Audio problems with DVX 100a

H

hraheem72

Active member
I've been having major issues with audio. The last 3 concerts that I have shot have had extremely terrible audio. The levels are not clipping but the channels seem to just have so much distortion. I used the Sennheiser K6 boom mic and Sennheiser wireless lavs. I have connected direct to the mixing boards in different venues, as well as used the boom mic mounted on the camera. The audio was equallly distorted.

Is there a possibility that the xlr connections on the camera are malfunctioning. Please advise. Any help will be greatly appreciated. Also, if there are any good instructional courses on audio issues for the DVX 100a, please recommend. Thanks
 
Off the top of my head, here are a few things to check:

1) Make sure you're recording music at 16 bit/48 kHz (not 12 bit/32 kHz).

2) Try lowering your input level to the camera and turning off Mic ALC (you may have to adjust Mic Gain to optimize levels). It sounds like your overloading the DVX mic-premp, resulting in distortion.

3) If your mics are already powered, you don't need phantom-power.

4) I doubt both XLR connections are faulty, and even if one was, I doubt you'd get distortion. More likely, the normal-sounding signal would cut in and out (like it's short-circuiting).

Just some ideas to think about.
 
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well for the mics, they are not going to be able to record because the loudness is going to vibrate the sensors more than they can handle. They are not made for recording levels that extreme. Turning down the volume in camera isnt going to help that. As for connecting straight to the mixing boards, you should be able to get cleaner sound but not perfect.
 
Aram Bauman said:
well for the mics, they are not going to be able to record because the loudness is going to vibrate the sensors more than they can handle. They are not made for recording levels that extreme.
Click to expand...

That's a really good observation. Your SPL (sound pressure levels) are likely overloading the mic's diaphragm. You may need to use mic's specifically designed to handle those high, concert-level, volumes.

Or, as has been suggested previously, see if you can plug straight into the mixing board at line-level.
 
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