Curtis Judd 2/27/19 Curtis Judd 2/27/19

RODECaster Pro Review

In this episode, we take an in-depth look at the new RODECaster Pro recorder, mixer, and audio interface designed specifically for podcasting and recording panel discussions. I have to confess that I was originally not that enthused about the RODECaster Pro, but now that I’ve use it a for a couple of weeks, WOW! I’m surprised by the quality of sound that it produces and find the effects more effective than I expected. It is much easier to use than most mixers for those that aren’t audio engineers making this a great choice for those less interested in spending lots of time learning how to get better sound for their podcasts. And even for audio nerds like me...well, I'm buying this which was originally just on loan for the review!

If you’d like to learn how to make great dialogue audio for your film and video projects, please have a look at my courses including processing dialogue audio, recording sound, how to use the Zoom F8 and F8n, and how to get the most from the Sound Devices MixPre series of recorders.

Links to gear used in this video:

RODECaster Pro

Sony MDR-7506 - My go-to headphones for when I’m recording

Audio Technica AT2005 Dynamic Microphone - I recorded this episode with this microphone. Amazing mic for its price!

Electrovoice RE20 - Classic broadcast dynamic microphone. Dani was recorded with this in our demo

Shure SM7b - another classic broadcast dynamic microphone. Almost everyone sounds awesome with this microphone

Electrovoice RE50L - A common reporter’s microphone. Emma was recorded with this in our demo

Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 4K - I used this to record most of this episode

Panasonic 12-35mm F/2.8 OIS Lens - Used on the Pocket 4K camera

Curtis Judd 2/18/19 Curtis Judd 2/18/19

Headphones for Filmmakers: My Impressions of 7 Headphones

In this episode, I share my impressions of 5 different headphones which I have used for production or post production filmmaking. We start out with a discussion about open vs. closed back design and impedance and why those matter when you’re choosing a set of headphones. As a bonus, we also cover two additional sets of headphones I use when I’m not making films.

Links to gear used in this video:

Sony MDR-7506 (Amazon)- My go-to headphones for when I’m recording

Beyerdynamic DT770 Pro 80ohm (Amazon) - Also very good when recording, super durable, a little bulkier in size

Sony MDR-ZX110 (Amazon) - When I give a director or producer a wireless feed of the audio, they get these with the receiver

Sennheiser HD820 (Amazon) - The most amazing headphones I have ever owned, but expensive and reserved for post production

Beyerdynamic DT880 Pro 250ohm (Amazon) - A very good set of open back headphones for post production, much more reasonably priced

Meze 99 Classics (Amazon) - Classy looking and good sounding “Lifestyle” headphones with low impedance for listening from phones and laptops

Sennheiser PXC 550 Bluetooth Noise Cancelling Headphones (Amazon) - My favorite travel and everyday headphones when I want isolation from the world

Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 4K - I used this to record most of this episode

Panasonic 12-35mm F/2.8 OIS Lens (Amazon) - Used on the Pocket 4K camera

Curtis Judd 2/16/19 Curtis Judd 2/16/19

Sound for Video Session: Timecode Apps - Convert Audio Timecode to Metadata Timecode

When using timecode to speed up the process of syncing audio clips to separately recorded video clips, there are times when you need to use consumer cameras. These cameras usually do not have a proper timecode input so you have to record the timecode to an audio track via the camera’s microphone input. In this session, we cover a few apps which will convert that audio timecode to a format your video editing app (NLE) can use to quickly sync all your video and audio clips.

Please consider my sound for video classes.

Gear and apps used to record this episode:

DaVinci Resolve - works about 50% of the time in my experience (Version 15.4.2)

LTC Convert - Solid, straightforward option for converting audio timecode to metadata/file timecode

Tentacle Sync Studio - Included free when you buy a Tentacle Sync timecode generator

Timecode Systems Ultrasync One - Wireless timecode generator

Ambient Recording NanoLockit - Wireless timecode generator

Tentacle Sync E - Bluetooth enabled timecode generator

Nikon Z6 Mirrorless Full Frame Camera

Panasonic GH5 Camera

AKG C414 XLS large diaphragm condenser microphone - this is my new, main voice over microphone

Universal Audio Apollo x6 - Thunderbolt 3 audio interface used to take audio signal from the dbx286S channel strip, convert it to digital, and send to my computer for recording.

