Ntg-1
 

I just started using a NTG-1 with my PD150. I like the mic but find it too hot for the camera and using the camera's 20db pad is just too much. Is anyone using this set up and having this problem?
Thank You

RU saying that the mic is too hot by itself but the 20db pad takes the level down too far?

Yes Steve! I'm saying the mic seems to is too hot and 20db pad brings the level too low. As far as I can tell.
Thanks, Aldo

Curious.

You have adjusted the mic input level controls on the PD 150?

What are you trying to record?

Ty Ford

What kind of levels are you seeing with and without the pad? Are you using automatic level control or manual?

According to the audio experts the pd150 does much better recordings with the AGC on. Therefore I prefer to use the AGC, and I find the NTG-1 is too hot. I'm thinking of getting a cable produced with a pad built in. I was hoping someone else has experienced this and could advise how much pad will be needed. Thanks for all the replies.

Ty
I am recording voice in an interview situation with the mic on a boom. I am using the AGC because I've read the pd 150 records better audio with the AGC on.
Thanks, Aldo

If the AGC is on and your reduce the levels with a pad, the recording gain will just increase in response with a corresponding increase in the noise. When you say the mic is too hot, what symptoms of that are you seeing? What meter indication to you get? Is there noise etc that indicates the mic is overloading the inputs and clipping?

Steve
When I use my wierless mic with the AGC I seem to get a perfect level and the sound is very good. When I tried my NTG-1 mic for dialog for the first time ( AGC on, which I want to use ), it sounded like the mic was distorting a tiny bit and levels looked much higher than I experienced with wireless system. I tried using the cameras 20 db pad and the levels were much to low. I could also tell from the headphones that the levels were not ideal either way. I want to use the camera's AGC with this mic, therefore I feel I need a pad that is less than the camera's 20db pad which is too much.
What I've read on some PD150 sites and from what some audio guys tell me is that the camera records much better audio with the AGC. So I want to get the mic to a point to where the output is at an ideal level for the camera and the camera's AGC can work effectively. I was hoping someone on this site had already experienced this situation and had an ideal solution. I do not want to use a mixer because I'm a crew of one these days and don't need the extra equipment to deal with.
Thanks for you responses.

The problem I'm having is understanding exactly what you mean by "too high" and "too low." What are the meters actually reading for the recording levels you are experiencing and what have you determined to be the optimum level where you want it to be? By too high do you mean it's averaging levels around, say,-6db and you want it to be at -12 or -20? Or do you mean it's going all the way to the top of the scale up near 0dBFS and showing signs of clipping in the audio waveform when you import it into your NLE? With the pad is it falling off so low that it is inaudible in your NLE without cranking up the playback gain and turning up the circuit noise in the process?

I just got an NTG-1 to use with my HVR-A1. Fortunately the A1 has a 10db pad instead of the 20db pad of the PD-150/170. With the 10db pad, the level is a good match for the stock mic that it replaced and works well with AGC if I so desire. My guess is a short 10db attenuating XLR to XLR cable would make you happy.

I'm meeting with a sound man friend of mine on Thursday to test the mic and determine the amount of pad to build into the cable. 10db does sound about right. Thanks for the info Laurence.

After much testing with an audio guy and trying various mic pad situations here is our conclusion. Using the NTG-1 mic with a PD150 and AGC on, 15db pad hits the sweet spot. 10db is OK but 15db is much better.
I just ordered the Rode SM5 shock mount as well.
Thanks to all for your input.

This site might help you figure out the h-pad resistance values:

http://www.icycolors.com/nu9n/tpad-calculator.html

As you experiment with the levels coming from the mic to the camera, try this. The camera AGC will limit the recording level to what the manufacturer thinks is optimum and no matter what the input signal it will not send the meter higher EVEN IF THE SIGNAL IS SO HOT IT OVERLOADS AND CLIPS THE MIC PREAMP! Remember with digital there is no such thing as headroom and any peaks over 0dbFS are clipped and gone for good. If you have to choose, a little too low is safer than a little too high. That meter reading is the optimum recording level and it's usually somewhere around -12dBFS for average dialog. Make a note of it, switch AGC off, set the camera's record level controls to about 65-75 % of full up, and adjust the mic pad or mixer levels until sounds like you're planning on recording send the meter to the same point. Now if you prefer going back to AGC you can do so with the confidence that your mic's signal being fed into the camera is neither too hot nor too low for sounds similar to what you have calibrated to.