Can the iRiver record? ( is there anyway to monitor the levels on it? - seems to me that being able to watch the levels on your audio during the whole thing would be big BIG plus, as I wouldn't have to have someone watching the audio the whole time. ( maybe I've got it all wrong here).

Dave

I'd never heard of the iRiver until this post. It's web site doesn't clarify much. Does it record to a hard drive? Does it have a port for an external mic? What format does it save files in? Does it have advantages over a mini disc recorder?

Back in the days before we quit doing weddings we used a mix of wireless mics and mini disc recorders. The latter have the advantage of being easily hidden or carried, fairly durable and free from RF interference and complications such as the wearer being out of range or blocked by structure. We don't use them as much in corporate work, although they still come in handy from time to time.

JackW

Yes, the iRivers can record. You purchase a lapel mic that you plug into the iRiver. The amount of time you can record is directly related to the quality level and amount of memory you have. You must manually set a level and you can't monitor it during the service (one of the cons) but with a properly set level it works well (I've heard around 55 is a good level but I've not used one)

Lots of people are leaving the mini discs for the iRivers for a few reasons:

1) Smaller.
2) No discs required
3) Import into computer FASTER than real time
4) Won't lose audio if disc won't finalize

If you want to fully monitor your audio, wireless is the way to go. However, it also has some disadvantages.

Do a search for iRiver on the Video University wedding forum and you'll find out all kinds of info about them.

Redundancy is a good thing too. If you can get a mic on both the pastor and the groom, set the level on one higher than the other. Both mics should pick up the pastor, the groom, and the bride to some extent. The one set with a higher level should get good recordings from the quieter sounds and the other one will get the louder sounds with less risk of distortion. Put both recordings on the timeline and switch between them as necessary.

If you can hide another mic & recorder somewhere near the wedding party go for it. Maybe one on the best man with the volume cranked all the way up would be a good backup. Put another one behind the flower arrangement near the maid of honor. The more recordings you get, the more likely you are to get everything covered.

Well, I'm going with 2 mics. The question now is, do I want to go with 2 lapel systems, or do I want to go with 1 Lapel, and one shotgun. Any suggestions? 3 mics would be somewhere in the 1500 dollar range, and not quite what I want to do.

Dave

$1500?

You could get Audio-Technica AT899s for less than $200 each, that's what I consider to be the least expensive good-sounding lavalier mike.

For more money, you can get a Countryman B6 which sounds even better and is easily hideable (it is truly tiny), or you could go nuts with a Sanken COS-11s which sounds a smidgen better than the B6 but is bigger.

Shotguns are rarely usable indoors, if you really need one outdoors get the very decent AT897 for less than $300 or the very good AT 4073a for less than $550, the latter one being close to feature film quality. Before getting a shotgun mike, you need to educate yourself on how to use them, it's not so intuitive. And they need good suspensions which cost extra money, not to mention wind protection.

No need to spend $1500.

200 for a mic, transmitter, and hotshoe mountable reciever?

Where?

(I'd like to be able to run it directly into the camera, as well as into a recorder [redundancy is usefull]. Anyway - let me know would ya, that'd be great (also, do you know of a pack that can recieve two seperate channels, as well as send two separate feeds so that I can record the two different mics into 2 different inputs, from the same reciever?)

Dave

If it's a VHF unit, I'd stay away from it. The cheapest UHF units I've seen are closer to $400+

How does the Evolution G2 series stack up from Sanheiser?

Just out of curiousity (BTW, does anyone here use it? (Do you like it?)

Dave

I have no intention of going anywhere near VHF.

But thanks for the advise (I've got a guy here that does sound (but I'm not sure how much experience he has in looking into the type of equipment that I'm looking for) - For instance, he wasn't sure if they make recievers that are hot shoe mountable. I knew they did, but he just hasn't dealt with that type of application before. He's an EXCELLENT sound man (probably one of the best in the state (or a few states around here), but just in some other areas.

