[Al Bergstein]

Only lost signal when the batteries were low.

Al

[Al Bergstein]

Understood on your feelings Yoshi about the two systems. Other than the initial failure, I’ve not had a problem with my AT. But Senn has a great rep also.

Raf, thx for clarifying on the XA. That did make ‘sense’ to buy, given the possible pro level restrictions, if you didn’t have the initial budget.

It sounds like a field mixer would help, and the Mixpre-D is a great option. It can plug in under the camera, with it’s newer mount, the headphone volume control is great, and can output loud to the cans. I use it on my 7D. Then all you have to do is monitor your camera volume meters, to see that you have the mixer right. That can get you in the ballpark,without overdriving. And it’s unlikely the people you worry about charging you extra would even see the thing.

The AT receiver has a very strong signal for output to the cans as well, so sometimes I do all level checks there, if I don’t bring the field mixer. Again, you can monitor the incamera level controls if the scene is noisy. Last but not least, the signal should be running to a field recorder and the PMD661 along with the Mixpre-d allows me to output to the recorder and use my camera as the backup. Far less hiss on the 661 than any camera I’ve ever used. Cameras all have terrible pre’s it seems

Would I buy it again? Not sure. But it’s been ok, and the AT service, for here in the US did not disappoint.

Al

[Al Bergstein]

Sorry, just to be clear, I’m somewhat confusing your question on mics vs. receivers. The Receiver failed,not the lavs. The lavs have never been a problem. But since you likely will buy lavs that are from the same mfg, not always true, I assumed I was describing all of a piece.

My shotgun mic, an AT, runs on one AA battery. It’s never failed me.

I always monitor off the camera, unless I’m using a field mixer. I have the ability with the AT reciever to monitor off that, which is useful for setup prior to attaching to the camera or mixer. Then I usually do a test monitor off the camera, after setting the mixer, then ride the mixer during the shoot, if I can. Or I hand the job to a audio grip or recording pro. Sound is much harder than video, and trying to do both at once is really a learned and practiced skill. You have to know and trust your gear as much as anyone can. It’s why Sennheiser and AT, etc. have followings. Cheap gear won’t save you when you are 1000 miles or more from a store. And Richard is correct in his thoughts as well.

Al

[Al Bergstein]

My first one failed after a few weeks. AT was very good at replacing (not fixing) the unit at no charge. The new one works great. However, it does require care in managing battery life in the field. I always take the time to measure my battery charges on all batteries prior to paid shoots. I have found that a battery that falls below certain voltages can fail much quicker that one would think. It seems to almost be exponential. Fresh batteries are a cheap insurance policy. And I always carry a large pack of spares. I have often spent a full day in the field, and sometimes end up replacing the batteries midday, during lunch, if I feel I am going to record for more hours. To be clear, I bring along, in my bag, a professional grade voltage meter, that reads out battery voltage. I use it at almost *every* shoot that runs over a morning setup, or more than an hour of audio recording. I check my lav transmitters, my shotgun battery (usually that’s not a problem, so only once a shoot), my reciever,my Marantz PMD661, and if in use, my mixer. that takes about 20 minutes out of my lunch. If I have a grip or PA with me, that’s their lunch assignment.

All these issues above are not unique to AT. It could happen with any unit. AT is targeted at a professional audience, like Shure, Sony and Sennheiser. The little mono Sennheiserer transmitters and recievers are in wide use, they work great it’s just that they are mono. I wanted one unit to control both my lavs as I usually work with two.

Lastly, to be clear, the reason the pros have chosen the high end gear for field use is that it’s built for field use, and proven as such. Low end gear, is consumer and prosumer, and is engineered to target that crowd (as someone who has spent time in manufacturing). Companies like AT and Sennheiser have worldwide repair capability, as they are used in global sports environments etc. in a pinch, a video professional store in Australia, singapore, maybe China, definitely Japan, can service with rapid return, problems. But having some kind of backup along will minimize stress which, if you are touring for a month, you’ll have plenty of anyway.

Sorry for your loss of audio. Welcome to the club. We’ve all been there at some point.

Al

[Al Bergstein]

I’ve been happy with the Audio Technica dual channel. (link at bottom) I know most people prefer the Sennheiser, but I needed a dual channel and it has worked very well for me. There is a 3rd party mounting bracket you can buy for it that attaches it to your camera’s hot shoe, and it is fine. You sure your problem wasn’t due to battery life issues? I find that I’m more susceptable to drops when I get near the end of a long interview and haven’t stopped to monitor my battery life. That’s the reason to have a good sound person along on the crew. Someone to pay attention to that detail.

