Sony: Nex 7 with External mic

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Nex 7 with External mic

Topic started on Jul 23, 2012 10:08 PM , last reply on Aug 2, 2012 2:01 PM

in Cameras and Photo Frames Alpha & NEX

outdoorjake

1 posts since
Jul 23, 2012

Hi,

I have recently tried to use a Rode videomic pro with my nex 7. The mic is working and sound is being recorded however there is a constant undertone hiss. I have tried recording in diferent places, so it is not a background noise. I have tried the mic out on my Mac and it works fine, which makes me think it is to do with the nex 7. I have fiddled with all of the settings on the mic, and it makes the noise regardless. Does anyone have any ideas of what this could be and how to fix it?

Thanks Jake.

Mick2011
1,104 posts since
Jun 15, 2011

Written on Jul 24, 2012 1:27 PM

Hi Jake, welcome to the Sony Forums

I'm not sure (I've not used a Rode before) but I'd say this was a audio gain issue, rather than a bitrate problem. As such there's no setting on the mic for it, it's something the camera deals with.

Unfortunately the NEX-7 (like all Sony alphas) only provides auto gain, so you basically have to deal with it in post-production. There are various tools you can use if you're interested.

I do know manual gain is something many alpha users have requested and there's always a chance it will be included in a firmware update.

As I say this is just a hunch, but it sounds like the most likely explanation.

Cheers
Mick
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cmosse
302 posts since
Feb 24, 2012

Written on Aug 2, 2012 2:01 PM

Hi
as already mentioned here you can not set a manual audio REC level or disable the auto gain from the camera.

However there are some kind of adapters which will alloow to disable AGC and set the REC level manually. One of the most popular along "DSLR-filmakers" is the product from Beachtek:

http://www.beachtek.com/products/hdslr/

Another option is to use a high quality portable audio recorder. Sony offers some in their PRO lineup.

http://pro.sony.com/bbsc/ssr/cat-audio/cat-recorders/product-PCMM10%2FR/

Syncing the audio track to the video can be done in post processing; if you have advanced software like Premiere or Vegas Pro this can even be done automatically.

Michael
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