Sound
This is sound.Quick and dirty guide to capturing sound for video
Here is a quick and dirty guide to capturing sound for video. I will address key ideas here leaving the specifics of implementation up to you. Remember you can request a manual for each and every piece of gear in A.V.
Don’t use built-in microphones
First and for most, never use the built-in mic on the camera. No matter how much of a hassle sound equipment can be you are not going to end up with usable sound off of the built in camera mic. This mic will inevitably pick up the camera’s operating noise, wind and handling noise. It will rarely capture what you were hoping to get.
Listen to your environment
Many microphones are even more sensitive than your ears so any ambient noise that you can hear WILL be picked up by your mics. If there is an unpleasant or troublesome sound where you are shooting do everything in your power to get rid of it before you start shooting.The proper way to capture sound for video is with “external microphones”. There are a few different types that are especially good for video and each has a specific use.
Use lavaliere microphones for vocals
When ever possible use a lavaliere mic to pick up vocals. These mics are specifically designed for this function. They are small, easily hidden on a person, and often coupled with a wireless transmitter.
Use hyper-cardioid where lavalieres won’t work
If for some reason you cannot use a lavaliere mic a Hyper-cardioid electret condenser shot gun type mic can be used. It is important to use these mics with a shock mount and blimp set to cut down on handling noise, and wind noise. These mics are also highly directional so make sure your boom operator is pointing the mic at the speaker’s mouth and not at their belly button. These mics are also good for capturing specific sounds that pertain to the actions in the video such as picking up the sound of someone typing or walking in high heels on a tile floor.
Omni directional mics are good for ambient sound
Omni directional electric condenser mics are good for picking up ambient sounds. However they are non directional and so they will pick up absolutely everything. When using these use the same shock mount and blimp set that you would for the hyper cardioid electret condenser.
Dynamic hand held are good for anchor/interview approach
Finally, dynamic hand held mics can be used for the news anchor effect. If you want to have someone speaking into a mic that they are holding this is the type of mic to use because they have little or no handling noise and are usually fairly wind resistant.
Hooking up microphones to the camera
Once you have selected the mic(s) you will be using you need to get them hooked up to the camera. Some cameras come with XLR inputs already mounted on the camera however if this is not the case with the camera you are using get a Beach Tec box. This will allow you to convert the mics XLR outputs into a 1/8 inch TRS input that the camera will accept.Always use as many mics as you can. This way if the sound on one is sub par you can switch to another in mix down and hopefully get around to problem.
If you need more inputs than the two that you get from the camera it is possible to sync both DAT and Hard disc recorders to the camera. This raises you track count without creating syncing issues in mix down.
Don’t edit sound in Final Cut
Once you have cut your movie in Final Cut it is a good idea to export the audio and video separately and load them into Protools in order to put the final touches on your audio tacks. It is a good idea to do all of your sound editing this way. In order to get the best results don’t edit any of your sound in Final Cut.Remember to watch your bit depth and sample rate when importing and exporting from Final Cut, Protools, and Compressor they must stay consistent or you will get round off error and pitch fluxuations.
Good luck!!
Sound How To's
This section contains a number of how to’s that specifically address how to use the gear available to you through the Grad Lab and A.V.
Dithering
Dither?...... Always!!!!!!!!!!
When do I need to dither?
Any time that you are selecting a bit depth when bouncing that is different from the bit depth of your Protools session.
For example. If you have recorded 24 bit audio and are bouncing that audio to be played on a cd. Since all cds require 16 bit audio in the bounce settings you are selecting a different bit depth then what you started your session with.
Why dither??
Because if you don’t the computer will just truncate the 24 bit word and only use the first 16 bit of it with out checking to see if it should have rounded up or down. This is called round off error and it will give you artifacts or static and popping on your track after it is bounced.
How do I dither???
Dithering can be done by adding a dither plug-in to the master fader track of your final project before you bounce your session to disk. There are two different dither plug-ins use which ever you like. Once the dither plug-in is added select the bit depth that you whish to bounce to. Done.
To Dither
1. Add dither effect to the master fader track of your session.
2. Set bit depth on dither plug-in to the bit depth you are bouncing to.
3. Bounce as normal.
How to set up and record on Tascam DA-P1 portable Dat recorder.
