Gain on camera or in post?
- Thread starter nouou
- Start date
using the gain tool in your software will make the sound louder, but it will also bring up all the noise along with it. Fix things before the mix by making sure you're making a good recording to begin with... You should be recording at a level set to achieve a good signal to noise ratio. If you don't know what that is then look it up, wiki it, google it, whatever. Do a little homework.
in a nutshell, using too little gain when recording will keep your voice (or whatever you're recording) closer to the recorder's (in this case a camera) self noise level... this is a bad thing. If there is too much gain here then your signal (desired sound) will overload the recorder and be useless.
Goodluck
in a nutshell, using too little gain when recording will keep your voice (or whatever you're recording) closer to the recorder's (in this case a camera) self noise level... this is a bad thing. If there is too much gain here then your signal (desired sound) will overload the recorder and be useless.
Goodluck
It's not just a matter of bringing up the levels. If you are using mic-in, using the gain in-camera is, after a point, going to add noise from the camera's pre-amps. Your best bet is to use the right mic with a pretty hot output... phantom-powered, shotgun outside/hypercardioid inside.
In the best situation, you'll have an external mixer plugged into your camera that sends line-level to the camera. Line-in bypasses the camera's pre-amps and can make for a cleaner signal.
But your target is -12dB, the reference mark on the DVX. The audio can peak occasionally as high as -6dB and still leave you decent headroom. Keep it at or right around -12dB for most dialog, though.
In the best situation, you'll have an external mixer plugged into your camera that sends line-level to the camera. Line-in bypasses the camera's pre-amps and can make for a cleaner signal.
But your target is -12dB, the reference mark on the DVX. The audio can peak occasionally as high as -6dB and still leave you decent headroom. Keep it at or right around -12dB for most dialog, though.
Last edited:
SMuir
Well-known member
"Never boost when you can cut", as the old recording rule goes.
Boosting the gain on a low-level recording during post is a lot like brightenning an under-exposed image: sure the overall signal will approach an acceptable level, but you'll have a mess of noise without any dynamics or subtle detail.
The goal in recording is maximise the level on the tape and to minimise noise and distortion. Record too loud, and the sound will clip and distort. Record too low, and you're nice 16-bit track will only be using the first 8 of those bits. Use noisey mics and preamps (like those found on most camcorders), and you'll be stuck with hiss and hum on your tracks (forget about noise removal plugins: you can't unbake a cake).
C2V is right on the money: average dialogue levels of -12dB will give you plenty of level to work with on a 16-bit track. If you record nice full tracks, you won't have to significantly boost them in post outside of a bit of compression (to smooth out the dynamics).
Boosting the gain on a low-level recording during post is a lot like brightenning an under-exposed image: sure the overall signal will approach an acceptable level, but you'll have a mess of noise without any dynamics or subtle detail.
The goal in recording is maximise the level on the tape and to minimise noise and distortion. Record too loud, and the sound will clip and distort. Record too low, and you're nice 16-bit track will only be using the first 8 of those bits. Use noisey mics and preamps (like those found on most camcorders), and you'll be stuck with hiss and hum on your tracks (forget about noise removal plugins: you can't unbake a cake).
C2V is right on the money: average dialogue levels of -12dB will give you plenty of level to work with on a 16-bit track. If you record nice full tracks, you won't have to significantly boost them in post outside of a bit of compression (to smooth out the dynamics).
Gohanto
Veteran
Just to elaborate a bit on pre-amps...
All mics generate a pretty weak signal relative to what you can record, so you need to boost the signal no matter what when recording it. If you're going into a high quality SoundDevices mixer, the pre-amp is extremely well built and it can boost the signal significantly without adding it's own noise to the signal. If you go straight into the camera, then you're using the camera's pre-amps which aren't nearly as good as a real mixer's, but still much better than recording at a low level. (Plus on a mixer you'll likely have access to a limiter, which basically stops sudden loud noises from clipping in the recording)
All mics generate a pretty weak signal relative to what you can record, so you need to boost the signal no matter what when recording it. If you're going into a high quality SoundDevices mixer, the pre-amp is extremely well built and it can boost the signal significantly without adding it's own noise to the signal. If you go straight into the camera, then you're using the camera's pre-amps which aren't nearly as good as a real mixer's, but still much better than recording at a low level. (Plus on a mixer you'll likely have access to a limiter, which basically stops sudden loud noises from clipping in the recording)