Canon announces firmware to give manual audio control of 7D

[Cusain]

Canon have just announced a firmware update for the 7D to give manual audio level control, though not ready until early August
http://www.usa.canon.com/cusa/profes...01e024805a4473

[vision_filmz]

Canon have just announced a firmware update for the 7D to give manual audio level control, though not ready until early August
http://www.usa.canon.com/cusa/profes...01e024805a4473

:/

The firmware is really for the photography side of the camera, manual audio does nothing useful with the horrible quality of audio that is recorded anyways....

[M. Gilden]

:/

The firmware is really for the photography side of the camera, manual audio does nothing useful with the horrible quality of audio that is recorded anyways....

It was a big deal when the 5D got it, and the 60D and t3i were praised for offering it out of the box as well. No reason to rain on this parade just because they are last to the party. Granted, for good audio, you really need the extensive control of preamps that Magic Lantern offers (as well as the ability to live monitor), but this is still something.

Its nice to see Canon still cares enough to breathe some new life into this thing in the eyes of videographers.

[KyleProhaska]

Being able to change file names is cool...I like that. Wish they'd add it to the MKII.

[Snafoo]

:/

The firmware is really for the photography side of the camera, manual audio does nothing useful with the horrible quality of audio that is recorded anyways....

Opinion overlaid with a thin veneer of fact

[vision_filmz]

Opinion overlaid with a thin veneer of fact

100% False.

Also to reply to M.GLiden yes it was "Supposed" to be something greater for the 60d and t3i until many users (including myself) realized that is it basically worthless since the quality of the pre-amps is what truly brings great sound and these canon's do not have them. I am a canon dslr user and trust me, I would have wished for the disabled AGC to be more than what it is but honestly you and I know + millions of users worldwide that it actually does very little. So no I'm not raining on a parade, it's just Canon continuing to offer baby steps when they really need to bring new cameras to the market......

[maarek]

100% False.

Also to reply to M.GLiden yes it was "Supposed" to be something greater for the 60d and t3i until many users (including myself) realized that is it basically worthless since the quality of the pre-amps is what truly brings great sound and these canon's do not have them. I am a canon dslr user and trust me, I would have wished for the disabled AGC to be more than what it is but honestly you and I know + millions of users worldwide that it actually does very little.

You can use a mic like the Rode Videomic Pro which has a +20dB setting. That minimizes the noise of the DSLR preamps. You just need to set the input lower and now you can with manual control.

So for that mic, this is absolutely perfect.

[Snafoo]

My point exactly. My comment was in reference to the quip that the AGC upgrade "does nothing useful". If he had tacked on "for me", I wouldn't have called him on it, but to make a blanket statement like that is just so much hot air. I have a 7D and a T2i and prefer the latter for video with my VMP specifically because it has AGC disable (with ML). I was ready to sell my 7D And "downgrade" to a 60D until the announcement came out. Thankfully, Canon listened to their entire user base, not just pros and purists. Canon provided this upgrade for solo amateurs like me who want to improve their audio quality without lugging around yet another piece of gear, and in that context it's a great upgrade.

[M. Gilden]

My point exactly. My comment was in reference to the quip that the AGC upgrade "does nothing useful". If he had tacked on "for me", I wouldn't have called him on it, but to make a blanket statement like that is just so much hot air. I have a 7D and a T2i and prefer the latter for video with my VMP specifically because it has AGC disable (with ML). I was ready to sell my 7D And "downgrade" to a 60D until the announcement came out. Thankfully, Canon listened to their entire user base, not just pros and purists. Canon provided this upgrade for solo amateurs like me who want to improve their audio quality without lugging around yet another piece of gear, and in that context it's a great upgrade.

Agreed- this is still good news, despite it not being "great" news.
The problem however, is that manual audio (such as found on the t3i and 60D) do not work as well as Magic Lantern. That is because ML gives you precise control of the analog and digital gains, whereas I believe Canon's menu only controls the digital gain. Using the Rode VMPro at +20 with all gains set to zero in ML gives perfectly usable audio, and I've used this on paid gigs many, many times.

I'll be honest, I dont' have that much experience with the VMP and Canon's official audio controls- But I know people who have and were happy enough to stick with it in a pinch. If I were you, however, I'd still prefer the T2i for the more precise control and audio monitoring ability.

Meanwhile, vision_filmz, your opinion is always welcome. I agree that it isn't as great news as some of us might wish it to be, but its still something. Just be sure to clarify when something is your own opinion that others might not share.

[Snafoo]

I couldn't agree more re: ML. Canon should give ML a million $ for full rights and just port the whole thing over. Done!