Sound for Video Session — Microphone position & Q&A

In this week's session, we demonstrate how different microphone positions affect the sound and cover some ideas for how to optimize sound for live and recording. Then we'll answer your sound for video related questions.

If you’d like to learn how to make great dialogue audio for your film and video projects, please have a look at my courses including processing dialogue audio in Adobe Audition and DaVinci Resolve/Fairlight, recording sound, how to use the Zoom F4, F6, F8, and F8n, and how to get the most from the Sound Devices MixPre series of recorders. We have a course on sound for live-streaming with the ATEM Mini and just added Introduction to Izotope RX for Dialogue Audio.

Gear I often use or that we mentioned in this episode. The links below are Amazon.com, B&H Photo, Sweetwater, DVE Store, Waves, or other affiliate links. As an affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases:

- DPA 4017b shotgun microphone — B&H, Sweetwater, Amazon

- Mackie DLZ Creator — B&H, Amazon

- Earthworks ETHOS microphone — B&H, Sweetwater, Amazon

- Sound Devies 888 field recorder/mixer — Trew, B&H, Sweetwater

- Sound Devices MixPre II Series Recorders - B&H, Sweetwater, Amazon

- Panasonic GH5 camera - B&H, Amazon

- Canon C200 Camera - B&H

- Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 lens — B&H, Amazon

- ATEM Mini Extreme & Extreme ISO - B&H, DVE Store, Amazon

- Allen & Heath SQ5 Digital Mixer - B&H, Sweetwater, Amazon

- Rupert Neve Designs Shelford Channel, pre-amp, EQ, compressor - Sweetwater, B&H

- Universal Audio 6176 channel strip pre-amp, EQ, compressor — B&H, Sweetwater, Amazon

The intro and outro music for this episode is from Musicbed. Take your films to the next level with music from Musicbed. Sign up for a free account to listen for yourself.

Copyright 2023, Curtis Judd

Sound for Video Session: Sync, Blending Mics, Recorder Setup, Mouth Noise, Loudness, Multicam

In this week's Sound for Video Session we discuss some of your questions:

- How to fix audio that drifts out of sync
- I have several mics, how do I blend them? When should I use which?
- How should I set up my Zoom F4?
- How can I manage mount noises in voice overs?
- How do I (batch) fix clips which are not the same loudness?
- How do I send audio from my MixPre to three cameras for a multi-cam shoot?

Previous episodes referenced:

Booming a camera-top Shotgun Microphone:

Loudness Export Option in Premiere Pro:

Links to Gear Discussed and Used to Record This Session:

XLR Microphone Cable - Your basic 25 foot long XLR microphone cable

RODE VXLR 3.5mm to XLR Adapter - use this to adapt the RODELink receiver's 3.5mm output to XLR for input into your Zoom F4 recorder

Tascam DR-60DmkII Audio Recorder - Nice intro level audio recorder with 2 XLR inputs

RODE NT2A Large Diaphragm Condenser Microphone - nice option for voice over work if you're recording in a room that doesn't have a lot of reverberation issues

Electrovoide RE20 Dynamic Broadcast Microphone - Used to record me for this session. Better option if your room does have a lot of reverberation.

Copyright 2017 by Curtis Judd

Sound for Video Session: Set Audio Levels From Recorder to Camera with Tone

In this week's Sound for Video Session we demonstrate how to use the an audio recorder to send the audio directly to camera. This way you get the better sound quality of the dedicated audio recorder and the sound is all synced up while shooting so you don't have to sync in post.

This requires that your camera have an input, that your audio recorder has an output and that your recorder can generate a tone (sometimes called slate or slate tone).

There are some other nuances that we cover in our production sound fundamentals course on line vs microphone level and the need to match between the camera and recorder.

For details on powering your MixPre-3 or 6, please see the tech notes over at Sound Devices: https://www.sounddevices.com/tech-notes/mixpre-3-mixpre-6-powering-options

Links to Gear Discussed and Used to Record This Session:

Sound Devices MixPre-6 Audio Recorder/Mixer

Sound Devices MixPre-3 Audio Recorder/Mixer (the little brother)

Sound Devices 633 (Pro level recorder used to record my voice for this session)

Oktava MK012 Microphone (used to record my voice for this session)

Panasonic GH5 Camera - My second camera. Love this little thing!

Copyright 2017 by Curtis Judd