Recording gear

Nickie

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Our video recording is less than stellar. We play through our stage sound system into a video camera.

Sam Muir's videos are amazingly crisp and clear. I found out she uses a Blue Yeti X USB mic that plugs into the computer and records through Logic Pro on her MacBook.

What do you use?
 
Not sure if this thread belongs in the Audio/Video sub forum.
Anyway, I too use the Blue Yeti. Connected to a Windows laptop and running the Reaper DAW.
The are more high end DAWs than Reaper, but it is cheap and allows for video editing as well.
The video part allows you to import video recorded on a camera into a track in the DAW along the sound track(s), and sync it. Is has some simple split screen functions to collage multiple videos, and you can make fades etc. However, there are not fancy subtitle functions like in dedicated video software. But if all you want to do is fadebfrom a still into your video it works fine.
And did I mention that it is cheap? A permanent license cost almost the same as one or two months of Pro Tools.

I am thinking about perhaps posting my settings routine in case someone has suggestions for imporvements.
 
Nikki, after our communication recently about recording, I planned to video my uke group of 15 playing together again in a backyard, but found when testing that my mixer that housed an iPad was not cutting it. I decided to call a specialist at B&H in New York for some advice. His first recommendation was to plug into a laptop, but I don't have one anymore. He also told me that recording to an iPad or iPhone was not going to provide as good a quality as going to a computer. I asked if there were any full mixers with hi-res recording built in.

He had me look at the Zoom L-8, an 8 channel mixer with 6 XLR inputs and records to an SD card. It's runs on batteries, is surprisingly compact and after looking at a few reviews and guide videos, I bought it, $400, and in my opinion, well worth the price. I have six wireless NU-X systems with XLR that make this unit perfect for me. I'm going to edit together the video and the recorded audio tracks with Final Cut Pro.


This is Michael Kohan in Los Angeles, Beverly Grove near the Beverly Center
8 tenor cutaway ukes, 4 acoustic bass ukes, 10 solid body bass ukes, 14 mini electric bass guitars (Total: 36)

Donate to The Ukulele Kids Club, they provide ukuleles to children in hospital music therapy programs. www.theukc.org
Member The CC Strummers: www.youtube.com/user/CCStrummers/video, www.facebook.com/TheCCStrummers
 
I use a Yeti (super capable mic, but it does take some experimenting to find the right setting, angle, and placement) and my phone to record the video. Until just recently, I used GarageBand and iMovie (both free on Macs) but found that I couldn’t sync the audio and video together as precisely as I wanted and on longer videos there would be a growing drift in time until it would look like a dubbed movie if you know what I mean.

It could have been solved by cutting to different angles and re-syncing the video to match the audio, but I’m only doing one camera and one angle (for now).

My wife needed to get a new computer for school and I bought the education bundle that was offered with it that included Final Cut Pro and Logic. The jump from GarageBand to Logic want so bad, but I needed to look up how to do stuff in Final Cut. They aren’t joking when they say these are capable programs used by professionals. I joined a couple FB groups to try to figure stuff out and learn the programs more so I can hopefully make better videos in the future.

Anyway, I recorded my latest video using Logic and Final Cut and it was fun to use a new system even if it was in the exact same way I was using GarageBand and iMovie. And I was able to zoom in close enough in the timeline to sync the audio and video perfectly. But you learn something new every time you make a video and this time I learned not to use the native camera app on the iPhone because it tries to stabilize videos and, if the camera is stationary and not a lot of stuff is going on, it makes lines go wavy. I was recommended a different camera app for the phone and it should be fixed for the next time I record.

Anyway, a good mic will help out quite a bit but I don’t think you need the expensive software - at least not at first. You can do a lot with stuff as you learn more about it. Just have fun and try to learn as much as you can as you make more videos.

-Luke
 
And I was able to zoom in close enough in the timeline to sync the audio and video perfectly.-Luke

I just read that Final Cut Pro will automatically sync those separate tracks. In the Browser, click each track, then right click and from the list that pops up, choose New Multicam clip... I haven't tried it yet.

FCP Multicam.png
 
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I’ll have to give that shot. My method was to strike the strings a few times, line up the audio from the video and the audio from the mic so they’re lined up, and then strip and delete the camera’s audio in favor of the mic’s. But this might be easier. ;-)
 
Thanks so much, LukuleleStrings, kohanmike, UkingViking!
I think this will help. We'll try, we have a fairly new laptop and a Yeti. We really do need to listen to ourselves!
 
I hope it helps! Just have fun, experiment with settings, and maybe take notes and you’ll be making great videos in no time!
 
Thanks for the kind words! I use a Blue Yeti mic plugged directly into a Mac and then record either in GarageBand (up until just recently) or Logic. A lot of what helps with the sound is just prep work. I record pretty early so the mic doesn’t pick up family members walking around (though you can definitely hear my oldest starting to make breakfast at the end of “Hallelujah”), I turn off the fan and AC, etc.

It’s pretty fun!
 
I have my BOSS Katana plugged into my laptop. I basically use that as an audio input to my webcam and just record that way. I've been using my looper to record my backing track one instrument at a time and then I sync them in Premiere Pro.

For the acoustic and the digital piano, I use a Blue Yeti, but I'm not 100% fond of it at the moment. I'd rather have a direct line out.
 
I use Logic Pro and Final Cut Pro for audio and video editing. The hardware varies, but my favorite setup for home recording is a matched pair of Neumann KM 184 mics (for stereo) and a Tascam US 4X4 audio interface. For out and about audio I use a Tascam DR-60 MKII and Neumann KM 184 mics. If I really need to be portable, I use a Tascam DR-44WL and build-in mics. I shoot video mostly with a Canon 90D (my only camera with 4K video).
 
Thanks for all your suggestions everyone. We are making an audition video soon. I'll let you know how it turns out.
 
Is it too late to jump in? I produce a broadcast ukulele instructional TV show for our local library's cable channel. For the most part, I'm using high quality DSLRs and lenses for video. For audio, I wear a wireless lavalier that often picks up enough for the instructional portions of what I produce. I augment that with a Rode shotgun mic, both plugged into a Tascam DR-70D field recorder. When I'm more serious about the sound, like in the theme music at the top of the teaser video below, I'll use Oktava MK-012 small diaphragm condenser mics into a Focusrite 1820 interface. Everything is mixed and mastered in Studio One software, then brought into Premiere Pro for the video editing. I have a large selection of gear, but those are my go-tos. Oh, and the teaser video's resolution is downscaled. I think it's 480p here, but I produce in 1080p.

 
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