Best way to pull audio direct from a mixer? at DVinfo.net

Eric Richmond · April 13th, 2007, 08:38 PM

Hey guys,

I'm recording a performance event in a week, and I was wondering, what is the best way to pull audio directly from a mixer/soundboard if I have access to one? Do I need any GL2 extras? or will the cables that came with the camera suffice?

Thanks!

-Eric Richmond

Eric Richmond · April 14th, 2007, 06:24 AM

Put a different way.

Case 1) I know the basic recording technique is to just record with the on-cam mic. OK, but not great.

Case 2) One step up is buying that attachment for XLR mics. Then you can use a Shure 57 or whatever to get a nicer audio feed.

Case 3) I would assume the best way would be to actually patch into the audio mixer itself, and just snag one of the audio outputs for yourself, that way you're getting a "mixed" audio stream. Is there some attachment for that, or do I treat it like I treated case #2?

Barry Gribble · April 14th, 2007, 08:02 AM

Eric,

Your question leads to questions...

1. What type of performance is it? Live music, dance, comedy?

2. Do you need/want crowd reaction sound in addition to the performance?

3. What outputs does the mixed have?

The SM-57 is actually not a great mic for what you are talking about. It is designed for a source that is inches away. You can get very nice stereo mics that plug directly in to your GL's audio input. You can get decent ones starting at about $80, and they will record a band or such pretty well. They go up from there.

The XLR adapter will let you use much nicer mics, but depending on the use, the quality difference may not be worth the combined price of the adapter and the mics.

If you can get a feed diectly from the sound board that might be nice. It is is comedy (or sometimes even a live band) the artist might be dissapointed to not get the sound of the audience, though. The feed from the board will usuallly be either XLR or quarter inch. Either way you can get a series of adapters from radio shack that will let you plug that in to your audio input. It is less sturdy than getting the XLR converter, but if you are locked down for the whole show (and you're not doing this often) it would still work fine. You need to know ahead of time what the output will be, though.

I hope that hepled some... but fill in the details if you want more specifics.

Good luck.

Harold Schreiber · April 14th, 2007, 11:07 AM

Hi Eric,

No matter what the performance, be sure to verify that all the principles are properly mic'ed into the soundboard/mixer, should you want to use that output.

I did one once that did not have that done. The speakers and singers were mic'ed, but the small musicians group was not, hence the sound board only gave out the speakers and singers over the sound reinforcement system.

Had to use an outboard mic on Cam.

Harold

Jeremiah Rickert · April 17th, 2007, 12:07 AM

After struggling to get good Wedding sound, I finally broke down and bought a small mixer (5 inputs) and a StudioOne XLR adapter for use with my GL1. (the StudioOne is similar to the Beachtek). My mixer's 5 inputs can be either XLR or 1/4", so in the case above, where not everyone is mic'd, I can hook into the house soundboard and then have a separate MIC for the musicians in this case, and then my mixer has an L and R 1/4" "out" which I run into my Adapter. I had made a nice balanced pair of 1/4" to XLR cables. This system doesn't give me any buzzing at all.

Recently I also added a Samson wireless Mic. I can actually hook a shotgun to the wireless bodypack and put it anywhere in the church almost, and get good sound.

Of course, it took me several years to save $$$ for this stuff :D I would definitely suggest getting an XLR adapter. The Beacktek and the Studio-One both allow you to run either XLR cables OR 1/4" or even 1/8" into them, and then into the camera. They are very versatile little devices! The mixer I only finally got because I sometimes needed more than just 2 inputs. (although both Beachtek and Studio-One both make adapters that can take 3 or 4 XLR's now).

Hope this helps...

Don Palomaki · April 17th, 2007, 08:14 AM

Try get to the venue a few days before to see what you need in the way of cables and test the set-up. If you can, meet with the sound engineer for the venue/performance, take your cmcorder with you, and the manual, so he can read its capabilities.