Also, I try to immediately listen to the head and tail of my interviews, if not during the shoot, then that night before sleeping, for just this kind of issue. It is a hard lesson to learn that you can’t just shoot for a month without monitoring issues like this. Audio issues are far more likely to happen than video ones, IMHO.

And frankly, it’s been my experience that, while perhaps Azden makes some high end products, they are perfectly happy building low end stuff that breaks easily. I for one, would never buy another product of theirs. My first mic was a small low end product from them, and the case broke almost at once. Field gear needs to be rugged. That’s why the dynamic mics from Electrovoice have been in use for what seems like my whole life (and I’m no spring chicken!). They work, and they are almost indestructable. I carry one with me in my sound bag, and I can’t tell you how well it works when you have to do a quick off the cuff interview, and you just don’t have the time to set up the lavs. I often just grab a 20′ xlr cable, plug it in and hand it to the ‘talent’. I say to them, “just keep it four fingers away from the lips of whoever is talking” usually anyone can do that. If I had the option of going on the road for a month of shoots, I’d pack one for backup.

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/460224-REG/Audio_Technica_ATW_1821D_ATW_1821_Dual_Wireless.html

Al

[Al Bergstein]

My testing of importing a really simple documentary with just simple graphics (lower thirds, rolling credits) and two camera cuts and dissolves, was a joke. I still had to redo most of the titles, and many of the cuts were not correct in the Adobe side. The graphics and text were more of an issue than the video, to be clear.

I don’t know what Adobe beta tested this feature on, but from my real world tests, is useless. I assume someone out there has made it work for them, but if you can’t do something simple that was created inside the last professional version of FCP, then what good is it?

I’m keeping FCP on my Mac Pro so I can edit old videos, or at least update them. Luckily, Premiere for me is overall a great improvement to my workflow, but this was not one of the reasons why.

Al

[Al Bergstein]

I’ve done the jump, and have a few thoughts based on my experience:

[Al Bergstein]

I can’t remember anymore where I did my original reading on 4:2:2 but there are some good overviews out there. Barry Green has a good overview here:
https://www.dvxuser.com/articles/colorspace/

As I have a 7D, I have not yet used ML. It’s still in “beta” and having worked in software development, I know what that can mean. I intend on buying it as soon as it is considered ‘shipping’.

But there are thousands of happy users of it out there on other cameras. There is a low possibility of ‘bricking’ your camera with it, meaning essentially making it unuseable, but I don’t think that is a huge concern, or people wouldn’t be using it.

Be sure to donate ‘something’ to their cause if you use it. It keeps the development cycle going.

Al

[Al Bergstein]

I usually don’t read through the comments unless I’m up in the middle of the night and bored (G). Would love to see the high end footage. I posted a small clip I shot with my 7D a couple of years ago at a concert, where I was shooting the crowd with only stage light spill. It was sort of amazing what the high end ISO 12800, on the 7D is capable of. If you watch this, watch it at full screen in HD to see the full effect.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nd2O9WMW9qs

Al

[Al Bergstein]

Hey Bob, as you might tell from my other post, I’ve also been looking carefully at the 5D Mkiii. Apparently, the Mkiii cannot do a ‘clean’ HDMI out at this point, and is waiting for a ROM update in April of next year for that. I believe that Magic Lantern will allow you clean HDMI out right now for your Mk ii, but don’t see it listed on the ML web site as such.

Canon was quoted as saying, “When shooting video, HDMI Output makes possible the recording of high-definition uncompressed video data (YCbCr 4:2:2, 8 bit) from the EOS 5D Mark III to an external recorder via the camera’s HDMI terminal. This, in turn, facilitates the editing of video data with minimal image degradation for greater on-site workflow efficiency during motion picture and video productions. Additionally, video being captured can be displayed on an external monitor, enabling real-time, on-site monitoring of high-definition video during shooting.”

It’s this 4:2:2 video data that is really going to improve your picture quality. But it comes at a cost in both storage and your workflow. The uncompressed files will be significantly larger. I would say that it’s only for those who are doing ‘theatrical’ level work. I for one, have not found it worth dealing with on my documentary work, nor for my stage work. I shoot for the web or DVD. The “normal” 4:2:2 out of the Canon XF series of cameras is fine. And the new C300 is also the same.

Philip Bloom’s review of the 5D Mark iii comes to the conclusion it’s worth the price of updating, especially if you have the lenses to go with it. My POV is that if are thinking of doing theatrical work, wait and see what the C100 is going to be like, (still 4:2:0 but HDMI clean out) or just buy the C300 if you have the money.

Al