Need advise how to improve my sound quality.

[ph2003]

Hi guys, glad I found this forum that I can asked sone gear advise haha.

Right now I am using zoom h1, tasktar sgc598 and aputure a-lav mic.

I am struggling getting better sound when doing interviews in indoor situation, mostly I will be using lav mic. But the a-lav need alot of boost on the h1 to get decent volume hence there is more noise.

Recently I bought a saramonic smartrig to use as a preamp to boost the lav miv, indeed it does has some minor improvement compare to h1 (but still has a reletively high noise.

Right now should I get a h5 or juicedlink (these is in my budget right now)? Or better mic?

From my research the h5 will have alot of noise when u try to boost the volume too high.
The juicedlink has very low noise from what I see from net.
I cant decided my self, really need some advise.

From my country its hard to rental gears. Even there is, its only has very few option. ( there is no Juicedlink seller in here, if I need to buy it. I will have to buy from ebay )

Thanks!

 

[Rick R]

"I am struggling getting better sound when doing interviews in indoor situations".
- Does that mean your set-up sounds good outdoors?

 

[Bruce Watson]

Right now I am using zoom h1, tasktar sgc598 and aputure a-lav mic.

I am struggling getting better sound when doing interviews in indoor situation, mostly I will be using lav mic. But the a-lav need alot of boost on the h1 to get decent volume hence there is more noise.

Recently I bought a saramonic smartrig to use as a preamp to boost the lav miv, indeed it does has some minor improvement compare to h1 (but still has a reletively high noise.

Right now should I get a h5 or juicedlink (these is in my budget right now)? Or better mic?

The problem with entry level equipment is that it typically doesn't work well with other entry level equipment. In your case, your Aputure A.Lav is a fairly insensitive mic that has a fairly low output level. Your Zoom H1 doesn't provide a lot of clean gain. When you use the two together, you get too much noise, which is what you are complaining about.

When upgrading, always upgrade the microphones first, then the mic preamps, then the interface/recorder. So the first thing I advise you do is start watching your used markets to see if you can replace your A.Lav with a better, more sensitive, lavalier mic.

 

[TheDingo]

My favorite mic for indoor recording is a condenser "pencil" cardioid / hyper-cardioid / super-cardioid mic boomed from above, which captures great audio from your subject without picking up much of the environmental sound.

To do this on a budget, I would buy something like this...

Takstar CM63 Mic : $60 US

Tascam DR-40 Recorder : $150 US

Rycote Pistol Grip with Lyre Mount : $100

8' Aluminum Boompole : $90

Canare L-4E6S Star Quad Mic Cable - 25' (Orange) : $31

...Yes the CM63 mic is one of the cheapest items in this list, but it produces very good sound for such a low cost mic. To get better sound you would likely have to spend more than $400 for the mic alone. ( also keep in mind that most low-cost shotgun mics are NOT designed for indoor use, as they will pick up as much sound from behind and the sides as they do from the front, so they produce poor quality audio when used in home or office environments )

I prefer the orange XLR cable because it's easy to see, so fewer people are going to step on your cable by accident.

 

[ph2003]

"I am struggling getting better sound when doing interviews in indoor situations".
- Does that mean your set-up sounds good outdoors?

for me outdoors is okay with the tasktar shootgun.
indoor most problem for me is the room reverb

The problem with entry level equipment is that it typically doesn't work well with other entry level equipment. In your case, your Aputure A.Lav is a fairly insensitive mic that has a fairly low output level. Your Zoom H1 doesn't provide a lot of clean gain. When you use the two together, you get too much noise, which is what you are complaining about.

When upgrading, always upgrade the microphones first, then the mic preamps, then the interface/recorder. So the first thing I advise you do is start watching your used markets to see if you can replace your A.Lav with a better, more sensitive, lavalier mic.

My favorite mic for indoor recording is a condenser "pencil" cardioid / hyper-cardioid / super-cardioid mic boomed from above, which captures great audio from your subject without picking up much of the environmental sound.

