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looking into getting a video camera


0175westwood29
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hoping this is in the right place?!

im looking into getting a camera to record my band, and also to record little video clips as we record or are writing new stuff to put up on our myspace and our our site and youtube channel.

anybody know a good place to start? as there are about 5 million of them on the market?.

not even got a budget atm but would ideally not like to spend a stupid amount on one.

andy

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[quote name='0175westwood29' post='674482' date='Dec 4 2009, 08:19 PM']im just noticing alot have mic inputs so im guessing i can just get a nice mic and it should give me decent sound?[/quote]


Yes and no - bascally sticking a camera in your rehearsal room and hoping to get a decent recording is likely to result in the sound level being way too high for the camera's built in mic - it'd be fine if you were playing a gig and the camera-person is standing at a safe distance from the PA etc - but having filmed a lot of bands myself in the past the sound can really vary depending on how loud the gig is. Reheasal room (in general) can be very boxy and speaking from experience, bands often rehearse too loud or louder than they need to - don't worry I've been guilty of this in the past. If you want to get decent quality audio to go with your video my suggestion is to record it seperately - either straight out of the mixing desk or through a mic into a laptop / digital recorder - if you try the latter make sure you test the levels and check the audio isn't distorting. If this sounds like a pain in the arse to set up all I'll add is that it's worth the extra effort, and the more familiar you become with the whole process the quicker you'll be at setting it up. There's nothing worse than playing your ass off and everyone is sounding great and then discovering the recording is unusable afterwards... one last suggestion is it might be an idea to ask someone to film you as fixed point camera shots can be restrictive and a bit dull.

On the camera front - [url="http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B001PGXA0K/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_sr_1?pf_rd_p=471057153&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B0017HELYQ&pf_rd_m=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&pf_rd_r=16ZP4M3J23VVD56JVPAF"]something like this would be perfect[/url]

Hope that helps

Mike

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[quote name='urb' post='674784' date='Dec 5 2009, 10:24 AM']Yes and no - bascally sticking a camera in your rehearsal room and hoping to get a decent recording is likely to result in the sound level being way too high for the camera's built in mic - it'd be fine if you were playing a gig and the camera-person is standing at a safe distance from the PA etc - but having filmed a lot of bands myself in the past the sound can really vary depending on how loud the gig is. Reheasal room (in general) can be very boxy and speaking from experience, bands often rehearse too loud or louder than they need to - don't worry I've been guilty of this in the past. If you want to get decent quality audio to go with your video my suggestion is to record it seperately - either straight out of the mixing desk or through a mic into a laptop / digital recorder - if you try the latter make sure you test the levels and check the audio isn't distorting. If this sounds like a pain in the arse to set up all I'll add is that it's worth the extra effort, and the more familiar you become with the whole process the quicker you'll be at setting it up. There's nothing worse than playing your ass off and everyone is sounding great and then discovering the recording is unusable afterwards... one last suggestion is it might be an idea to ask someone to film you as fixed point camera shots can be restrictive and a bit dull.

On the camera front - [url="http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B001PGXA0K/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_sr_1?pf_rd_p=471057153&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B0017HELYQ&pf_rd_m=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&pf_rd_r=16ZP4M3J23VVD56JVPAF"]something like this would be perfect[/url]

Hope that helps

Mike[/quote]

yeh i'd be looking at getting a separate mic to put some where in the room, only looking for some little short videos of practice. for live i would just like you say come either of the desk or from back of room mic.

and yeh for live we'd get ppl to record us

andy

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There is a new Zoom one, the Q3, which is meant to be designed with recording music in mind. Not tried one yet but the spec looks promising...

[url="http://www.samsontech.com/products/productpage.cfm?prodID=2020"]http://www.samsontech.com/products/product...cfm?prodID=2020[/url]


Cheers
Alun

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I was looking at that Q3 before my amp etc. got nicked and wiped out the budget. :)

I had held off pressing the button on this one because the early user reviews all seem to say much the same thing - this is the H4 recorder with a camera phone attached.

So you get great sound quality but the video is barely up to YouTube standard. This is OK for YouTube and MySpace (which is clearly the target demographic) but could be a bit restrictive in other ways.

One reviewer made a very sensible comment: the Q3's screen is so much better than the Casio digital watch screen you get on the H4 that it represents a massive improvement in the user interface. Why buy an H4? Just buy a Q3 and use it as a sound recorder. :rolleyes:

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  • 10 months later...

I recorded a couple of songs from the Members on the Zoom Q3 that I've had for a couple of months.
Hand held and close up works so much better than setting it up on a tripod at the end of the room with this bit of kit as I did for our set.
I'm quite pleased with how these have come out considering I was a bit knackered after our support set, it's my first go at videoing and I'd had a couple of light ales...

Sound was on memory saving 192kps MP3. Way below the PCM 48khz 24 bit maximum.



Edited by Low End Bee
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You want a great camcorder with exceptional quality, look at Hasselblad.
A good SLR with decent video recording abilities can be had with lenses for @ £500. Canon & Nikon are 2 starting points for you.
For a few 100 quid, there's loads of camcorders from the likes of JVC & Sony.

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