Sound kits

L

landogarner

Member
I am purchasing a 7d for the purpose of making short films and I know absolutely nothing about sound equipment. I am trying to simplify the process and hopefully my research will help other people in my situation.

I tried to search for the answers in the forum but didn't find much.


I am looking at kit #6 or #7 from Jeremy's thread (great thread btw)
http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?t=51526

A few questions:

1. What changes would be made to these kits to reflect current products and pricing?
2. I won't be using the 7d's sound inputs so what else do I need to add to these
kits to have all the sound equipment I will need to shoot films? I am looking at
the h4n but is that all I will need to add to the kit to be up and running?
3. This kit obviously only covers shots where you can actually use a boom mic but what do you use for wide
shots where you can't hide a large mic? This doesn't seem to addressed in these kits.
4. Someone on the forum recommended a wireless mic system very highly. What are the pros/cons of
wireless vs wired?
5. I have a nice pair of Bose headphones and I was wondering if it is necessary to buy the Sony
headphones that are recommended for monitoring sound? Are they that much different?

Thanks for your help!
 
Last edited:
I think that those kits will work fine with whatever camera you have. Recorder wise you will need the recorder (the H4n is good but I can also reccomend the fostex 2Le), the cables, and mounting equipment. Wireless wise my reccomendations are the Sennheiser G2/3s or the Audio-Technica 1800s series kits. Either kit will work well but to make them perform their best you should get a countryman lav or two (the b3 or b6 both work really well). A good wireless kit will cost a fair bit of money but it will also make your like a lot easier sometimes.

Headphone wise I strongly reccomend that you invest in a pair of MDR-7506s because they are great headphones and will last you longer than almost any other piece of gear that you buy. Your Bose will probably work well enough but they will be colored and won't give you super accurate sound.
 
landogarner said:
...
4. Someone on the forum recommended a wireless mic system very highly. What are the pros/cons of
wireless vs wired?
5. I have a nice pair of Bose headphones and I was wondering if it is necessary to buy the Sony
headphones that are recommended for monitoring sound? Are they that much different?

Thanks for your help!
Click to expand...

Pros of wireless is you have greater flexibility in your shot blocking and talent movement, con's are they are subject to RF interference and noise. The best solution is to have both in your arsenal so for sit-downs, etc, you can used a hard-wired lav but can go wireless when needed. "Whenever you are able, always use a cable."

DO NOT use noise cancelling headphones like the Bose or 'cans that are designed for music listening. They introduce all manner of distortions to the sounds. They may sound great when you're listening for pleasure but that's not why you're monitoring. You need phones that will let you hear any problems that might be creeping in. Accuracy and consistency are the criteria, not sounding pleasant under any circumtances. If you're recording a crappy track, you should hear the cr*p in your 'phones.
 
david335 said:
I think that those kits will work fine with whatever camera you have. Recorder wise you will need the recorder (the H4n is good but I can also reccomend the fostex 2Le), the cables, and mounting equipment. Wireless wise my reccomendations are the Sennheiser G2/3s or the Audio-Technica 1800s series kits. Either kit will work well but to make them perform their best you should get a countryman lav or two (the b3 or b6 both work really well). A good wireless kit will cost a fair bit of money but it will also make your like a lot easier sometimes.

Headphone wise I strongly reccomend that you invest in a pair of MDR-7506s because they are great headphones and will last you longer than almost any other piece of gear that you buy. Your Bose will probably work well enough but they will be colored and won't give you super accurate sound.
Click to expand...

I'm trying to decide between the h4n and the 2le right now. My main concern is if the preamps and phantom power on the h4n are enough to handle Rode NTG-3 and a couple wireless mics? I've read that the preamps on the h4n aren't the best and, IIRC, the phantom power on the h4n isn't the best either? Would love to hear from someone who has used the h4n in the setup I mentioned.
 
Phantom power wise either one will power the Rode just fine and the wireless won't need phantom. Also remember to run multiple wireless and a boom you are going to want a mixer.

I personally prefer the Fostex 2le because I think it sounds better and doesn't have the extra stuff that I won't use (buit in mics for example). This means that the functionality is much simpler and the whole purpose of the product is to record so there are never any problems.
 
david335 said:
Phantom power wise either one will power the Rode just fine and the wireless won't need phantom. Also remember to run multiple wireless and a boom you are going to want a mixer.

I personally prefer the Fostex 2le because I think it sounds better and doesn't have the extra stuff that I won't use (buit in mics for example). This means that the functionality is much simpler and the whole purpose of the product is to record so there are never any problems.
Click to expand...

The only issue I have with the Fostex is the hissing everyone seems to hear when monitoring sound through the headphone out. How much of an issue is it?
 
As an fr2le owner, the hiss it´s very present if you monitor a high levels. Otherwise, it´s good enough to notice the detail of the recording.
 
landogarner said:
5. I have a nice pair of Bose headphones and I was wondering if it is necessary to buy the Sony
headphones that are recommended for monitoring sound? Are they that much different?
Click to expand...

Under no circumstance should you be using Bose or any other noise canceling headphones when recording. You need to have an accurate reproduction of what you're recording, not whatever the headphones determine to be the most desirable sound.
 
JordanBlock said:
Under no circumstance should you be using Bose or any other noise canceling headphones when recording. You need to have an accurate reproduction of what you're recording, not whatever the headphones determine to be the most desirable sound.
Click to expand...

I don't own any noise canceling headphones and I would think they would be counter productive to the purpose of sound monitoring. Bose makes normal headphones also.
 
landogarner said:
I don't own any noise canceling headphones and I would think they would be counter productive to the purpose of sound monitoring. Bose makes normal headphones also.
Click to expand...

Better, but still Bose is not especially accurate. They may make music sound great but "correcting" less than perfect sound is not desirable in monitors. If the recording is cr*p, that's what you should hear in your cans. The industry standard would be Sony MDR-7506 or Sennheiser HD25 or HD80 ... there are other good phones but these three lead the pack.
 
Steve House said:
Better, but still Bose is not especially accurate. They may make music sound great but "correcting" less than perfect sound is not desirable in monitors. If the recording is cr*p, that's what you should hear in your cans. The industry standard would be Sony MDR-7506 or Sennheiser HD25 or HD80 ... there are other good phones but these three lead the pack.
Click to expand...

Yea, I will more than likely pick up a pair of the Sony's.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top