Film Sound Help

[foxy]

Hey James,

congrats on buying the 702t, sound devices make wonderful equipment.
The concept of time code itself is simple. The variations on how it can be
implemented, can be complicated. in using timecode i try to keep things as simple as possible. the main function of timecode is the exact synchronisation of audio and picture for the editing process so therefore i would always use the time of day/free run timecode. i think rec run might have been more in vogue a number of years back when editing systems were not as sophisticated. so for me it is free run all the time.
use your 702 as the master, the clock in it is rock solid and will not drift. it then depends on the type of cameras you are working with as to how you synch them to you. the safest way to make sure you will have constant sync is to provide the camera with a constant sync source. i use one of these lockit boxes Ambient Products Timecode Lockit which i jam with my 788t first and then attach to side of the camera (used it with the RED one a number of times). every time the Red goes into record mode it re-syncs with the lockit box.
things can get more complicated with multi camera shoots. this is where using the timecode slate in free run with all the cameras set in free run can be useful. i've also done multi camera shoots with digi beta's in free run and just gone around and individually sparked them from my 788, on the some shoot we had sony Z1's and they would come up to me and shoot a close up of the screen of my 788 (they don't have TC in/out capabilities).
There is a lot more to timecode that is beyond me explaining but these are some real world scenarios that are working for me. hope this is of some help,
cheers,
hugh.

[fasma]

Can I just add a question to this as I am considering in getting into film production recording and therefore investing in a TC recorder. So you guys have the 702t. So that means that you also have a mixer and mix to stereo or do you not need more than two tracks? Would the 744t be a reasonable solution to avoid having a seperate mixer and have enough channels to keep seperate tracks? Would it be possible to also record a stereo mix on the camera?
I am talking mostly low budget, shorts and documentaries.

[aracu]

IMO on a typical low budget shoot it is not necessary to bring more than a
two channal Sound Devices and a selection of mics. When one person
is being hired to do the work of 2-3 people, at usually a low rate, it's best to simplify things. The quality of sound on a film shoot is limited to the overall
attitude about sound. If the shots are thought out carefully by everyone
involved, with sound as one of the criteria, the sound will be fine.

[aracu]

Originally Posted by thebighandster

What kind of mic package do you go out with your small kit aracu?

Heres my mic set.

Sennheiser MKH416 Super Cardoid
Oktava MK012 (Bello Nero ver. w/ Cardoid, Hyper, and Omni Capsules)
2 Tram TR-50 Lav Mics

Keep it simple and clean.
I use the 416 outdoors, the 012 with either the cardoid (only in a very controlled enviornment) or the hyper indoors, and the trams only when i can't get in with the boom.

We have a similar approach. I use a Senn 416 outdoors (and indoors) and Trams as a last resort. If the acoustics are good enough I'll sometimes use one or two Senn 800 set to hypercardioid. For stereo ambience I use an AKG426.

Clip of location dialogue w/ 2 Senn 800, and postproduction:
http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/8/...therapist2.mp3

Clip of location dialogue w/ AKG426 and Senn 416, with ambience and dialogue recorded one at a time in same room, then combined in post:
http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/8/...09/x.party.mp3

[aracu]

Originally Posted by thebighandster

"Senn 800 set to hypercardioid"

"Clip of location dialogue w/ 2 Senn 800"

Are you talking about a sennheiser MKH800?
Sennheiser | MKH-800 - (P48) Multi-Pattern Mic | MKH800-P48

Do you mount them on boompoles and have them overhead? The clip with the male and female talking sounds great. How did use those mics?

Yes, Sennheiser MKH800. It was shot in a small room filmed as a therapist's
office. One mic was set on a mic stand out of the way of the camera, for the
stationary actor, and the other mic was used on a hand held boompole because there was some movement involved with the actress. When I use it on a boompole, I move the boompole more slowly than usual and/or have a windscreen, because the mic is very sensitive to the wind created by the movement.

I should have said supercardioid instead of hypercardioid.

[mosrite]

Just out of interest guys what percentage of shoots that you are involved in these days demand the use of a timecode recorder?

[aracu]

Originally Posted by mosrite

Just out of interest guys what percentage of shoots that you are involved in these days demand the use of a timecode recorder?

It has gone up lately with the popularity of the Red camera.

[Age]

I've also got a film coming up soon where i'll be recording from a 744T -> RedOne. Is it possible to send timecode straight from the recorder to the camera or is it neccesary to use a lockit box? If so, Why?

ta.

[aracu]

Straight in with no lockit box. The Red will automatically synch to the Sound Devices and then you can pull out the cable. Ask Sound Devices which cable to get, they can explain it better and in more detail.