One of the best ways to increase the production value of your DSLR video is to record great audio. Here’s a short video that will help you record better audio whether you use a lavalier or a shotgun microphone.
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{ 50 comments… read them below or add one }
Wow thanks for putting all the time to create this video. I like comparison videos – well done.
Excited to see it, but sadly the video would not play on my iPad, while I’m traveling. I’ll have to wait.
Ryan,
The video is now on vimeo and youtube – should be able to play it on your iPad.
http://vimeo.com/13532275
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gcg2L5D3T0A
-a-
Hi, and thanks for the video! I was still wondering about the Rode + H2 in different distances and how does it sound? In my case: do you think it’s a quality choice with h4n and rode stereomic (which i own) as a method for sound recording in basic interviews?
The Rode StereoMic is a hypercardioid – meaning it’s very directional but not as much as a shotgun mic. Whether it will be a quality choice for your interviews depends on whether your interviewing more than one person at a time, how much ambient noise there will be, and how far the mic will be from the talent.
My first choice for regular interviews is always a lavalier. But if you’re doing “man on the street” interviews where you don’t have time to mic with a lav then the StereoMic will be great.
I always recommend recording with two mics if you can – then you can decide in post which works best.
-a-
It seems like the level of ambient noise both with the lavalier and the shotgun is much lower when attached to the Zoom H2: and that’s the one quality element that speaks “professional” to me in audio. Is it all to do with the zoom then? Can you explain why you attach the Sennheiser ew100 to the Zoom H2 instead of just using the Zoom H2? (sorry, I’m a beginner in all of this!)
Also, I believe there’s a tiny mistake: you said “So this is how I sound from 4 feet on a shotgun mic” for both of the lavalier and the shotgun during the comparison.
Thank you for doing this, very helpful info! I plan to pickup a lavalier mic and Zoom H1 as soon as it comes out.
You’re welcome, Rod. Let me know how it works for you.
-a-
Very informative video! I purchased an H2 a couple of years back, and I’ve been amazed at all the uses I’ve found for it.
One question – The H2 is not much difference in size from a transmitter. I’d be interested to know if there’s a quality difference between recording straight into the H2 and recording to wireless.
It struck me that, given the low price of the H2, a cheap alternative to high quality wireless mics would be to give each actor their own strap-on H2 for recording, using the built-in automatic gain system. If you needed to monitor the recording, you could use a budget wireless system.
Thanks, Duncan.
There is a difference between recording directly to the H2 and through a wireless. Wireless systems always have more noise than wired and they are more likely to pick up radio interference as well. I always recommend monitoring the recording when using wireless mics.
There is a small tonal quality difference but it’s neither better or worse, just a bit different sound.
Your idea of using a lav plugged directly into an H2 for each actor is solid – with a couple of caveats.
When I’ve done this the biggest issue is putting the recorder someplace where they can’t hit the button to make it stop recording. The H2 does not have a belt clip like a wireless transmitter.
Also, the Sennheiser lav has a screw-down ring on the plug that makes sure that it stays attached to the transmitter. The H2 does not have a way of securing the plug.
My fix was to attach the mic and make a stress-loop with the cable, then tape the loop to the H2 with some gaffers tape.
I don’t recommend using auto-gain at any time for anything. Set the levels a bit lower than normal to give some extra headroom. Start the H2 recording and talk into the lav to ‘slate’ the file with time, date, location, person, etc.
Drop the H2 in a plastic ziplock bag, zip the top shut and have them put it in their pocket. If they stick their hand in their pocket the bag will remind them quickly to be careful.
I’ve only used this with men as women don’t have pockets. I have seen universal pda clips that might work.
Anyone else tried this?
-a-
Very helpful video. I was considering going with a boom mic but after watching this video I might just pick up a lavalier instead.
Thanks for the good video, but next time at least use a shotgun in the same class, it’s an unfair video. I would not take a flip cam hd, and compare it to a Canon Vixia. An 800 dollar Lav mic vs a shotgun that cost 120?
I agree with your perspective – if possible it’s always best to compare apples to apples. My intention was more to demonstrate the difference between a lav that’s always the same distance from the talent versus a shotgun at various distances.
I think you’ll agree that the results would have been pretty well the same even if I’d used an inexpensive lav.
-a-
There are several issues with this video. First, like someone else said, the microphones are not in the same class whatsoever. You are comparing an $800 lavaliere with a $150 “shotgun”. But putting that aside, here are some other issues:
First, although you are using the R0DE mic the way it’s designed, that is not the way you use a typical shotgun mic. Shotgun microphones should be vertical, pointing downward toward the subject’s mouth. In this position, sound that hits the side of the shotgun microphone are not picked up, so you cut down on reverberation, location noise, etc. When the mic is parallel to the floor, you are not cutting out these sounds.