There are too many variables to give a pat answer at this time. Some additional quesitons: What type of sound board, what kind of outputs does it have, how will you power the camcorder, where will the camcorder be relative to the sound board, do you need ambient sound as well as sound board sound, and so on?

Po-Wen Shih · April 21st, 2007, 05:23 PM

Eric,

One word of caution (you may already know this): you will still need something "extra" like Beachtek even in your case 3 since GL2 only has mic in, and no line in. The output from most (if not all) mixer boards is line out level, which will cause a mismatch and results in frequency loss or distortion of your audio recording.

Don Palomaki · April 22nd, 2007, 06:30 PM

Quote:

The output from most (if not all) mixer boards is line out level,...

Actually many mixers go provide a user-selected output level, line or mic, and many also have a "tape output" as well which is unbalancd consumer line level (typically -10 dBV). You need to check what type output is available for your use at the venue in question.

Michael Westphal · April 25th, 2007, 09:58 PM

Eric,
What Don said is the right thing to do. Know what you need.

In general, I use a StudioOne interface with my GL2. It has XLR and 1/8th inch mono inputs and accepts Mic or Line inputs.

So my typical setup: I grab a line out XLR from the board and run it to one channel of the Studio1, set to line input. I have an Azden shotgun on the camera and I run it to the other channel as a mic input. I switch the Studio 1 to Stereo so that each signal is separate into the camera. I can then mix the house sound separate from the board sound so that I can adjust for audience sound or performers who aren't mic'd.

When I capture the GL2 video/audio, I capture it in two-channel mode. Now I can deal with the audio as I need to. Sure, it's not stereo, but it's versatile and it lets me get the best audio I can.

Kevin Laster · April 29th, 2007, 07:51 PM

We played a music video show and recorded video with 4 different cameras.

The audio we burned directly to a CD from a mixer and then re-ripped it to a computer. I honestly haven't heard it yet, but I've heard good things.

April 13th, 2007, 08:38 PM	#1
Eric Richmond Regular Crew Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Boston, Mass Posts: 42	Best way to pull audio direct from a mixer? Hey guys, I'm recording a performance event in a week, and I was wondering, what is the best way to pull audio directly from a mixer/soundboard if I have access to one? Do I need any GL2 extras? or will the cables that came with the camera suffice? Thanks! -Eric Richmond

April 14th, 2007, 08:02 AM	#3
Barry Gribble Major Player Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Los Angeles, CA Posts: 817	Eric, Your question leads to questions... 1. What type of performance is it? Live music, dance, comedy? 2. Do you need/want crowd reaction sound in addition to the performance? 3. What outputs does the mixed have? The SM-57 is actually not a great mic for what you are talking about. It is designed for a source that is inches away. You can get very nice stereo mics that plug directly in to your GL's audio input. You can get decent ones starting at about $80, and they will record a band or such pretty well. They go up from there. The XLR adapter will let you use much nicer mics, but depending on the use, the quality difference may not be worth the combined price of the adapter and the mics. If you can get a feed diectly from the sound board that might be nice. It is is comedy (or sometimes even a live band) the artist might be dissapointed to not get the sound of the audience, though. The feed from the board will usuallly be either XLR or quarter inch. Either way you can get a series of adapters from radio shack that will let you plug that in to your audio input. It is less sturdy than getting the XLR converter, but if you are locked down for the whole show (and you're not doing this often) it would still work fine. You need to know ahead of time what the output will be, though. I hope that hepled some... but fill in the details if you want more specifics. Good luck. __________________ Barry Gribble Integral Arts, IMDB

