New startup in South Africa

[Gambler]

Greetings guys and ladies first time poster here.

We are a new startup in south africa with a bit of equipment not the best but we can get around with what we have.

We ran into some trouble with our sound equipment as the camera that we use does not have an external mic input. We do have a seperate voice recorder (chinese brand all we can afford) and quite a few microphones some wireless some wired. We cant seem to get any sound pickup ant distances more than 30cm away from the subject and we have purchased a condenser mic but we do not know how to give it phantom power as we do not use a pre amp or a mixer. We have an electrician or 2 that we can ask for help if we need to build something but again we do not know where to start.

Any kind of help will be highly appreciated.

[indietalk]

[Alcove Audio]

Originally Posted by Gambler

We ran into some trouble with our sound equipment as the camera that we use does not have an external mic input. We do have a seperate voice recorder (chinese brand all we can afford) and quite a few microphones some wireless some wired. We cant seem to get any sound pickup ant distances more than 30cm away from the subject and we have purchased a condenser mic but we do not know how to give it phantom power as we do not use a pre amp or a mixer. We have an electrician or 2 that we can ask for help if we need to build something but again we do not know where to start.

First - WELCOME!!!


Second - Give us a complete detailed list (item, manufacturer, model, etc.) of all of your audio gear and an honest budget for improvements. Why such detail? As you are mostly ignorant of production sound requirements there may be pieces of gear that can do more than you think, or, conversely, may inhibit your processes. For example, the Rode NTG-1 shotgun mic requires phantom power, the Rode NTG-2 shotgun mic has battery powered internal phantom power.

Third - We need an solid idea of what you are currently shooting, what you will be shooting, and what you want to shoot in the future. Assuming that you want to build your business your purchases should be "future friendly," meaning that your new acquisitions will be compatible with your current gear and other items that you may purchase as your business grows. For instance, if you buy a Hi-Z mic it will not be compatible with any Low-Z mixers, recorders, etc. that you might buy.

Fourth - You should have a dedicated, knowledgeable production sound person attached to your team. Sound-For-Picture is very easy to get wrong, and very hard to get right. Poor sound can kill otherwise worthy projects and you will definitely lose clients.

[Gambler]

I unfortunately dont have alot of budget to expand on what i have. alot of the sound equipment is second hand items and i do not know the exact model numbers. the voice recorder is a 8gb chinese model. the microphones i have are jebson jb-1158 dynamic mic and a artesia condenser mic (no model number as its second hand) we do not have access to alot of equipment at reasonable prices here so we take what we can get.

[directorik]

Originally Posted by Gambler

I unfortunately dont have alot of budget to expand on what i have. alot of the sound equipment is second hand items and i do not know the exact model numbers. the voice recorder is a 8gb chinese model. the microphones i have are jebson jb-1158 dynamic mic and a artesia condenser mic (no model number as its second hand) we do not have access to alot of equipment at reasonable prices here so we take what we can get.

There is your problem. That jebson isn't designed for filmmaking.
Seems like you have two studio mic's. No work around for that.

Originally Posted by Gambler

We have an electrician or 2 that we can ask for help if we need to build something but again we do not know where to start.

You don't need an electrician, you need someone who knows
audio recording.

At the very least you need a shotgun mic like the Rode NTG2. I
understand no budget filmmaking - most of the time you gotta
make do with what you can afford. Since you are a start up, you
need to save up to get the bare minimum and studio mic's just
don't cut it for location recording.

[Alcove Audio]

Originally Posted by Gambler

I unfortunately dont have alot of budget to expand on what i have…..

we do not have access to alot of equipment at reasonable prices here so we take what we can get.

Hey, I get it. I have been in the exact same position. The "secret" is knowledge, so the first thing that you should do, considering your current status & equipment, is to read "The Location Sound Bible" by Ric Viers. The next thing you need to do is spend A LOT of time on JWSoundGroup.net, a forum for production sound professionals. Many are happy to answer intelligent, researched questions.

The next thing that you need to do is make a real commitment to quality sound in your projects. This means following up and actually reading "The Location Sound Bible" and spending time on Jeff Wexlers site. Then you make the commitment to obtain the proper equipment. You don't necessarily need to buy anything; I'm sure that there are one or two folks who have some proper production sound equipment in Johannesburg - borrow, barter or rent. Or, better yet, retain someone who will handle production sound for you. That is part of the directors/producers job, putting together a team to bring your creative vision to fruition. And the hardest part is that you, like most fledgling directors, are a control freak; you need to repress these instincts and let others handle the technical tasks.

You said you "don't' have a lot of budget" but did not give a figure. I can't make any recommendations until I have a solid number. And, as you claim your choices are limited, include with your realistic budget, the brands that are available to you. The consumer/prosumer budget brands include Audio-Technica, Zoom, Rode, Tascam, Polsen, Senal and Azden. Figure out what brands are available to you, give us the budget, and we will try to put together a production sound kit for you.

The best option, of course, is to find an audio partner, someone to handle (for now) both production sound and audio post, someone who is as passionate about sound as you are about filmmaking.

[Gambler]

Thanks guys will have to have a better look at my budget and see what i can find around here.