Second, DSLRs like the T2i have NO manual gain control for the audio. The camera is automatically turning up the gain when things are quiet. This causes a lot of hiss and noise, as we can clearly hear in your video. When you are recording into a dedicated recorder like the Zoom, you are manually controlling the audio level. On top of that, the mic preamps in the DSLR are probably lower quality than the Zoom recorder.
I have absolutely nothing against lavs, people should just know how many problems there are in this “comparison”.
Right you are. Hopefully someone (like you?) will take the time to do a real apples-to-apples comparison with a pro sound operator. Until then, I trust this comparison will be useful to some people needing to make a better choice for recording sound with a DSLR.
-a-
Somewhat off topic, but… I shoot demos of very noisy machines with the demonstrator talking into a lapel mike. What would you recommend for sound that would get less of the ambient machine noise and more of the guy talking? I’m thinking some sort of Garth Brooks headset mic, but I don’t want it to appear too obtrusive. Thanks for any replies.
There are a couple of options here. You can try a cardiod lavalier mic rather than the typical omnidirectional lav. Placement is more critical as you need to have the mic pointed at the demonstrator’s mouth,
Or you can go with a Countryman headset mic. Unfortunately, most of these are omnidirectional so even though you’re closer to the source of the sound (right next to the mouth) they still pick up a lot of the ambient sound.
There are noise-canceling headset mics that will do a better job of knocking out ambient but most are clunky looking on camera. You’ll see these on live sports casters working in a booth in a stadium.
The only way I know to decide is find a place to buy some of these, try them out and return what doesn’t work. Hope this helps!
-a-
This was very helpful in understanding how the two different mics work. Thanks! This will help my decision.
I’m glad it was useful, let me know if you more questions.
-a-
This was great, thank you!
You’re welcome and thank you for stopping by.
-a-
Hey, great video. I have a quick question. I’m in the market for a wireless lav and I have a canon 60d with a tascam dr-07 for audio. My question is will any lav I buy fit into the little line 1/4′ jack input (whatever you call it), I’m worried it will only come with xlr…. what are my options etc.
Thank you so much,
Lowell
Lowell,
The Tascan DR-07 has a 1/8″ input (also called a “mini” jack). If the wireless lav you buy only has an XLR output check the included accessories for an XLR to 1/8″ adapter. Even if it’s not included they are easy find or make.
Many wireless lav receivers are already 1/8″ output and come with the opposite adapter so you can plug them into XLR inputs.
Let me know which model(s) you’re looking at and I’ll help more if I can.
-a-
Thank you for sharing the knowledge. I was wondering though, how the shotgun mic didn’t present much hissing sound.
The shotgun is a decent mic and fairly quiet. It’s the camera audio auto-gain that’s the biggest problem. Plug the RODE directly into the Zoom and you’re good to go.
great video!! if i’m on a budget and the senhiser is out of my range what else do you recommend for lav mics. I’m a comedian and using the zoom 2 for recording. thanks in advance
AudioTechnica makes several inexpensive lavs that work great. The biggest cost in the Sennheiser is the radio transmitter and receiver. So I recommend getting something like a Zoom H1 and a wired lav. Plug the lav directly into the H1, set your levels, lock it into record and drop it in your pocket. It’s easier than working with a wireless system and the sound is likely to be better – no RF interference to worry about.
Hi! I’m new to DSLRs and microphones. My DSLR makes a noise when it autofocuses during the video and I’m trying to find a solution to that problem. The NIKON ME-1 says it reduces the noise of the autofocus, but I heard the quality isn’t good. ‘m thinking of getting an external mic as you’ve said, mainly the Zoom H2. However, do I sync the film and the audio later on, does the audio record onto the dslr movie and then I can just take the movie and edit it, or do I have to bring in the audio and video from two separate sources and combine them later? Your help is much appreciated!
Roseanne,
You’ll need to record sound on the DSLR and the Zoom H2 then sync them up in post. Make sure to clap your hands or use a slate to create a clean spike in the audio and it’s easy to sync in post.
Hi,
is there any microphone that you could record your sound directly onto the film in your dslr? Or is this the only option to sync the sound later on? On the Zoom h2 you have a Line Out, but i get really much noise in my film when i connect a cable between the microphone and my Camera. Im using a Canon t2i.
Recording sound in a Canon t2i will always be noisy unless you go thru the Magic Lantern hack. It does not matter if you come from the H2 or from a mic, it’s going to suck.
