Mic for Sony HDR-SR11

We need a lot more information - budget, what you will be shooting, where, etc. and what other sound equipment you may have.

My usual gripe - you spend $1500 on a camera and then want to cheap out on the sound.

"Sound is half of the experience"​

Check out my blogs here on IndieTalk and use the search function for other threads on the topic, then come back with your questions.

Budget is a couple hundred pounds. My camera doesn't have an XLR connection so I wouldn't be able to support a mic with that connection/power as far as I know. I've noticed a few people using quite a large adapter that fits onto the camera but I'd imagine that'd be out of my price range.

It would be for shooting dialogue sequences mainly in upcoming projects (and for "the making of" my fan film). The Rode mic has a pretty decent windscreen too which would be ideal to an extent for when we're shooting outside. For my fan film I'm doing some ADR as we've filmed everything now and have some bad audio, but it's a real pain so I don't want to have to do this on other projects.

I know the Rode videomic is directional; a shotgun mic which is good for dialogue, but maybe it's worth getting the stereo mic at another point in time to use when there is sound all around to be captured?

My usual recommendations:

Rode NTG-2 shotgun for outdoors
Oktava MK-012 w/hyper capsule for indoors
juicedLink CX231 mixer w/phantom power or Pearstone LMT100 - Low to High Impedance Matching Transformer



IMO the Rode VideoMic is a piece of junk, which is surprising since most Rode products are very nice for the price.

Alcove Audio said:

My usual recommendations:

Rode NTG-2 shotgun for outdoors
Oktava MK-012 w/hyper capsule for indoors
juicedLink CX231 mixer w/phantom power or Pearstone LMT100 - Low to High Impedance Matching Transformer



IMO the Rode VideoMic is a piece of junk, which is surprising since most Rode products are very nice for the price.

Click to expand...

That juicedLink converter is what I was talking about. Bit expensive though. Why is the VideoMic a piece of junk? All the reviews I've read say the opposite.

The Rode VideoMic is a consumer product and is a vast improvement over the usual trashy mic on a consumer camera, so of course it will get nice reviews from consumers. But it is not a professional mic by any means; it's a High Impedance mic, which negates long cable runs (anything over 10 feet), is prone to RF interference and has quite a bit of self-noise compared to even the NTG-2.

Everything is relative. The favored equipment used by production sound professionals is very pricey. The Schoeps CMIT5U shotgun mic, an industry favorite, costs about $2,200; the Sound Devices 302 mixer, another industry standard, is about $1,300; the Zaxcom Deva series of digital recorders start at about $10k. The current favorite with the indie crowd is the Rode NTG-2 shotgun for less than $300; the juicedLink CX231 mixer, another indie fave, is about $300, the Zoom H4n digital recorder is about $300.

One thing to keep in mind is that most audio equipment retains its value (and usefulness) over the years. Purchasing quality audio gear is an investment in your future; you won't be replacing it every two years the way that many seem to be constantly upgrading their camera. I have mics that are more than 25 years old that still sound wonderful. Mics used for radio and film in the 1940s are highly coveted; how many cameras can claim such distinction?

So it's definately worth checking out the NTG-2 with the juicedLink mixer and using on a boom pole? Just to confirm, the juicedLink mixer converts XLR connected microphones into standard 3.5mm which is what would plug into my camcorder? Sounds like a very wise investment indeed.

Would this not work instead of the juicedLink converter?
http://www.markertek.com/Cables-Con...-to-Mini-Adapters/Rode-Microphones/VXLR.xhtml

The juicedLink CX231 was designed specifically for that application. The reason I recommend the CX231 above other juicedLink mixers is that it will supply phantom power to mics requiring phantom that do not have internal battery power. It also mounts underneath the camera on the tripod.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/563070-REG/juicedLink_CX231_CX231_Audio_Mixer_and.html

The Rode adapter in your link would not work, it does not match impedance (low to high). The Pearstone LMT100 which I recommended in an earlier post. will match impedance.

Remember that you will need, in addition to the boom pole, a shock mount, a few XLR cables, wind protection and headphones (I recommend the Sony MDR-7605 - another "standard").

Hello again,

I've decided to go simply with a Rode Videomic. I'm still a student and I'd preferably like something that's small yet gives me good sound and the Rode mic has all-round good reviews.

So, I've read about that I need a "hot shoe" adaptor so it can fit on my Sony... I was directed towards this http://www.keene.co.uk/electronics/multi.php?mycode=SSA but I'm not sure.

I plan to upgrade to a Canon HV40 in the near future - which the Rode Videomic works amazingly with, but for now I'm going to be shooting on my HDR-SR11.

As I become more professional (if I ever do) I will refer back to this thread to upgrade my sound recording equipment, but right now the Videomic seems like the right choice.

So does anybody know the correct adaptor for a Sony?

Thanks