Tony Connoly
Forum Replies Created
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What market is this geared for? Same as Premiere Pro or something else?
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How about using Encore. Would that help?
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Ty–I hope you’re having a nice Thanksgiving.
(i) Here’s what I was trying to say about hiss (Although I will say upfront I am not sure whether it’s worth figuring out what was happening there, except as an academic matter):
If you recall, I was previously recording into a DSLR with automatic gain control. In order to clamp down on the AGC, I directed noise into the right channel while recording into the left channel. This had the effect of preventing the AGC from changing the recording levels on the fly, and also caused the gain to be set on the lowest level possible. I found that after increasing the volume in post, some of the hiss came back but it was not nearly as bad as the hiss that was produced by the camera’s automatic gain control. Maybe there is a simple explanation, maybe there is not, but it’s probably not really relevant any more because there are better ways of doing things.
If I understand what you were saying, as a general matter and using proper gear, reducing the record level and then increasing the volume in post will increase the hiss, correct?
(ii) I certainly won’t dispute that the internal mics are not for pro work (and that’s even though I eat my spinach every day). I was just commenting on the remarks I’d read, which basically said that the mics in the Marantz were “bad” while the mics in the other hand-held units were “good”. Based on my brief experience with a Zoom and my current DMP661, the internal mics were not a factor in which one I’d use. But I’ll keep eating spinach just in case…
All the best.
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I opted for the Marantz PMD661 just based on a ergonomics–I looked at the Zoom H4N and the Tascam DR100 at the store and didn’t like the build quality, the buttons, and the layout as much as the Marantz. It’s great to be able to hang the PMD661 over the shoulder especially with the specially designed case. I know it’s probably overpriced relative to its “features” (I guess the price would go down if they moved the production out of Japan like the other two companies did), but the store did throw in the very nice and very useful Marantz case for free.
I am very happy with the audio quality compared to what I had before. Finally, I can monitor my audio while recording it, I get almost no hiss, and the headroom is back to where it ought to be because the record levels aren’t set artifically low to control the hiss. Unlike what I’d read on the web, the quality of the internal mics is not bad, at least for dialogue, and there is surprisingly little handling noise while using the internal mics. The sound recorded off of the Rode NTG-2 is excellent.
Thanks for your help.
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It’s a bit pricy for a 4/3 sensor, IMO.
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I see people refering to Fader as if it’s a brand. Is Fader a brand? I got a Genus Fader from B&H and was annoyed that it has no threads for a lens hood. But I had read that Faders have threads.
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Thank you for that link Todd. I was aware that hardware acceleration could produce different results, but I was not aware that they were necessarily better. Can you comment on whether this applies to the non-certified cards?
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Ok, per Ty’s advice I’m going to stick with the NTG-2 and learn to use it first.
But while we’re discussing dynamic omnis, how about the elctro 635A?
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Rodney,
Did the H4 XLR inputs work well for microphones at least?
600 is the top of my budget for a preamp and a recorder, but if I end up keeping it for a long time that would be ok. Some features that I like about the PMD 661 are (i) having two ways to get audio out at the same time (both headphone plug and 2xRCA), (ii) volume dial for the headphones, (iii) more batteries possibly means fewer problems with phantom power, (iv) dials for the L/R input level, and (v) big LCD screen. They are pretty basic things. It is bigger than the Zoom though.
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Very interesting dicussion. Thank you. I may look at the Marantz PMD661 to avoid these issues.