Richard Crowley
1
COW Coin
Forum Replies Created
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Unless you are stuck out in the jungle somewhere without internet connectivity, what about the online libraries? They let you search and preview thousands and thousands of SFX and buy and download them on the spot in the format of your choice. Beats a static library that you have to maintain and search through, IMHO.
My favorite is https://www.sounddogs.com/ which is, in effect, the library of a major Hollywood studio.
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Yes, of course I meant to cast no aspersions on your actors, but only to make the case that in situations where natural projection doesn’t cut it (as in your scenario), you need the proper equipment, or else don’t waste your time/money.
Unrelated to your situation, I have run in to situations where amateur, untrained (and even unrehearsed) individuals were called on to support speaking parts in a stage play and they had no concept of “stage presence”. They mumbled to the point that even if you were standing next to them, they would be difficult to understand. They expected the microphones to perform miracles. Never gonna happen.
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Don’t waste your time or money on distant mic techniques. You didn’t state it specifically, but we are assuming you need microphones for reinforcement, not for recording. Even for recording any kind of distant technique will give you poor-to-awful pickup, and NONE of the distant techniques will provide ANY USABLE gain-before-feedback for reinforcement.
If your troupe can’t project in venues you are playing (remember that most of the history of theatre was pre-electricity!), then you need acting/speech lessons or smaller venues/audiences, or rent the necessary equipment.
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As Mr. Toline said, popular consumer headphones (and earbuds) are designed to “sound good”, not to be accurate. That is often the opposite of what you really need to hear when recording in the field.
Furthermore, noise-cancelling headphones are to be avoided if you are doing serious audio work. If there is ambient noise where you are recording then you WANT to hear it in your headphones so you will know what you are recording. You do NOT want to headphones to give you an artificially “rosy” view of what you are recording. You will be sorry when you get back home and listen to that noise that the headphones only removed from your ears.
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You could ask the people who did the soundtrack: contact@musamachina.com
I would bet that ALL those SFX are available on my favorite place: https://www.sounddogs.com
There may also be “buyout” or “needledrop” libraries you could buy that have that kind of collection.
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That SM Pro device appears to have conventional analog inputs. It appears that Mr. Abramson is looking for something with SDI input. I suspect that there may be solutions that meet that requirement. But <$1K for something with SDI input seems very doubtful, IME.
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If you can’t justify purchasing a minimally-decent wireless system, then RENT them when you need them. Many of us had the same concept as you suggest, and have a cardboard box in the basement full of cheap, fiddly, unreliable toy plastic wireless gear that was a complete waste of money.
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Huh? I’ve never owned or used any Azden gear, nor would I ever use any. But even the best equipment won’t perform properly if not used properly.
I would have though that “an audio engineer for a well-known Nashville artist” would know better than to CONTINUE shooting if they couldn’t monitor the audio and/or if the signal were KNOWN to be cutting out during shooting. I still cannot imagine ANY legitimate excuse for that. Sorry if you find that offensive. I believe it says more about you than it says about me.
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Where did you GET the batteries? I have had bad luck trying to buy batteries on the road, especially in the 3rd world. Even in Johannesburg, South Africa we found it difficult to find “brand-new” AA cells that weren’t half-dead already.
Always take a battery tester. I don’t have 100% confidence in the battery indicator on the equipment. And I bring batteries from home now. Bulk pack from some fast-turnover place like my big-box membership discount store (Costco).
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You didn’t state a budget. I am doing something similar and I am VERY happy with my Sony HXR-NX5U cameras. (Street price: $4K) I have three of them and I am planning on dumping my EX1 and getting a 4th NX5. They are relatively lightweight, but not a twinky little consumer-style “handicam”. They have 20x lens and good low-light performance. And what is VERY VERY NICE is that you can use a rather comprehensive remote-control that turns them into a semi-broadcast quality camera.
I have three remote pan/tilt heads (and one camera with a live operator) for the kinds of productions I typically do. You would probably need a larger number of live camera operators for fast-moving sports productions.
I have had DISMAL luck trying to use HDMI cameras more than 1m/3ft away from the switcher. Even with good-quality cable and extention amplifiers, etc. etc. I’ve just completely given up on HDMI and plan on using SDI for anything over 3ft. Even if I have to convert HDMI to SDI.