   1.   Turn the deck on
   2.   On the top of the deck make sure the four toggle switches are set as follows:  Â
            Analog Input – Mic or Pad 20dB (depending on signal level)
            Fs – 48k
            Phantom – off (assuming you are using Sennheiser 60/62/64 mics)
            Input – Analog
   3.   On the front of the deck set Phones level to 0 and Input level to 0 (both left and right)
   4.   On the right side of the deck set Limiter to on (recommended but can sound bad)
   5.   Also on right side of deck hook up mic(s) and headphones (turn on mics now)
   6.   On top of deck press Eject and insert Dat tape
   7.   On front of deck Arm Record button (push) you have to Arm the record before you will be                able to set your mic(s) levels
   8.   On front of deck use Input dials to set a good input level
   9.   Hold Record button and press Play at the same time to record sound
   10.   At this point the deck operates just like a tape deck or CD player
   11.   When you are finished making recordings and listening to your audio re-normalize the deck             (set Phones and Input back to 0)
   12.   Now it is safe to turn off and disconnect the mic(s)
How to turn on the rack and use Tascam DA-40 rack mount Dat deck
The Tascam DA-40 rack mount Dat deck is what you will use to transfer recorded material from a Dat tape into Protools and visa versa.
Please note that the power for all of the gear (the only exception being the computer) is controlled by the Furman PL-8 at the very top of the rack. Meaning that once you turn the FL-8 on everything is powered up for you so there is no need to (and please don’t) turn any other pieces of equipment on. Â
The controls on the DA-40 are pretty much the same as those on a normal tape deck so operating it should be more or less familiar and intuitive.
   1.   Press the open/close button located on the front of the machine. Load a Dat tape onto the             tray (note that it is facing in the right position) and press the button again to close.
   2.   Now use the stop, play, rewind, and fast-forward buttons to locate the material you whish to          import to Protools.
   3.   Once you are recording in Protools press play.
Simple right.
How to turn on, setup, handle, and hookup Sennheiser 62/64/66 mics.
First of all these are nice expensive professional grade microphones. They deserve and demand your respect and can be surprisingly fragile. Do not drop, jiggle, shake, use around high SPL’s (sound pressure levels), or touch the mics to a sound source. Do not put the mics into the shock mount before screwing the mount onto a boom pole or stand. Don’t try to multitask while handling the mics. Do not subject them to moisture or electrical currents. I’m not trying to be a hard ass I just don’t want to see any of you have to buy a mic that no longer works especially if you feel like we did not warn you that what you did could harm them.
   1. Check to make sure that the battery you are using is good.
   2. Insert battery into mic body (KP) (note battery direction)
   3. Select the capsule that best suits your application and screw it onto the mic body
      Omni (ME62) for non-directional general ambient sound
      Cardiod (ME64) for directed pickup
      Hyper-Cardiod (ME66) for pinpoint accuracy
   4. Select the roll off setting on the mic body (use paper clip)
   5. Attach shock mount to boom pole, mic stand, or handle
   6. Insert mic into shock mount
   7. Plug XLR cable into the mic and then into the recording device, make sure that all levels on the       recording device are Normalized (turned all the way down), THEN AND ONLY THEN should you       turn the mic on.
Very basic Protools how to
Protools How To
This handout is meant to give a very brief overview of how to use the basic features of Protools to build a new session, get audio into the session from Dat tape, import a QuickTime movie, and then output (Bounce) your session into a useable file format.
1. Open Protools by clicking on the Protools icon located on the dock.
2. Once in Protools go to File → NewSession.
3. Copy the following settings into your NewSession window.
It is very important to create a new folder with your name on it and to save the Protools session inside this folder. Protools has a certain file hierarchy that it needs to maintain so good file management on your part is key.
4. Once your session is open the first thing you will want to do is add tracks to it. To do
this go to Tracks→ New. This will present you with a dialogue box asking what type
of tracks and how many of them you whish to add to your session. For the purpose of
this demo first add two Mono Audio tracks.
Then add one Master Fader track.
5. In the Mix window set the inputs on the mono audio tracks as follows. Change the
input on track one to “S/PDIF L (mono)” by selecting it from the drop menu. Then
change the input on track two to “S/PDIF R (mono)”.
6. Also in the Mix window, in order to preserve the stereo image of your recording pan
track one 100% to the left and pan track 2 100% to the right. Then double click into
the Track Name field (pictured above as Audio 1 and Audio 2). Change the names of
these fields to reflect what audio will be recorded into the track. Doing this will apply
the same name to all audio clips recorded to this track and will help you out a ton in
the future. Then double click below this field and enter any and all comments relevant
to the track in the Comments Field. Adding Track Names and Comment can be a huge
help when you start working with larger sessions.
