Rode NTG-1 settings on HVX200A

Rule of thumb for good audio -- get the mic as close as possible to the source. The closer the mic, the cleaner and stronger the sound will be and you can thus lower the levels thus lowering the unwanted noise and potential echo. The thing about shotguns is not so much that you can move the mic farther back as it is that they help to eliminate interfering sounds from entering the pickup pattern by making that pickup pattern very narrow. So getting the mic close is still very essential.

With that being said, you need to realize that the sound level positions that you can adjust on the camcorder, via the sound level dials, will change accordingly as you get closer to the sound source. Being able to turn down those dials is a good thing. The idea is to keep the sound levels dancing around -12db (which is the second mark on the camcorder's display of sound levels, the first mark is -20db).

The main thing that you want to be doing when recording sound is to try and get a strong signal that get's close to 0db without going over 0db and since dialog fluctuates in loudness, you need to give yourself some headroom to allow for variations --- and with most dialog you can usually have enough headroom for loud moments by keeping the average level around -12db. For speakers who are loud at inconsistant times, lowering the levels to -20db will give a little extra headroom for outbursts. For monotone or quiet speakers, you might get away with setting levels where the dialog is averaging around -6db or -8db.

I hope this helps :beer:

Edit - My apologies if this isn't the kind of info you were looking for
 
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From what Barry Green's HVX book says, -60dB makes the mic input louder than -50dB and would be appropriate for use with a less sensitive microphone, so I would suggest staying with -50dB as the Rode NTG-1 is fairly sensitive I think..

The only confusing thing to me is that I would think that -50dB would be louder than -60dB ---- but I am guessing that I am miissing the understanding of how that scale works.
 
I am not sure specifically what setting you are talking about but there are actually two scales of dB. You have dB-SPL (sound pressure level) and dB-FS (full scale). dB-FS is the one you were referring to. You never want to go above 0 dB-FS because you will have distortion. This will always be a negative number. dB-SPL is measured with positive numbers and measures the decibel increments above air at rest (0dB-SPL = silence). 120 dB-SPL = threshold of pain.

This probably isnt what your talking about but it might help some.
 
The NTG-1 is an excellent partner to the HVX. If you just use one, you can run channels 1 AND 2 at different levels, and push one a little hotter than you might otherwise. Then you have something to go to in post if levels get a little too low.
 
ProfessorU said:
The NTG-1 is an excellent partner to the HVX. If you just use one, you can run channels 1 AND 2 at different levels, and push one a little hotter than you might otherwise. Then you have something to go to in post if levels get a little too low.
Click to expand...

Could you explain better, how to do it please?
 
This probably isnt what your talking about but it might help some.
Click to expand...

Thank you for the info. I thought, from what I know of the negative scale, that it would make sense that -60dB would make the mic input quieter than -50dB .... that's what I don't understand. It doesn't make sense to me that switching to -60dB makes the signal louder than -50dB from my perspective.
 
gigionmac said:
Could you explain better, how to do it please?
Click to expand...

plug the mic into input 2, then set both channels for input 2(the little switches inside the lcd, and you'll only need phantom power turned on to channel 2). then with your dials on the back of the camera set channel 1 a little higher than channel 2. and of course you'll always want to monitor your audio with headphones.
 
Just tried it wit your settings.

Did you plac the mic in the holder without any piece of rubber ?
it seems to "dance" in the holder if I place it as it is. You?

I also tried monitoring audio with headphone...and have to set the channel under ZERO level to avoid peak on the red zone.

Can you confirm this with the NTG-1 ?

Also noticed that if you, ny chance, touch softly the mic or the holder or the arm of the camera, a noise can be heard through the headphone.
Are this noises recorded ?
 
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Use a boom for the mic whenever possible.
I bought the mic from B&H and it included a shock mount, which helps a great deal when you have to mount it on the cam.
 
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