Red audio testing: curious results and a workaround

[Mike Demmers]

Originally Posted by Perrone Ford

But I think the RED gets a pass because it produces gorgeous images. In years of reading, I have never once heard anyone mention the sound on a Viper, SI2K, Genesis, Dalsa, or any similar cam. Do those cameras even have audio hookups?

I would not take a pass on the Red because of the audio, because like you I would not be recording primary audio to it in the first place. But judgng from the comments in Red User and elsewhere, people do, and are having problems.

They fully deserve some flack on this. If a piece of gear -any gear- is sold as a a professional tool it should meet professional standards. That is why I spend the extra for those tools.

Yes, pre-production should handle this stuff, but I have done enough projects to know that sometimes it is not possible to the extent one would like. Unanticipated things happen, and it is not only on low budget projects or those with inexperienced people. Schedules change, emergenices happen. Having gear that meets pro specs means one less variable to have to worry about when the walls are caving in.

If the Viper, SI2K, Genesis, and Dalsa have audio recording capability, then yes, I think they should meet pro specs. Or if they don't want to do that but want to have some audio capability, do it at consumer levels and specs - meeting the consumer -10 level spec and clearly labeling and advertising it as such. Not some vague gray area that meets no spec at all, as apparently Red did.

But this isn't really about the Red camera, it is about what 'professional' means.

We may simply need to agree to disagree on where that specific line is. ;-)

-Mike

[Perrone Ford]

Originally Posted by Mike Demmers

But this isn't really about the Red camera, it is about what 'professional' means.

We may simply need to agree to disagree on where that specific line is. ;-)

-Mike

No disagreement. My feeling is that if you put audio on the camera it ought to work. When I see a 3.5mm audio plug on a camera, I know what to expect. When I see 2-4 XLR inputs on a camera, I have certain expectations.

Like anyone, I've had rush jobs. Had a few in the past few weeks to be honest. Where setup time didn't allow me to test the way I'd like. But the "pro" in me knew I'd have to shoot MOS because there was no way to get audio, and I still whipped out the meter and took readings of the faces. A few basics go a long way toward getting things right. And I worry if we don't have time in pre-pro to even test the camera (or make sure film is advancing properly in our rented camera) what is the rest of the production going to look like? I'd rather delay a shoot by a day or two to check gear, than to have to resoot the first day or two because the camera was not fully operational.

Like anything, I see professionalism slipping in a lot of industries. I try very hard to be as professional as possible even when I am working with first timers. I find it puts people greatly at ease when your production looks like those "behind the scenes" DVDs they see at home. Actresses see the big soft light and know they are going to look good. You spend time micing people, doing playback, and making adjustments to make sure someone's voice is going to sound good. And you give them ample water at a good temperature to KEEP it that way.

Sometimes it's the little things that really end up making a huge difference in a production.

Hopefully, the RED guys get the audio squared away. If people are going to rely on it, then in needs to be solid, or it needs to be removed.

[Ty Ford]

It's not like audio level and pin out assignments are a big secret. They are an industry standard. The equivalent of what they did would be making a light bulb with a base that doesn't fit any known socket and that runs on 72 volts DC. Then, after being informed of the problems they took years to change them.

That they just didn't think to look is the scary part. Nicely put, the question becomes, "You're not from around here are you?" Not so nicely put, "What planet are you from?"

Regards,

Ty Ford