7. To record from the Dat deck press the record button on tracks one and two to Arm the
record function.
Then Arm the record button on the Transport.
Press play on the Transport and then set your Dat tape playing and the audio should
transfer.
8. You can import a quick time movie into Protools by going to File→ Import→ Video.
This will enable you to edit your audio to a visual reference and to re-sync
recorded audio to video.
9. To use the audio you have edited in Protools it needs to be exported or Bounced. You
will need to use different Bounce settings for different applications. I will include
the Bounce settings for importing your files into Final Cut Pro and for making an audio CD.
10. To Bounce for Final Cut Pro got to File→ Bounce To→ Disk and copy the following
setting into the Bounce window.
This will output two separate audio tracks one for the left channel and one for the
right channel that can be imported into Final Cut Pro.
11. To Bounce for an audio CD got to File→ Bounce To→ Disk and copy the following
setting into the Bounce window.
This will create one audio file that can be burned to a CD-R to create a playable CD.
What audio equipment is available in the Grad Lab?
There are two audio workstations and two mobile racks in the Grad Lab. The workstations and one of the mobile racks are geared for audio mixing and editing as opposed to audio recording. The other mobile rack has the vestiges of a mobile Protools recording rig in it and could be made to work once again for this purpose. Both workstations and the mobile recording rack run Protools but all are set up for slightly different applications. It is also possible to gain access to other recording rooms and equipment upon request so please come in and discuss your projects with us.
Workstation 1
This is the larger of the two workstations as of right now it is designed for capturing, editing, mixing and reprinting audio from existing media such as cd, tape, minidisk, and dat tape. The only media that this station cannot currently handle are A-dat and reel-to-reel.
Workstation 1 equipment list:
In the Rack from top to bottom:
1. Fulman PL-8 power supply.
2. Fostex 6301B monitors (pair)
3. Mark of the unicorn midi express XT (currently not hooked up)
4. Digidesign Digi002 rack mount Protools interface
5. Alesis 12R rack mount 12 input mixer
6. Samson S-Patch Plus 48 point patch bay
7. Samson S-Patch Plus 48 point patch bay
8. Korg Triton-Rack Sampler (currently not hooked up)
9. Tascam DA-40 professional dat deck
10. Tascam CD-A700 CD/Tape deck
11. Soney MDS-JE520 mini disk deck
On the desk:
Mackie Control Surface
Mackie HR624 Active studio monitors (pair)
Mackie HRS120 Active subwoofer
Main audio software:
rotools LE 7.1
Workstation 2
This workstation is geared towards interactive applications between sound, video, and midi. Its main function is as both an editing/mixing station and a programming station for MaxMSP and Jitter. As of right now it is completely separate from workstation 1. However, in the near future the main outs from workstation 2 will appear as a patch point on one of the patch bays connected to workstation 1.
Workstation 2 equipment list:
Tascam FW-1884 Control Surface (currently not connected)
Korg Micro Control Midi keyboard
Digidesign M-Box Protools interface
Tascam VLX5 near field studio monitors (pair) (currently hooked up only
to Protools output)
Main audio software:
MaxMSP
Jitter
Protools LE 7.1
The Mobile Rack
There is one mobile rack in the Grad Lab the primary purpose of which is to provide basic audio and visual playback and mixing on location. The mobile rack was last used for a sound and video installation so right now that is what it is set up for but if you need sound or video on site it can be reconfigured to meet your needs.
Mobile Rack equipment list:
Listed in order from top to bottom.
Mackie 1402-VLZ Pro 14 channel mixer (located on top deck of rack)
1. Fulman PL-8 power supply
2. DBX 166XL Compressor/Limiter/Gate
3. Kramer Vs-4X4YC vertical switcher
4. (2) Pioneer DVD-V7400 DVD players
The Mobile Recording Rack
There is one rack in the Grad Lab that has the basic elements needed for mobile recording. This rack would need some additional set up to operate however that is something that we can definitely do (probably within a couple of hours) if there is the need for it. Once operational this rack would be able to make a multi track recording in the field.
Mobile Recording Rack equipment list:
Dual 1 GHz PowerPC G4
Digidesign Digi001 rack mount Protools interface
Main audio software:
Protools (version unsure)