You can also look to use a stepdown cord to adjust the signal that goes directly to your camera from your zoom h2. check here for more details http://www.markertek.com/Cables/Audio-Cables/DSLR-Audio-Cables/Sescom/LN2MIC-ZOOMH4N.xhtml?LN2MIC-ZOOMH4N
Though your levels might be weird unless you can do manual levels in the t2i, or you can set it on AGC and pray.
Great video, thanks. I’m going for the Zoom H2
I have a Canon t2i and I wanted to get a microphone but I’m on a budget, how well would the Zoom H2 preform in recording movies, nothing fancy, it’s mostly talk
I’d recommend going with the Zoom H1 and a low cost lavalier instead of the Zoom H2. For the same money you’ll have more options and you’ll always keep the H1 even if you end up with something else.
Get a wired lavalier, plug it into the H1, set the levels, start it recording, lock it, and drop it in your talents pocket. If two people are talking get a small table top tripod and get the H1 as close to the dialog as possible.I look forward to seeing your videos on the web! -a-
Thank you for the quick reply. The video will take me some time to make because I have to find some friends to be the actors, since I’m more of a behind the camera guy.
Awesome, thank you!
Thanks for the video! I’m planning on making my first short films as soon as I can get the audio part figured out. People don’t value good audio enough!
Would you mind if I picked your brain a bit?
I was surprised to see you could use the lav MIC from 6 feat away and had none of that horrible room echo like the shotgun did at the same distance. It sounded amazing, which made me think: Is there any reason why a Lav Mic couldn’t be used as a primary MIC for making short films? More specifically, would it work in the following situations:
1) Sticking to actors body underneath a shirt for Dialogue and other ambient sounds? Especially for scenes or sequences with just the one actor.
2) Picking up sound separately for effects/foley in post, whether used with an external recorder like the Zoom or even and Iphone/ipod if in a pickle. Or, maybe even just plugged straight into the camera? I have a 600D/T3i, so I have manual gain control.
3) Used as a primary MIC on a boom, I assume it picks up enough ambient noise and what not?
4) Because of the lack of horrible echoing, if recording a short film or scene indoors, could you use the audio wild (as is) without much post tinkering on it like Foley or ADR? (outdoors might be a little too noisy!)
Thanks so much!
I like the way you think!
The reason the lav sounded clear from six feet is that is was on my chest. Mics are more sensitive to proximity than to where they are pointing (in most cases).
As for your sitations:
1) Lavs on actors are great but you need to listen carefully for clothing rustle or muffled sound if you hide the mic under their clothes.
2) Sound effects with a lav (especially in a ‘pickle’) will work fine. Most lavs are omnidirectional and that can be useful for sound effects as you get more of the whole sound. But sometimes you just want part of the sound and for that a directional mic is more useful. I think you’ll want at least of omni and one directional mic in your kit.
3) I’ve clipped a lav on a fixed boom when I had to shoot a small group of people and wanted a second mic in addition to a shotgun. You will pick up more ambient noise with an omni lav in most cases but you never know – it may be a mix of the two mics will work best in post.
4) You could use the audio from a lav in post without much tinkering if it’s recorded very well. My goal is to record the audio as cleanly as possible so that I can easily tinker in post. It’s kind of like shooting with a extra-flat camera profile so you have more to work with in color grading for post. Strong clean audio tracks give you the most options in post and that’s always a good thing.
Thanks for stopping by – let me know how things go. I look forward to seeing your films on the web!
-a-
EDIT: Sorry, double post.
Question: I want to know what the difference is between connecting a sennheiser 100 into the T2i and the beachtek vs connecting the sennheiser to the Zoom mic? Is one better than the other?
If you go through the Zoom you’ll get two recordings of the audio – the Zoom and the T2i. If you just go through the Beachtek you’ll only get the T2i and that camera does not have manual adjustment of the audio level or anyway to monitor the audio.
Two copies of the audio is the best and well worth the extra effort in my opinion. If you get a splitter cable you can also plug in a set of headphone to monitor the recording, also an excellent idea in my opinion.
Hi Adriel,
I have some questions, I can’t seem to figure out on my own and I realize that you might be able to help me out. I’ from Denmark and are going to Alaska in april to shoot a film within a period of 90 days. We are recording the film on a canon 5d mark ii, but have a hard time to figure out the right audio solution. We will have very long periods, where it will not be possible to get any real power supply, so we need to do the audio driven on 100 % battery supply (like AA or something alike). We will be shooting vocal from two persons and want to use lavalier mics for this purpose. We have 2 Zoom H4n recorders and wants to connect 2 lavs (XLR) into these, so we are able to record each vocal separately. The audio quality needs to be quite good. Most of the recordings will be made outdoor and there might be a lot of wind (and water?) – it needs to be quite robust.