To do this on a budget, I would buy something like this...

Takstar CM63 Mic : $60 US

Tascam DR-40 Recorder : $150 US

Rycote Pistol Grip with Lyre Mount : $100

8' Aluminum Boompole : $90

Canare L-4E6S Star Quad Mic Cable - 25' (Orange) : $31

...Yes the CM63 mic is one of the cheapest items in this list, but it produces very good sound for such a low cost mic. To get better sound you would likely have to spend more than $400 for the mic alone. ( also keep in mind that most low-cost shotgun mics are NOT designed for indoor use, as they will pick up as much sound from behind and the sides as they do from the front, so they produce poor quality audio when used in home or office environments )

I prefer the orange XLR cable because it's easy to see, so fewer people are going to step on your cable by accident.

Thanks for the advise!
Its hard to get the takstar CM63 here, how does it compare to shure SM57 or SM58?
actually SM57 is in my budget too.
(I am still holding back, because I wasnt sure this mic will have enuff gain if I boom the mic more than 1 feet away from the talent.)
typically I would like to bring a Lav mic than a set of boom equipment, because for wedding portable is very important as I am a one-man-band shooter. Will a good lav would be better than a boom mic?

Any suggestion for a good output gain lav mic?

 

[goodgoings]

If you are super tight on a budget, try the MicJ 044. It's sensitive so will work reasonably well with the H1.

The only problem I see is the rubbing noise when hidden beneath clothes. I've been wondering if it would fit inside the Rode Invisilav. Anyone tried?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RBxOLnVxg3A

 

[Noiz2]

for me outdoors is okay with the tasktar shootgun.
indoor most problem for me is the room reverb

The first "cure" for room reverb is getting close enough with a hyper, or possibly a cardioid mic. Shotguns because of the way 99% of them work will add a "reverb" hollow sound to hard interiors.
But by far the biggest mistake I see is booming too far away from the actors. If the person speaking can't reach out and touch the mic you are too far away.

If placement and mic choice don't solve it you have to start putting up sound blankets or change locations, but probably placement will cure 80%-90% of "room reverb".

 

[Rick R]

"how does it compare to shure SM57 or SM58?"
- I don't know anything about the Takstar,
The Shure SM57/58 are legendary.. (50th anniversary last month) They are outstanding mics.. and almost indestructible, but they are NOT good for production dialog.

 

[TheDingo]

It's hard to get the Takstar CM63 here, how does it compare to shure SM57 or SM58?

The Takstar mic is made in China and should be available for purchase from eBay provided eBay supports shipping to your country.

Can you purchase items from eBay or Amazon ? ( if not, what is available where you are ? )

The SM57 and SM58 are legendary mics but not designed for dialog recording.

 

[ph2003]

The first "cure" for room reverb is getting close enough with a hyper, or possibly a cardioid mic. Shotguns because of the way 99% of them work will add a "reverb" hollow sound to hard interiors.
But by far the biggest mistake I see is booming too far away from the actors. If the person speaking can't reach out and touch the mic you are too far away.
If placement and mic choice don't solve it you have to start putting up sound blankets or change locations, but probably placement will cure 80%-90% of "room reverb".

I have thinking for the blanket setup but it was trouble some with my shooting style, I often shooting as one man gun. bringing more gears wont works for me
This wedding videographer Philip White he seem to get the sound very clean even indoor, hes shooting as solo also. wonder what kind of mic hes using?

The Takstar mic is made in China and should be available for purchase from eBay provided eBay supports shipping to your country.
Can you purchase items from eBay or Amazon ? ( if not, what is available where you are ? )
The SM57 and SM58 are legendary mics but not designed for dialog recording.

Ya I can buy from eBay, they mostly will ship to my country, but I to wait a month or so to get the package haha.

Oh SM57 not working with dialog?
I was thinking to get it as a 2 in 1 mic haha
1. record dialog
2. record the dinner speech direct pointing the mic to the speakers on the venue. (there is alot venue here that don't allow me to record from thier PA system )

Thanks!

