Sam Mallery
Forum Replies Created
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Thanks Michael! I imported the .mov into iMovie (because I don’t have FCP on the MBP yet). I clicked on Share, and went into the export options. It gives me several options for “Compression Type,” the closest looking option to “DV .mov” is DV/DVCPRO – NTSC. Is this what you meant?
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“That said, it is odd that QT will play it, but FCP won\’t.”
Right? I just launched QuckTime Player 7.0.0 on the G5, and it has no problem playing the .mov file from QuickTime X.
It’s just a drag because if this worked I could easily finish this project. Now I’m back to deliberating if I should spend money on iShowU, or if I should hold off until I upgrade FCP on my new computer. Oi vey!
I was just reading up on iShowU HD Pro, and it does seem like a useful app. But, I can’t really tell if it’s going to solve the issue I’m having right now. Here’s what the iShowU site has to say about FCP:
“Never export your video using QTPro again! No longer do you have to re-export captured media in order to get it to play nicely with Final Cut. Simply drag the media from the preview bar directly into your project. iShowU HD Pro also comes with a bunch of built-in presets making use of the ProRes codec.”
This doesn’t make me feel like my specific issue will be addressed. Unfortunately, spending $60 is something that I need to really think about.
I need to make this free option work. I need QuickTime 10 to be my friend.
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It’s odd that I use .mov files with 4.5 constantly, and when I export stuff from 4.5 I always make .mov files. So it just seems contradictory that a more advance version of .mov would be incompatible. Why would they continue call this file a .mov if it’s not going to play well with tools that seem to live and die by the .mov format?
I considered buying iShowU, but since the screen capture in QuickTime X is free, I was hoping that it would actually be a tool that could be used.
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I’m going to guess that the boss at this company doesn’t want to spend a lot of money. As wonderful a piece of equipment as the Sound Devices 302 is, if you’re working alone in the field shooting the video and doing the sound, having a 302 isn’t the best choice. A Sound Devices 302 costs $1295. You may want to tell your boss that this is a great piece of equipment to have, but I don’t think its an immediate must-have item.
If I were in your shoes, I would do my best to impress my new boss by how much I could accomplish with as little money as possible. Ty’s gear suggestions are all very good ones, but pro location audio equipment is really expensive.
If you’re using a camera with XLR inputs, you may not need much gear at all. If your camera doesn’t have XLR, then I would recommend getting a Juicedlink CX231 ($299). It mounts to the base of a video camera and gives you 2 XLR inputs with phantom power. The people who own them are usually very pleased with the sound quality. Start there, and build up to a 302 later.
As far as a lav goes, you should specify that you need a wireless lav. Here you need to spend around $600 for the kit. I would go with a Sennheiser G3 system. Buy one now, and get another when you see that you need it.
Headphones wise, get the Sony MDR7502, or the Sony V6. They’re both under $100. The industry standard headphones are Sony MDR7506, and they cost $100 (and you stated that you don’t want to spend that much).
As far as where to actually buy the equipment, I would call around a bit. Get some phone sales people to make some quotes for you. Speak to different people, and see who dispenses the best advice. Award the company who gives you the best advice with the final sale.
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“I now have my MacBook Pro connected via the headphone output jack to an M-Audio Fast Track Pro interface”
You don’t need to connect the headphone output of your computer to the audio interface. The USB connection is all that’s needed.
As far as the sleeping issue goes, I’m not sure. Perhaps try posting the question on M-Audio’s forum.
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You said you had your headphone return plugged into the camera. Did you monitor your return channel on the 302 when you were recording? Did you hear the buzzing sound then, or only on playback?
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Why don’t you just bring all the mics you have and try them out during rehearsal. Move them around and listen. That’s the best way to find the best mic you have for the job. A good PZM placed in the right spot just might sound the best.
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If you used an audio interface with multiple inputs, you could record the feed from the mixing board, and also set up a mic to record the crowd noise. Audio interfaces aren’t terribly expensive. A Lexicon Alpha interface plugs in USB, and gives you two line-level inputs for the board and an additional XLR mic input. The Alpha is $79.
As far as balancing the sound, this would have to happen during the audio mix in post. If the PA is loud, then the crowd mic will hear it too. It might be a pain to mix in post, but, when you want to capture the sound of a space differently then it actually sounded, then it’s going to likely be extra work.
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I don’t think you should get the ME66 capsule. It’s not really that different from the ME64. I also don’t think you should get either of those Panasonic mics.
You should get a camera mountable shock mount for the mic (like the R0DE SM3 or the Pearstone DUSM-1). You should also get some wind protection (the Rycote standard hole softie with 19 – 22mm hole fits the ME64). You should also get a boompole, a 25 XLR cable, a set of Sony MDR7506 headphones, and like Ty suggests – a person to wear the phones and operate the pole. The shock mounts I mentioned earlier will also fasten onto a boompole.
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I think you should consider having a local sound person engineer the sessions. It just seems like you’re leaving a lot to chance doing everything remotely. Something as simple as dialing in the gain could get really complicated. In the event that you need to trouble shoot the hardware, you’re helpless. It just seems like unless the celebrity is technically inclined you could potentially lose valuable time when things go wrong.
That said, I do have some recommendations for gear. This is kind of a ready made version of the solution Tom mentioned:
https://www.seelectronics.com/rf.htmlHere’s a mic that does a good job of canceling out ambient noise without the need for acoustic treatment:
https://www.coleselectroacoustics.com/miccommentators.shtml