April 17th, 2007, 12:07 AM	#5
Jeremiah Rickert Major Player Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Newberg, Oregon Posts: 494	sound... After struggling to get good Wedding sound, I finally broke down and bought a small mixer (5 inputs) and a StudioOne XLR adapter for use with my GL1. (the StudioOne is similar to the Beachtek). My mixer's 5 inputs can be either XLR or 1/4", so in the case above, where not everyone is mic'd, I can hook into the house soundboard and then have a separate MIC for the musicians in this case, and then my mixer has an L and R 1/4" "out" which I run into my Adapter. I had made a nice balanced pair of 1/4" to XLR cables. This system doesn't give me any buzzing at all. Recently I also added a Samson wireless Mic. I can actually hook a shotgun to the wireless bodypack and put it anywhere in the church almost, and get good sound. Of course, it took me several years to save $$$ for this stuff :D I would definitely suggest getting an XLR adapter. The Beacktek and the Studio-One both allow you to run either XLR cables OR 1/4" or even 1/8" into them, and then into the camera. They are very versatile little devices! The mixer I only finally got because I sometimes needed more than just 2 inputs. (although both Beachtek and Studio-One both make adapters that can take 3 or 4 XLR's now). Hope this helps...

April 17th, 2007, 08:14 AM	#6
Don Palomaki Wrangler Join Date: Sep 2001 Location: Northern VA Posts: 4,487	Try get to the venue a few days before to see what you need in the way of cables and test the set-up. If you can, meet with the sound engineer for the venue/performance, take your cmcorder with you, and the manual, so he can read its capabilities. There are too many variables to give a pat answer at this time. Some additional quesitons: What type of sound board, what kind of outputs does it have, how will you power the camcorder, where will the camcorder be relative to the sound board, do you need ambient sound as well as sound board sound, and so on? __________________ dpalomaki@dspalomaki.com

April 21st, 2007, 05:23 PM	#7
Po-Wen Shih New Boot Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Columbus, OH Posts: 6	Difference on line and mic levels Eric, One word of caution (you may already know this): you will still need something "extra" like Beachtek even in your case 3 since GL2 only has mic in, and no line in. The output from most (if not all) mixer boards is line out level, which will cause a mismatch and results in frequency loss or distortion of your audio recording.

April 14th, 2007, 06:24 AM	#2
Eric Richmond Regular Crew Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Boston, Mass Posts: 42	Put a different way. Case 1) I know the basic recording technique is to just record with the on-cam mic. OK, but not great. Case 2) One step up is buying that attachment for XLR mics. Then you can use a Shure 57 or whatever to get a nicer audio feed. Case 3) I would assume the best way would be to actually patch into the audio mixer itself, and just snag one of the audio outputs for yourself, that way you're getting a "mixed" audio stream. Is there some attachment for that, or do I treat it like I treated case #2?

April 14th, 2007, 11:07 AM	#4
Harold Schreiber Major Player Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Olathe, Kansas Posts: 309	Hi Eric, No matter what the performance, be sure to verify that all the principles are properly mic'ed into the soundboard/mixer, should you want to use that output. I did one once that did not have that done. The speakers and singers were mic'ed, but the small musicians group was not, hence the sound board only gave out the speakers and singers over the sound reinforcement system. Had to use an outboard mic on Cam. Harold

April 25th, 2007, 09:58 PM	#9
Michael Westphal Regular Crew Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Baton Rouge, LA Posts: 166	What Don said... Eric, What Don said is the right thing to do. Know what you need. In general, I use a StudioOne interface with my GL2. It has XLR and 1/8th inch mono inputs and accepts Mic or Line inputs. So my typical setup: I grab a line out XLR from the board and run it to one channel of the Studio1, set to line input. I have an Azden shotgun on the camera and I run it to the other channel as a mic input. I switch the Studio 1 to Stereo so that each signal is separate into the camera. I can then mix the house sound separate from the board sound so that I can adjust for audience sound or performers who aren't mic'd. When I capture the GL2 video/audio, I capture it in two-channel mode. Now I can deal with the audio as I need to. Sure, it's not stereo, but it's versatile and it lets me get the best audio I can. __________________ Michael A Westphal

April 29th, 2007, 07:51 PM	#10
Kevin Laster New Boot Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Reno, Nevada Posts: 13	We played a music video show and recorded video with 4 different cameras. The audio we burned directly to a CD from a mixer and then re-ripped it to a computer. I honestly haven't heard it yet, but I've heard good things.

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