So my questions is as follows:
* What lavalier mics will be the best for such conditions? (budget: aprox. 400 $ per mic)
* We thought about using 2 Sanken cos-11d mics, but I read that these runs on 48V phantom power. Can it be powered by using the two AA batteries it takes to run the Zoom H4n?
* In your opinion: what would be the best solution using two Zoom H4n?
I really hope you have the time to answer our questions – we will be very grateful.
Thank you!
Regards
Esben Persson
Hi Esben,
My choice would be the RØDE Lavalier. At about $249 USD you can afford to take three of them with you – an extra mic when you’re on location is always smart. The RØDE Lavalier sounds great and comes with a protective case and two types of weatherproof “furry” windscreens.
It uses something called the MiCon connector system. You’ll need the MiCon 5 for an XLR connection with 48V phantom power. There are other types of MiCon connectors that screw into the lavalier cable. That means you can carry extra connectors and cables that fit both the Zoom and the 5D MKII.
The Zoom H4n will supply 48v phantom power for the RØDE. I haven’t tested it to see how long you’ll get on a set of batteries but that shouldn’t be difficult for you to find out.
I’m sure the Sanken cos-11d will also work but my experience with RØDE mics is superb and I recommend them without reservation.
I always recommend that you get one and try it out in using the exact equipment you plan to use for your project. And I highly recommend bringing headphones or earbuds to check the output of the H4n’s before recording. You don’t want to guess about the quality of the audio.
I hope this helps, good luck with your project. I look forward to seeing your video on the web.
-a-
Hi,
I am starting a fitness blog and want to shoot videos so people can follow my workouts.
I have the Canon Rebel T4i and I want to use some sort of audio set up so that I can move and do the workouts but people can still hear me very clearly and not have a lot of echo in the room.
What would you suggest for this set up?
I was also thinking about getting a Canon XA10 (or something similar) – I would also love if you had any input on a good professional video camera.
I loved your video and used to help my dad with sound (no video) a lot when I was younger.
Michelle,
You are definitely going to want to use a high quality wireless lavalier. I use a Sennheiser and highly recommend it for durable, high quality audio. The Sennheiser EW 112P G3 is a solid system – not cheap but it will pay back the investment every time you use it.
One of the reasons for going with this quality is the fact that you’re moving around. Less expensive systems sometimes don’t work so well when there is a lot of movement.
Most of these systems are sold with an omni-directional microphone. You may want to consider using a cardiod lavalier instead. It will definitely cut down on the echo in the room.
The downside to a cardiod lav is that the sound will change a lot from when you’re looking straight ahead versus turning your head to one side. If you bend your head forward it will change even more.
This is true of omni mics as well but not nearly so much.
The Sennheiser ME 4-N cardioid EW microphone is a good choice. There’s no way to know which will work better for you except to try them out so look for someone that will let you return the one you don’t want.
Also, I agree with getting a regular camcorder. You don’t want your T4i shutting down for over-heating or reaching the end of the clip limit in the middle of your routine. Set the camcorder on a medium wide shot on a tripod and you’ll always have a safe shot of the routine for editing.
If you feed the output of the wireless into a mixer you can feed that to both cameras so you have good sound on two devices – much safer than on just one.
Hope this helps, let me know if I can be of further service.
-a-
It’s nearly impossible to find knowledgeable people for this subject, but you seem like you know what you’re talking about!
Thanks
Thank you for stopping by and for your comment. I’m working on an email series that will give even more help for creating good audio tracks for DSLR video productions. I’ll let you know when it’s ready.
-a-
Hi Adriel,
My name is Zach (16 years old). I am just starting out in the world of video production. I have an assignment to film a series of classes (inside and outside the classroom). I am on a very tight budget (can’t afford Sennheiser wireless lav products). I saw that you recommend the Audio Technica wireless lav. I saw that you also recommend connecting to a Zoom H1 (which I have). The problem with this is that it takes too long to sync to the video in Adobe Premiere Pro during the editing process. I don’t have the time to do that as the client wants the video completed within a week to burn and post for students. I have a Panasonic AG-HMC150 video camera, which I can purchase a Panasonic MIC 150 shotgun mic for. Would just a shotgun mic work for the inside classroom situation if the classroom is small? I’m in a dilemma and need some inexpensive suggestions. Any advise is greatly appreciated!!!
You should be able to connect the AT lav to your HMC150 and record the audio directly to video. That should cut out the sync issues.
I don’t recommend shotgun mics in small rooms unless you can get pretty close to the talent. If it’s mounted on the camera from some distance you’ll get a lot of room sound and not much voice. That’s why the lav is better, it’s right on the talent even if they walk around.
Hope this helps,
-a-