Rode Videomic or Rode SVM

[Phyllis Keith]

Hello Ty,

My main purpose is to capture the spirit of the performers and the energy of the event, however, I’d like to try an external mic vs. the internal mic to improve sound.

For example, I recorded a hiphop event last night with DJs and EXTREMELY LOUD BLASTING music…my style is to move around with the camera, and so if I had an external mic, I would keep the mic on the camera in that situation.

The second example is recording rappers in a night club…footage which they might put in their music videos to show the crowd. Because of the large crowd actively participating, I sit on the bar off to the side or perch on top of a banquet to stay out of the way and not interfere in the clubgoers’ experience. It might be possible to place a mic externally in the club near the rappers, but being a novice I have no idea where, with blasting beats and a crew rapping.

To get to the point, getting one of the Rode mics is what I want to do even if only to achieve a modicum of improvement in sound. The question is which one is most practical.

I have seen your posts to others on this forum that the mic should not be used on the camera; also, I have heard the incredible sound on the YouTube video you shared–wow. I understand where you’re coming from as far as achieving an amazing sound goes.

Thanks for your help.

Sincerely,
PK

[Ty Ford]

Phyllis,

The problem is the very loud sound of your environment. You may not be able to turn the record gain low enough. Typical camcorders were not designed to be operated in environments that loud. If you go with an external mic, you may also need a 10 or 20 dB pad to knock the sound down to a level where your camcorder cam handle it.

The Rode VideoMics have a pad, but I can’t guarantee it’ll be enough…maybe.

While the music is on, you’ll never be able to capture conversation because the music will just be too loud.

Regards,

Ty Ford

Cow Audio Forum Leader
Want better production audio?: Ty Ford’s Audio Bootcamp Field Guide

[Phyllis Keith]

Hi Ty,

I have the Canon 60D. In the situations I’m recording video in, does it make a difference whether I use the Rode Video Mic or Rode SVM?

Thanks for the input; it’s all very helpful.

Sincerely,
Phyllis

[Ty Ford]

Phyllis,

All three mics are equally sensitive. The original VideoMic offers -10 and -20 dB pads. The other mics only -10 db. All three say the mics can be padded for loud events, so how loud is loud?!?!?!?!

The original VideoMic did not do well when moved somewhat vigorously because the rubber bands in the suspension mount squeeked. Would you hear that in a really loud environment? I don’t know.

If you won’t be whipping the camera mounted VideoMic around much you should be OK. If you want more camera movement, I’d go with one of the other mics.

If I were you, I’d find a retailer that’d let me try each one so you could figure out what works best.

Regards,

Ty Ford

Cow Audio Forum Leader
Want better production audio?: Ty Ford’s Audio Bootcamp Field Guide

[Phyllis Keith]

Thanks, Ty. I’m going to mull over this a bit more before I purchase. The input has been helpful. Phyllis

[Carsten Radke]

Hi Ty,

I have tried to find an answer to my question but did not find one. My dilemma is that I have two situations where I will need a microphone to record while filming:

(a) for a DVD that accompanies a musical instruments learning course, i.e. one person playing instructive (music) samples on one intstument –> for which I would have chosen the Rode Videomic Pro

(b) for recording live music from 5-6 musicians –> for which I would have chosen the Rode Stereo Videomic

As the quality for the DVD might be more important than the live samples, I might have gone with the VM Pro. Also, does a mono recording of live music sound really bad? Or is there a way to alleviate this?

Been brooding over the question for two days. Would greatly appreciate a tip. Kind regards, Carsten

[Ty Ford]

Carsten,

It depends on your expectations. For a tutorial, I would want a headset mic like the Countryman E6 and a direct or mic for the instrument.

For a group playing…..playing what? How loud? Where?

Regards,

Ty Ford

Want better production audio?: Ty Ford’s Audio Bootcamp Field Guide

[Carsten Radke]

Thank you, Ty, for your swift answer; very kind.

The (a)-type recording is for a tutorial on learning to play capoeira instruments, i.e. I want to record Berimbau, Atabaque (barrel drum) and Pandeiro (tambourine). Also the accompanying voice-over. It’s a personal project for now and funds for a ‘professional’ mic like the Countryman E6 is sadly not in the budget. Would the Rode VM Pro (on a mic-stand near the source (instrument or speaker) give an acceptable result? (Ok, what does acceptable mean… 😉 Or would another mic in the price-range give such better results that I should chose that one forego the video-mic functionality of the Rode?

For the live music situation, it’s mainly for recording capoeira roda baterias, i.e. 3 Berimbaus (one string bows), stand-up drum and tambourine. Mostly in academías (training gyms) or public places. The loudness is medium – it being non-amplified acoustic instruments. With sometimes ambient noise (mostly people). But maybe the important information here is that I would think that the recording material is, independently of what mic is chosen, in any case not suitable, i.e. good enough, for “musical” use, e.g. on a CD. So, these recordings would mainly be for documentary purposes – to re-record the songs later, preserve the lyrics or as the original sound of video footage.

This purpose (original sound for video) might call for a stereo mic – but I am a musician, not video artist, and currently I need the video for the tutorial project. This project is the one at hand for which I would need an ‘adequate’ setup.

Thx again and kind regards,
carsten

[Ty Ford]

Hello Carsten,

As mentioned earlier in this thread, a $100 lav on the body will sound better than a $2000 mic too far away.

For the music, you will be recording percussion instruments. That’s very tough. Even tambourines have extremely high transients. They can overdrive the audio very easily.

Yes, gymnasiums are large areas with hard reflective surfaces. The closer you get to the instruments, the more you gamble with recording too hot. The farther away you stand, the more slappy room sound you hear.

Stereo mic versus mono. If you will be moving the camera around a lot, a stereo mic can make the listener/viewer somewhat unsettled because of the shifting of the stereo spectrum. A mono mic doesn’t have this problem, but you lose the spatial sound of stereo.

Regards,

Ty Ford
Audio Forum Leader

Want better production audio?: Ty Ford’s Audio Bootcamp Field Guide

[Carsten Radke]

Thanks! I guess it’s much more complicated than I can work out right now. But I’ll just give it a go. There’s no tutorial yet for the stuff I’m working on, so any material will be an improvement 😉