Can you output the audio from a DVX100 to an external recorder?

dvxhutch

dvxhutch

Well-known member
Hey guys, I'm currently shooting GH2 and recording audio from my AT4035b hyper and Rode NT3 into the DVX100.

While I'm happy with the sound quality, I had an issue with a chewed tape the other day, so would like to record to an external recorder as well as to tape, for backup. Also, having the audio on a SD card rather than digitizing in real time would be great.

However the audio outs on the DVX are pretty basic, so would there be a drop in quality?

Any suggestions on the above and what recorder to get would be greatly appreciated.

THANKS
 
Drop in quality in a pristine, controlled sound-stage environment? Maybe some perceptible difference.
Drop in quality in a typical location shoot out in the Real World? Unlikely.
If you could perceive any difference at all, it wouldn't be any more than you would get from moving your mic 1 foot.
 
If the tape is chewed, also the picture is chewed. What do you need the audio for?

You have to transfer the signal (it is digital on the tape...) to computer anyway, both picture and audio are copied at the same time. Where is the time saved if you transfer the picture first sans audio, then audio?

All decent video cameras, like DVX100, have more than good enough audio sections. Much better than what our forefathers had for M$100 movies in the sixties and seventies...

A pocket recorder is not going to make the audio any better, just have more things to be messed up.

A Nagra, Cantar or Sound Devices recorder is not going to make the audio any better (in the end), just have more things to be messed up, while feeling professional about it.

(Having a SD302 mixer is not a bad idea, though...)
 
Petrus said:
If the tape is chewed, also the picture is chewed. What do you need the audio for?

You have to transfer the signal (it is digital on the tape...) to computer anyway, both picture and audio are copied at the same time. Where is the time saved if you transfer the picture first sans audio, then audio?)
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The OP is shooting picture on a Panasonic GH2, and using the DVX100 essentially as a dedicated audio recorder. So all the video is file-based, and the audio is tape-based.

dvxhutch, yes, you can use the stereo RCA audio outs in camera mode to feed a small recorder that has 1/8" line in. Simply get a 1/8" TRS>dual RCA Y-cable. However, if you're going to look at a dedicated recorder, why not get one that has XLR inputs and can handle all your audio? That allows you to upgrade later by putting a pre-amp (such as the MixPre-D) or mixer (such as the SD302) in front of the recorder. Check out the Tascam DR40. With the most recent firmware update, it offers independent level controls for the XLR ins, making it one heck of a competitor to the H4n for a much lower price.
 
Petrus said:
A Nagra, Cantar or Sound Devices recorder is not going to make the audio any better (in the end), just have more things to be messed up, while feeling professional about it.
Click to expand...

I don't want to be argumentative, but this is very misguided thinking. Those three recorders you mention have much better A/D converters, mic pres, and over all better audio front ends than any camera.
 
davefisk said:
A Nagra, Cantar or Sound Devices recorder is not going to make the audio any better (in the end), just have more things to be messed up, while feeling professional about it.

I don't want to be argumentative, but this is very misguided thinking. Those three recorders you mention have much better A/D converters, mic pres, and over all better audio front ends than any camera.
Click to expand...
Completely true. But unless you are using top-notch microphones and getting them in just the right places, in ideal ambient conditions, etc. chances are that the audio coming in isn't good enough to show off the top-end performance.

The decades-old dictum still applies, the biggest bang for the buck is still in the transducers (microphones in our case) because of the level of sophistication of the electronics (both analog and digital). Getting a better microphone and getting it into the right place will almost always make a much bigger difference to the final track than buying a better mic preamp. That includes having a good boom operator using a good boom pole and good wind protection (From K-Tek, of course)
 
Alex H. said:
The OP is shooting picture on a Panasonic GH2, and using the DVX100 essentially as a dedicated audio recorder. So all the video is file-based, and the audio is tape-based.

dvxhutch, yes, you can use the stereo RCA audio outs in camera mode to feed a small recorder that has 1/8" line in. Simply get a 1/8" TRS>dual RCA Y-cable. However, if you're going to look at a dedicated recorder, why not get one that has XLR inputs and can handle all your audio? That allows you to upgrade later by putting a pre-amp (such as the MixPre-D) or mixer (such as the SD302) in front of the recorder. Check out the Tascam DR40. With the most recent firmware update, it offers independent level controls for the XLR ins, making it one heck of a competitor to the H4n for a much lower price.
Click to expand...


Thanks a lot Alex, very helpful. If I used that cable would there be a drop in quality, or would it be negligible?
 
Sorry I missed the GH2 part, my bad.

Re Nagra, Cantar, SD:

Of course it was an exaggeration, but my point was that all too often film makers worry about the wrong things. Getting the right mics to the right places, setting the gains correctly (and giving the actors meaningful things to say) is far more important than having a great recorder instead of just a good one. With all this worry about 16 and 24 bit sampling makes me wonder how could they make speaking movies at all even in the eighties with only Nagra tape recorders with about 11 bit resolution (dynamic ranges were typically around 65 dB).

I do have SD722 myself, but I do not use it when shooting with a proper video camera like DVX100, XH-A1 or now the FX305 as the audio sections on those are plenty good enough. SD302 is there usually, though.
 
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