New XH-A1, whats your tip?

Richard Gooderick · March 7th, 2008, 10:18 AM

Hi Scott

I suppose you could have subtitled this thread 'or how to avoid cock-ups'.

Well I made a huge cock-up this week that I probably shouldn't admit but will in the interest of shared learning.

I recorded a whole interview using the inbuilt mic. I had merrily balanced my audio levels thinking I was controlling my boom and lavalier mics!

It was only apparent what the problem was when I loaded the tape into my NLE.

In mitigation I plead that I was using lights for the first time and was operating two cameras as well as running an interview, which raised the stress levels.

You probably know this by now but you need to go into a submenu to activate the XLR sockets and, no, you can't patch this to one of the assignable switches either (they only seem to work for things that you hardly ever want to use).

Some bright spark in the design department at Cannon thought that the default on the LCD should be blank when the onboard mics are activated and that it should warn you when the XLRs are activated.

Maybe I am weird but shouldn't it be the other way round ie warn you when the XLRs are not activated?

It's a great camera but some pretty stupid mistakes been made in the design if you ask me.

A big lesson I would suggest is to become really familiar with the icons in the on-screen display and examine them thoroughly when operating the camera.

Michael Wisniewski · March 8th, 2008, 10:15 AM

Of course I don't need to tell Richard this, as he's apparently already learned this lesson, but it's a very good practice to always monitor your audio with headphones. Generally the better the set of headphones the better you can monitor the audio, but even cheap earbuds are better than recording blind. Accent on the always - since you never really know what the mic will pickup until you hear it for yourself. Your ears naturally tune out all kinds of sound that get picked up large as life by the mic.

Lou Bruno · March 8th, 2008, 10:51 AM

Another audio situation occurs when using LINE. The user can not assign LINE to one track and MIC. to the other. It is either all or nothing. A bad design for those wanting a direct line-in from an audio board.

Joe Bannon · March 8th, 2008, 08:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Michael Wisniewski

3. Get the VASST XH A1 DVD

Just ordered it.

Colin Reid · March 10th, 2008, 10:06 AM

Hi Scott,

I am not sure if you are new to video (like me) or just new to the A1.

If you are new to video, then this site, although it doesn't specifically mention the A1, could be really usefull as most of the stuff on it should be applied to the A1. The two links (Creative Stuff and Camera Workbooks) at the bottom of this page also contain good info.

http://www.urbanfox.tv/workbooks/index.htm

It is well worth taking the time to read through the various pages on each of the camera types, etc.

Hope this helps.

Colin

Colin Reid · March 13th, 2008, 03:32 PM

This thread also has a couple of links which should be useful:

http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthread.php?t=116300

Colin

Colin Reid · March 14th, 2008, 02:39 AM

Hi Guys,

Given some of the great tips I have seen here, I thought it worth mentioning this other thread as a way to seriously get the word out and participate in the learning curve:

http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthread.php?t=116819

Regards

Colin

Peter Jefferson · March 14th, 2008, 07:52 AM

"but it's a very good practice to always monitor your audio with headphones. Generally the better the set of headphones the better you can monitor the audio, but even cheap earbuds are better than recording blind. "

Agreed 100% to a point, however one must consider how the A1 represents the input through said headphones. Do not under ANY circumstances rely on THIS cameras earphone output to tweak EQ. The camera has a low pass filter in effect which cannot be turned off. In turn, your sound, regardless of the headphones in use, will sound tinny and very thin. Unlike the DVX/HVX which gives you a clean recording or what you hear, what you hear with the A1 is totally different and should only be used for leveling and actual channel segregation monitoring.

Roger Lee · March 14th, 2008, 03:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bill Pryor

Make a pot of coffee (or whatever) and spend some quality time with the manual, step-by-step.

10-4(for those of you from the CB days)

At least you get an idea of what questions to ask.

Walt Noon · March 18th, 2008, 11:16 AM

Thanks very much for your comments!
I downloaded the presets in the sticky on this forum and love them, but where can I find Steve Dempsey's actual VIVID RGB preset?

Thanks again, I'm loving the A1 so far!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Michael Wisniewski

1. Learn how to
- a. use the Magnify & Peaking features
- b. manually set your AGC
2. Check out Steve Dempsey's VIVID RGB preset
3. Get the VASST XH A1 DVD

Alex Chamberlain · March 18th, 2008, 11:33 AM

http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthrea...t=81071&page=6

Post number 78 contains the download link for the final version of VividRGB. Enjoy!