Curtis Judd 2/10/19 Curtis Judd 2/10/19

Sound for Video Session: Q&A 9 Feb 2019

Its time to answer your sound for video related questions! For those new to the channel here, as part of my online school, we have question and answer sessions every few weeks. If you’d like to be notified when a new Q&A session is coming up, sign up for free at Learn Light and Sound. You can also preview several segments from my online courses on sound for film.

Here are the questions we covered this week:

00:07 Wireless hop to camera with Sennheiser G3?

01:10 Microphones for recording a concert?

02:18 Plugins for cleaning up background noise?

04:42 Room tone and sound effects? M/S Recording?

06:24 Stereo microphones for recording concerts?

07:17 Timecode from Zoom F8n to Panasonic GH4?

08:53 Remote Audio Battery distribution system and powering Panasonic GH5?

11:47 Why hasn’t the perfect recorder and microphones been developed yet?

17:07 Can I de-noise as the last step in my post workflow?

22:35 Audio, sound, film book recommendations?

28:20 If I have 2 UltraSync 1s, should I use just one or both for 1 cam shoots?

32:10 If my video will be H.264, does it matter if I use 48kHz vs 96kHz?

34:30 What are microdot cavaliers?

37:32 Person moves in and out of mic sweet spot, what do I do?

39:55 Will the new version of ARRI Alexa come with a boom holder?

40:10 What’s the difference between trim and fader?

42:58 Order of operations when processing dialogue audio?

49:12 Should I upgrade from RODE NTG2 to NTG4?

51:03 I’m getting older and my hearing is not good. How do I compensate?

57:42 Izotope RX, Logic Pro, Audition, and changing sample rates?

1:00:20 Powering a recorder. I have a 20 hour battery vest!

1:02:20 Audio repair software suggestions?

1:04:22 How would you cleanup this audio recording?

Here are a few previous sessions we references in today’s Q&A session:

Wireless Hop to Camera with Sennheiser G3 with Gregg Palmer:

Recording Live Concerts with Mike Strands:

Accusonus ERA-D Noise Reduction Demo:

Gear we discussed in today’s session:

Sound Reinforcement Handbook, 2nd Edition (Amazon) - Dense but very good reference for anyone serious about sound

Location Sound Bible (Amazon) - one of my favorites on recording sound for film. Dated info re: specific gear, but otherwise very good info.

Sound Effects Bible (Amazon) - good reference on recording sound effects. Dated info re: specific gear, but otherwise very good info.

Hearos (Amazon) - Ear protection for loud locations

Zoom F8n Audio Recorder

Zoom F4 Audio Recorder

Ambient Recording Timecode Slate

Schoeps Super CMIT Shotgun Microphone - with real-time noise reduction. Not cheap, but very effective.

Cedar DNS - hardware real-time noise reduction. Not cheap, but very effective.

Universal Audio Apollo x6 - Thunderbolt 3 audio interface which can basically replace a full rack of analogue audio processing gear

Curtis Judd 2/3/19 Curtis Judd 2/3/19

Sound for Video Session: dbx286s Demo & Settings

What is a channel strip? The dbx286s is a popular microphone preamp and processor, often called a channel strip, that is helpful in cases where you are live streaming or broadcasting. It can also be helpful when you need to save yourself some time in post by doing the processing while recording. Here we take a look at the 286s and show how to adjust the settings.

Please consider my sound for video classes.

Gear used to record this episode:

AKG C414 XLS large diaphragm condenser microphone (Amazon) - this is my new, main voice over microphone

dbx 286s Preamplifier and channel strip (Amazon) - new vocal processing channel strip. I’ve had a ton of requests for help setting this up so I had to add one to my collection so I can learn how to use it first.

Universal Audio Apollo x6 - Thunderbolt 3 audio interface used to take audio signal from the dbx286S channel strip, convert it to digital, and send to my computer for recording.

