How does this sound 2

[Daniel Epstein]

Originally Posted by Kathy Smith

Thanks Daniel.
Is it normal to always boost levels in post?

Kathy,
it is a common occurrence to adjust audio levels in post. Normal is always a difficult thing to measure. Is the interview sound too low or the other audio too high. Field recordists are looking for a good recording without distortion not necessarily worrying about what level works for the mix. Some edit systems lower the volume of each track on the time line so the mix doesn't always reflect the initial record level. A few db can make a big difference. As long as the recording sounds clean it is usually preferable to boost it in post than to overmodulate it on the original recording.
By adding in the peak limiter the average sound can be recorded a little higher without worrying about peak distortion and you end up with a fuller sound. Of course the limiter has to sound good doing this and some don't.

[Kathy Smith]

Originally Posted by Bruce Watson

Number 4 is spot on. I wish I could get audio that clean and nice. But that would take a COS-11D which I can't afford. Sigh....

I would always run with a peak limiters at the preamps -- mixer or camera, in this case. You never know when they'll be needed. Dropping the sensitivity seems to have cleaned up what over modulation there was.

Thanks Bruce. Good to know about peak limiter!

[Kathy Smith]

Originally Posted by Daniel Epstein

Kathy,
it is a common occurrence to adjust audio levels in post. Normal is always a difficult thing to measure. Is the interview sound too low or the other audio too high. Field recordists are looking for a good recording without distortion not necessarily worrying about what level works for the mix. Some edit systems lower the volume of each track on the time line so the mix doesn't always reflect the initial record level. A few db can make a big difference. As long as the recording sounds clean it is usually preferable to boost it in post than to overmodulate it on the original recording.
By adding in the peak limiter the average sound can be recorded a little higher without worrying about peak distortion and you end up with a fuller sound. Of course the limiter has to sound good doing this and some don't.

Great. Thanks a lot. So if I record everything the way #4 is recorded and then do some post production on the file that should sound pretty decent I think!

[Daniel Epstein]

Hey Kathy,
Seems like a solid basis to start. Good thing you are testing and looking for the the best combinations of gear made by different manufacturers with tests rather than just jumping into real recordings. Of course the one thing about field production is making our decisions based upon circumstances and in real time. Be prepared to make choices about settings in the field. Monitoring how the recordings are working and making adjustments are all part of the deal.

[Kathy Smith]

Originally Posted by Daniel Epstein

Kathy,
it is a common occurrence to adjust audio levels in post. Normal is always a difficult thing to measure. Is the interview sound too low or the other audio too high. Field recordists are looking for a good recording without distortion not necessarily worrying about what level works for the mix. Some edit systems lower the volume of each track on the time line so the mix doesn't always reflect the initial record level. A few db can make a big difference. As long as the recording sounds clean it is usually preferable to boost it in post than to overmodulate it on the original recording.
By adding in the peak limiter the average sound can be recorded a little higher without worrying about peak distortion and you end up with a fuller sound. Of course the limiter has to sound good doing this and some don't.

Thanks Daniel!