Sound help

[Aidyn]

Alright, I've been put in charge at my church to make short videos to coninside with the sermons. All is well, we have a descent camera, descent editing software but i'm strapped for descent sound. I'm still using the onboard mic on the camera and i really hate the fact that i have to do so. Can anyone enlighten me in what audio equipment is relatively cheap but does a nice job as well as a quick runtrhough in how it all works? When i say "how it all works" i'm speaking about how to record sound seperately from the video so i can then sync it all together on the cutting room floor. ANy advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Bob Kessler]

Please give a few more details.

What kind of camera?
How far away is the camera?
Is there a mic on the podium or are the speakers using lavs?
Is there a mixing console in the church?
What's your budget?

 

[Aidyn]

Before i answer any questions let me reinstate that these videos are not going to be of the sermons but more like interviews asking people question on the street, or narrative stories or short documentaries to accompany the sermon. So with that in mind i don't think the camera's distance from the speaker and whether or not the speaker is using mics of lavs is relevant because i'm not taping the sermons itself.

The camera is a Canon ZR700.

I guess what i'm trying to ask is what kind of system do i need using a boom mic, pole, and a mixer to record the sound seperately. I know its possible i just dont know what exactly i need. As for the budget, i'm thinking $500 or less.

 

[Bob Kessler]

A boom with a windscreen and shockmount will bust your budget and you don't even have the mic and recorder yet. Since there is no mic input on the ZR700 I would recommend that you get a minidisk recorder and a mic like the Shure Beta 57 to use as a handheld. By the time you add a windscreen, cables and cases you'll have everything that you need and stay within your budget. Syncing will be a pain, but you can use the cameras onboard sound as you reference.

 

[Aidyn]

thanks alot, that gives me an idea of how all it works. I've searched online for boom mics and i guess there is one out there for 150 bucks and is it at all possible to make your own windscreen or is that simply out of the question. Also how do you get the audio from the mini disc to the computer to sync it all up? Does the mini disc have some kind of USB port or something? Also, which is more reliable a mini disc or a dat?

 

[Bob Kessler]

There are cheap boom mics out there. It's the accessories that will eat up your budget.

A complete inexpensive blimp kit without a pole goes for around $500.00.

An inexpensive boom pole runs about $110.00, a cheap windscreen about $25.00, a cheap mic shock mount around $150.00; there goes half your budget and you don't have the mic or the recorder yet.

A portable DAT is out of your budget, even used. The Sony MZ-M10 minidisk goes for about $300.00 and has a USB connection. The onboard mic is a piece of garbage so don't even think about it, use a decent mic. 1/8" connections aren't the best, but I've been using my old Sony minidisk for a couple of years now with an Audio Technica AT822 mic with acceptable results for collecting sounds for audio post/sound design. The big drawback is that you don't have input volume controls. A plus is that you could use two mics if you needed to.

As I said, syncing will be a pain in the butt. I've used my rig for field interviews with a handheld EV N/DYN mic. I just manually sync it up in Pro Tools after importing the audio from both the camera and the minidisk. It takes me only a couple of minutes per clip, but I do quite a bit of syncing for my audio post work so I "have the system down". Using a clapper will at least give you a starting point that's very close. That's how they still do it in "Hollywood"; the days takes are digitized and the audio synced up manually.

I hope that this has been helpful.

 

[Aidyn]

Extremely helpful. So what would you suggest i should pitch the church committee to buy in the near future for a starting sound kit?

 

[Bob Kessler]

That's a lot to put on my shoulders. If you want some recommendations I did a little research and this is the package that I came up with:

Azden SGM-1X - Super-Cardioid Shotgun Condenser Microphone, about $150.00. I've never used it but have had good experiences with their very high end stuff.

Gitzo G-556 3-Section Aluminum Boompole, about $90.00. A boom pole is a boom pole, but aluminum is heavier than fiberglass. Remember that your sound person will be holding this up for maybe hours on end. It's an industry mantra that boom guys have the arms of gorillas.

Sony MZ-M10 minidisk, about $300.00. I've never used it but have had good experiences with Sony products.

You will also need:

mini stereo male to 3-pin XLR female cable to connect the mic to the minidisk

minidisks

some extra batteries

a set of headphones

a windscreen

a USB cable

something to carry it all in

You're looking at about $600.00, but I'm sure that with a little shopping and some wheeling and dealing you can get it close to $500.00. I buy gear from both Sweetwater and B&H Photo and have gotten excellent advice and support, especially at Sweetwater. Check out their websites. Also check out E-Bay, there are usually some nice deals there as well.

Please, please, please get some other opinions and advice before committing to these specific products. I haven't done any location work in a long time, and it was always with very nice stuff, like the Sound Devices 442 mixer, an ME-66 shotgun with a nice blimp, a really nice DAT, some great lavs and all of the accessories including cases that made it all usable while carrying it, about $15k or $20k worth of gear, so I'm not really up on the budget stuff.

Contact me off list if you need more help.

 

[Aidyn]

Hey, i appreciate the insight you have given me. Its more than i was able to scrounge up on my own. I mean i found the same types of things when i did a search but now i definately know i was in the ball park when i was searching. I will definately look into other opinions though. Unfortunately there arent too many production companies in columbus ohio