Outro music from Artlist: Sunday by Rich Young Pixies - Amazing Journey. You can receive a 2 month discount on a subscription to Artlist, a subscription service for stock music you can use with your videos. Check it out at https://artlist.io/artlist-70446/?artlist_aid=Curtis_Judd_99&utm_source=affiliate_p&utm_medium=Curtis_Judd_99&utm_campaign=Curtis_Judd_99

Curtis Judd 1/13/19 Curtis Judd 1/13/19

Audio Features - Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 4K

In this episode, we have a look at (and listen to) the audio features on the Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 4K.

Links to gear used in this video:

Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 4K - I used this to record this episode, including the audio directly from the DPA 4017b

Mini XLR to XLR Adapter Cable (Amazon) - you’ll need at least one of these to get a standard XLR cable into your Pocket 4K. This is a pack of 2 (always good to have a backup) and seems to be of very high quality

Blackmagic power adapter cable kit - I use the 2-pin to d-tap cable to power the Pocket 4K with an Anton Bauer Digital 90 cine battery. Will work with any cine battery with d-tap output (v-mount, gold mount, etc.)

Tentacle Sync E Timecode Generator

Deity S-Mic 2 Shotgun Microphone (Amazon)

RODE NTG2 Shotgun Microphone (Amazon)

Shure SM-58 Dynamic Microphone (Amazon)

Panasonic 12-35mm F/2.8 OIS Lens (Amazon) - Used on the Pocket 4K camera

Lupo Superpanel Dual Color Panel Model 400 - Bounced off of a big piece of white foamcore for the key light

Aputure AL-MW (Amazon) - background light for all of the talking head shots. Cool little waterproof light with in-built Li-Ion battery that lasts 80 minutes at full power

Aputure COB120t (Amazon) - background light for product shots

Curtis Judd 1/6/19 Curtis Judd 1/6/19

100K Giveaway Winners - Deity S-Mic 2 Shotgun Microphone

In celebration of the channel reaching 100,000 subscribers, Deity has generously offered to give away 2 of their S-Mic 2 Shotgun Microphone Location kits. And here are the two winners!

Links to gear used in this video:

Deity S-Mic 2 Shotgun Microphone (Amazon) - This episode recorded with this mic.

Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 4K - I used this to record this episode, including the audio directly from the S-Mic 2

Panasonic 12-35mm F/2.8 OIS Lens (Amazon) - Used on the Pocket 4K camera

Aputure COB 120dII - key light

Aputure Light Dome II - soft box for key light

Aputure COB120t - background light

Curtis Judd 1/5/19 Curtis Judd 1/5/19

Sound for Video Session: Desert Island Gear 2018

Cary Judd and I have an informal, unscripted discussion on the one microphone and one audio recorder we would each choose if we were stranded on a deserted island.

Please consider my sound for video classes available over at http://school.learnlightandsound.com

Gear and links discussed/used to record this episode:

Sennheiser MKH416 Shotgun Microphone

DPA 4107b Shotgun Microphone

Sound Devices MixPre Recorders

Sound Devices 633 Audio Recorder/Mixer

Runners Up:

Sennheiser MKH8060 Short Shotgun Microphone

Zoom F Series Recorders

Outro music licensed from Artlist: Sunday by Young Rich Pixies on Amazing Journey

Curtis Judd 12/24/18 Curtis Judd 12/24/18

Sound for Video Session: Control Surfaces for Sound Devices MixPre

For those of you who record with one of the Sound Devices MixPre series of recorders, good news: You can now use a variety of MIDI controllers as a control surface with your MixPre. This will make it easier for you to make a quality stereo mix while still recording your isolated microphone channels. This is especially helpful when recording interviews, panel discussions, or lectures. Let’s give you a quick overview!

Please consider my sound for video classes available over at my school.

Gear and links discussed/used to record this episode:

Novation LaunchControl XL (Amazon) - This is the controller we used in this demonstration.

Akai MIDIMix (Amazon)

Korg nanoKontrol Studio (Amazon)

Korg nanoKontrol 2 (Amazon)

Sound Devices MixPre Recorders

Blackmagic Pocket cinema Camera 4K - used to shoot this episode

Outro music licensed from Artlist: Sunday by Young Rich Pixies on Amazing Journey