Someone email me today and asked me what I thought about the New Lectrosonics SR receiver. I have seen the unit in person but have not used it in actually field production. It looks great, however I do not like the fact that the antennas’ are fixed and not remove able and that you cannot put batteries in it. I have been a zaxcom wireless hop user for a few years and the unit always does an amazing job with no issues. I also like the fact that the transmitter is small and easily fits into my bag. I just don’t like having to carry two tx, 9v battery eliminators, and a bunch of cables. The only advantage to using the lectro camera hop is that if you need extra wireless for talent you can cable yourself to the camera but I have used my zaxcom as a talent tx once as well with no issue. I also have about $5000,00 invested in my Zaxcom Hop when you figure all the cables I have for it, The BEC box and mounting plates. Camera man also like how it is a worry free piece of gear that always works. Now if I didn’t own a camera hop I may consider the Lectrosonics SR but since I own a zaxcom I will stick with it. Neither one is a bad choice
Tag: Location Sound
Doing Sound While in Paris
Well Guys I am on Day 3 of 7 on my documentary shoot in Paris. So far everything is going great. My Block 27 Lectros have worked everywhere little difficulty and only had to retune a few times (All shooting has taken place near downtown Paris). Overall it has been a great and very easy shoot. We are doing mostly sitdown interviews in private residences and a tiny bit of of walk and talk mixed in with B-Roll around the town most days 8 hours or less. So my 302 mixer with (2) 211 and my Mkh-416 on my K-tek Ke-89cc which fits inside my backpack perfectly. I haven’t really used the boom at all though since it is so loud outside. The French people we have encountered are all very nice and the language difference hasn’t really caused any major issues at all. The only thing this trip has really reminded me is how much I hate rolling around a light kit. We don’t have a P.A so part of my job when we are not shooting is to roll the Softbank kit around. But hey as sound jobs go I am having a great time going out at night and eating great food
K-tek K-Zep Wind System
Someone emailed me yesterday asking if the K-Zep was a good lower cost alternative to the industry standard Rycote Zeppelin. If your unfamiliar with this product check it out HERE. I have owned one for about a year and use it regularly. It is well built and is $300.00 less than the Rycote one. It also is easy to take apart and is much more durable because it isn’t made of 100 percent plastic like the rycote one. I also like that its end caps are foam so they are quickly and easily removed and transported. I find the K-zep and Rycote both provide the same amount of wind protection as well. So check one out if you need a lower cost wind protection system.
The Reliability of the Tascam HD-P2 Hard Disk Recorder
A Fellow Sound Mixer recently had a major failure while recording which appears to be caused by the Compact Flash Card failing. You can view his posting HERE. It is important to realize that media failures are a major concern and often happen without warning. In this case the CF card failed not the unit. I always try and use high grade CF cards like Sandisk Ultra II cards. While they are a little more expensive I think they are worth the money but others may disagree. I have never had my Tascam Recorder fail on me in any situation and for the price of $700.00 it is tough to beat. SO if your looking for a recorder at this price point buy the tascam hd-p2 it will serve you well.
Importance of back up equipment
Your only as good as your last job and your equipment. Not having your equipment in proper working order and not having back up equipment is a quick way to get yourself in trouble. Even though the equipment of today is reliable things still break and need to be repaired. In an ideal world we would have two of everything we own, however this is cost prohibitive. So my way of having back up equipment is never to sell anything when I upgrade so within five years I now have 3 mixers, 5 wireless and 3 boom poles. This has also allowed me to rent gear as well, which creates a nice stream of extra income. So have back up gear it is a solid investment
Pro Location Sound LLC 