March 8th, 2008, 10:15 AM	#17
Michael Wisniewski Wrangler Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Makati, Metro Manila Posts: 2,706 Images: 32	Of course I don't need to tell Richard this, as he's apparently already learned this lesson, but it's a very good practice to always monitor your audio with headphones. Generally the better the set of headphones the better you can monitor the audio, but even cheap earbuds are better than recording blind. Accent on the always - since you never really know what the mic will pickup until you hear it for yourself. Your ears naturally tune out all kinds of sound that get picked up large as life by the mic. __________________ "Ultimately, the most extraordinary thing, in a frame, is a human being." - Martin Scorsese

March 8th, 2008, 10:51 AM	#18
Lou Bruno Go Cycle Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Huntington, NY Posts: 815	Another audio situation occurs when using LINE. The user can not assign LINE to one track and MIC. to the other. It is either all or nothing. A bad design for those wanting a direct line-in from an audio board. __________________ Lou Bruno

March 14th, 2008, 02:39 AM	#22
Colin Reid Regular Crew Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: London, United Kingdom Posts: 48	Great Tips and how to get them out there Hi Guys, Given some of the great tips I have seen here, I thought it worth mentioning this other thread as a way to seriously get the word out and participate in the learning curve: http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthread.php?t=116819 Regards Colin

March 18th, 2008, 11:33 AM	#26
Alex Chamberlain Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Hurricane, UT Posts: 186	http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthrea...t=81071&page=6 Post number 78 contains the download link for the final version of VividRGB. Enjoy! __________________ Get rid of the "Aspiring" in "Aspiring Filmmaker." Shoot it; you're a filmmaker. After that you're just negotiating your budget. (James Cameron paraphrased)

March 7th, 2008, 10:18 AM	#16
Richard Gooderick Major Player Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: London, UK Posts: 795	Hi Scott I suppose you could have subtitled this thread 'or how to avoid cock-ups'. Well I made a huge cock-up this week that I probably shouldn't admit but will in the interest of shared learning. I recorded a whole interview using the inbuilt mic. I had merrily balanced my audio levels thinking I was controlling my boom and lavalier mics! It was only apparent what the problem was when I loaded the tape into my NLE. In mitigation I plead that I was using lights for the first time and was operating two cameras as well as running an interview, which raised the stress levels. You probably know this by now but you need to go into a submenu to activate the XLR sockets and, no, you can't patch this to one of the assignable switches either (they only seem to work for things that you hardly ever want to use). Some bright spark in the design department at Cannon thought that the default on the LCD should be blank when the onboard mics are activated and that it should warn you when the XLRs are activated. Maybe I am weird but shouldn't it be the other way round ie warn you when the XLRs are not activated? It's a great camera but some pretty stupid mistakes been made in the design if you ask me. A big lesson I would suggest is to become really familiar with the icons in the on-screen display and examine them thoroughly when operating the camera.

March 10th, 2008, 10:06 AM	#20
Colin Reid Regular Crew Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: London, United Kingdom Posts: 48	Hi Scott, I am not sure if you are new to video (like me) or just new to the A1. If you are new to video, then this site, although it doesn't specifically mention the A1, could be really usefull as most of the stuff on it should be applied to the A1. The two links (Creative Stuff and Camera Workbooks) at the bottom of this page also contain good info. http://www.urbanfox.tv/workbooks/index.htm It is well worth taking the time to read through the various pages on each of the camera types, etc. Hope this helps. Colin

March 13th, 2008, 03:32 PM	#21
Colin Reid Regular Crew Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: London, United Kingdom Posts: 48	This thread also has a couple of links which should be useful: http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthread.php?t=116300 Colin

March 14th, 2008, 07:52 AM	#23
Peter Jefferson Inner Circle Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Aus Posts: 3,884	"but it's a very good practice to always monitor your audio with headphones. Generally the better the set of headphones the better you can monitor the audio, but even cheap earbuds are better than recording blind. " Agreed 100% to a point, however one must consider how the A1 represents the input through said headphones. Do not under ANY circumstances rely on THIS cameras earphone output to tweak EQ. The camera has a low pass filter in effect which cannot be turned off. In turn, your sound, regardless of the headphones in use, will sound tinny and very thin. Unlike the DVX/HVX which gives you a clean recording or what you hear, what you hear with the A1 is totally different and should only be used for leveling and actual channel segregation monitoring.