camera was throwing a hissy fit throughout. I haven’t had the chance then to record and playback on a deck to see how bad the recorded sound is… sounds like the camera input pre-amp is terrible?
There was another problem with another pro-sumer camera, the Sony EX1. With the camera’s input dials turned up alll the way, the 1K on my 302 mixer was still only hitting -10db max on the camera’s unlabelled meters.(had to playback on AVID to see the levels) This wasn’t such a big issue though because the headphone returned sounded okay still and the recorded audio on the camera was fine and still usable. It is still kinda unsettling to see the camera’s dials maxed out and still not hitting the reds with my 1k.
just wondering if anyone had any such experience with these sort of ‘low-entry-level pro-sumer/con-fessional’ cameras… if my concerns are any causes for alarms… Also, are there any ways to overcome these issues with some tweaks on my mixer? (like increasing the output of my mixer, but not sure how that would help and if that would bring up further problems)
(Sorry too if this has been covered to death.. I couldn’t find any similar issues using the search functions before I typed this)
Thanks
Min -
12 Replies
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Mic-level?
Line-level?
What is an “ENG cable?”
What do you mean by “hissy fit?”
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Hello Min and welcome to the Cow Audio Forum,
Perhaps you had the 302 set to mic level output and the camera set to line level input. That would result in low signal and hiss. Check your equipment menus and adjust accordingly.
Regards,
Ty Ford
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As Matte and Ty eluded to, we need to know if you were sending mic or line level and what the camera was set to accept. As far as the HVR camera is concerned, you should do a test record and see what it sounds like (on a deck or editing program). Not all headphone amps (and circuitry) are created equal. In other words, some headphone amps can be inherently noisy. I hear noise on the bigger, professional camera’s headphone amps quite frequently.
Rodney
Freelance Sound Technician/Mixer
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allude 🙂
I thought we were pretty straight forward, but you’re right even pro cameras can have cr** headphone circuits.
Ty Ford
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Thanks Ty, sometimes I have the “elusion” that I’m smart or something…
Freelance Sound Technician/Mixer
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No doubt you are smart Rodney.
I remember asking a guy about the best way to “antennuate” a signal, so more power would go to the antenna. It was a long time ago. He was kind enough not to laugh in my face. 🙂
Regards,
Ty Ford
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I have the SD 302 and the Sony EX-3 (EX-1 on steroids) and the recorded tracks are very clean in comparison to the Panasonic, JVC, and HDV-based Sony prosumer cameras. The preamp is also much less noisy than the full-size Sony’s and Panny’s. It’s a primary reason I own these particular pieces.
Check your 302 for the correct output level – if you see a orange-lit LED on the right side, you have an attenuated output.
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What is a pre amp… and what is its function.. ?
Thanks
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Robin,
Merry Xmas morning.
Usually a preamp amplifies the level of a mic to line level.
Regards,
Ty Ford
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Hi Ty
Yes merry xmas! hope your not in too much snow!
So if you have line level into the camera say from a mixer… the preamps wont be used? so a mic level input will be boosted to line level ? because its better quality ?
Thanks again
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