 

[TheDingo]

I can buy from eBay, they mostly will ship to my country, but I to wait a month or so to get the package haha.

Same thing here in Canada. I paid an extra $10 to get faster shipping and got my Takstar microphone in 2 weeks. It's definitely worth the wait for this mic.

I was thinking to get it as a 2 in 1 mic haha
1. record dialog
2. record the dinner speech direct pointing the mic to the speakers on the venue.

You can do this with the Takstar CM63 microphone, just make sure your gain level is adjusted properly.

 

[ph2003]

You can do this with the Takstar CM63 microphone, just make sure your gain level is adjusted properly.

Nice to know this mic can do that too!
btw how far the mic can boom from overhead position and still get a nice input volume?
Normally I boom around 6 to 10inch away from the month, you think it will work?

I think I will be getting CM63 and MicJ 044 lav mic soon, hope this 2 mics will get me better sound

Thanks!

 

[TheDingo]

how far the mic can boom from overhead position and still get a nice input volume?

The CM63 mic is very usable up to 3 feet from your subject, but 18 inches is the optimal distance for me. If the room was super noisy I might bring it as close as possible without getting it in your shot.

...In one nightmare situation where the air-conditioning vent was broken and creating very loud wind noises, I placed my mic 6 inches from the person being interviewed and then used a "clean" frame to mask out the microphone from my shot. ( I had to make sure my tripod was rock solid so that the image mask would match for the entire interview )

 

[Rick R]

"Normally I boom around 6 to 10inch away from the month, you think it will work?"
- The stated sensitivity or the CM63 is -35dB, which is decent so you should be ok.

MicJ 044: I wouldn't expect much from a $25usd mic, but then again the CM63 is also ultra-low cost. Even if they sound decent, I wouldn't expect reliability or a long life.

 

[ph2003]

The CM63 mic is very usable up to 3 feet from your subject, but 18 inches is the optimal distance for me. If the room was super noisy I might bring it as close as possible without getting it in your shot.

MicJ 044: I wouldn't expect much from a $25usd mic, but then again the CM63 is also ultra-low cost. Even if they sound decent, I wouldn't expect reliability or a long life.

Ya agreed, what I should upgrade when I have the money?
recorder or better mics (how about the AT4053b?

Thanks!!

 

[Rick R]

what I should upgrade when I have the money?
recorder or better mics (how about the AT4053b?

The $600 (usd) AT4053 is a really good mic, as is the Audix SCX1HC. Both the AT and Audix are modular with cardioid and omni capsules available. The AT is slightly more sensitive @ 21mV.. 17mV for the Audix . The next step up is the $1100 Sennheiser MKH50.
A decent lav (for a wireless system) is going to cost at least $100 ... add another $100 for a hard-wired XLR version. OST mics are regarded as affordable 'pro' quality and made in USA. Recorder options change frequently.

 

[Heezzi]

Hi guys, glad I found this forum that I can asked sone gear advise haha.

Right now I am using zoom h1, tasktar sgc598 and aputure a-lav mic.

I am struggling getting better sound when doing interviews in indoor situation, mostly I will be using lav mic. But the a-lav need alot of boost on the h1 to get decent volume hence there is more noise.

Recently I bought a saramonic smartrig to use as a preamp to boost the lav miv, indeed it does has some minor improvement compare to h1 (but still has a reletively high noise.

Right now should I get a h5 or juicedlink (these is in my budget right now)? Or better mic?

From my research the h5 will have alot of noise when u try to boost the volume too high.
The juicedlink has very low noise from what I see from net.
I cant decided my self, really need some advise.

From my country its hard to rental gears. Even there is, its only has very few option. ( there is no Juicedlink seller in here, if I need to buy it. I will have to buy from ebay )

Thanks!

Use a boom mic instead of lavs if possible. Use a different recorder if possible. The H Series of recorders are very noisy.