Dave

"Well, I'm going with 2 mics."

Sorry, FrigidND, I thought you were going the iRiver route, that could save you a lot of money as well as potential interference trouble.

Good UHF systems start at $500 street, and for 2-channel tx/rx I haven't seen anything for less than $3500.

Wireless is expensive, and few find it troublefree.

I have an Audio-Technica VHF system that I bought seven years ago, amazingly it is not only still made but it's their best VHF system today. Pricey, but hasn't let me down even once. Not in offices, not outdoors, not in basements under fluorescents. Amazing.

I would have replaced it if I had had a problem, but didn't.

I think I got lucky on the frequency!

OK - so how does audio work with the I-Rivers In terms of Levels etc...

The thing is I'm not so sure that it's gonna be much better to go with an I-River recorder (as they can cost a bit too) and not be able to see the levels. How, then do you ensure quality with them. I would guess that that's gonna be a pain (and extra time to transfer in the audio files as well. (where as I can just cap the audio from the tape)

Is it worth it to get the un-interupted audio? (lots of extra time to transfer the files seems to me).

Dave

There are LOTS of people going to the iRiver. Did you look over at Video University like I suggested?

Disadvantage: You have to preset the level. You can't monitor the level while taping.

Advantage: Solid state (no moving parts), long record time, much cheaper, don't have to fight with churches that insist your wireless will mess up theirs (even though they're on different frequencies), faster than real-time capture.

Here is a bit of info:

<info>1</info>

Yea, I looked around on the VU wedding site some (but was still not sure if I wanted one or the other (now it's gonna be both).

I'm gonna get one wireless lapel system, and one mic with an I-River (is there any reason that I couldn't use an I-Pod. With Italk, you can connect an unpowered mic, and then it will record wav files (how much space does an 8KHZ 16 Wave file take up?)

Here are the specs with the italk deal:
Automatic Gain Control (AGC)
- 30 dB Ratio
- Attack Time - 100 ms
- Recovery Time - 3.5 sec

Recorded File Specs (iPod Specified)
8kHz, 16 bit mono WAV files

(anyone know what the Recovery time is? Is that the time that it takes to recover from a jaring? or is that how much time it has that it can take a shock?)

Anyway - I'm gonna run one wireless mic to one camera, and run an I-River (I-pod + I-Talk) in the pocket of one of the people (be it the groom or the officiant).

Anyway - that will solve the issue (are the H10's the only ones that are non moving parts, or do the 20GB and 40GB solid state too?)

Dave

If you look at the how they are using it, they do NOT use AGC - instead they set it at a specific level.

Where did you look to see how they are using it?

Dave

In the various posts at VU, they indicate setting the levels to somewhere around 50. Naturally it would need to be lower if recording something really loud and you would also need to do your own testing.

Go through these three pages - lots of good info:
http://www.videouniversity.com/forums/gforum.cgi?post=129036;search_string=iRiver;#129036


p.s. for what it's worth - I'm using an Azden UDR400 series wireless setup. If I was going to add a new mic today, I'd strongly consider the iRiver as I do feel it would ultimately be less hassle than the wireless.

Hey, how much interference do you run into (or hassle do you run into in general) with your wireless system?

Dave

I have run into a few of churches that did not want me to use it. I've managed to talk them into it in all cases but it's really a fight I'd rather not have. I checked my frequencies to make sure there would be no interference.

However, I have had several times when the church's wireless would cut in and out. I'm positive it wasn't because of my wireless but I'm also sure I probably got the blame for it.

I get that kind of garbage from a church i work with regularly - really cheases me off. They think that this or that is going to cause interference when it's obvious that it won't. Then when they have forgotten to replace the battery, they blame the "other mics" because they don't seem to realize that they didn't change the battery. It's not a problem normally but when there are problems, there has to be someone to blame, no?

Dave

But I think I'm going the combo route
Just less time consuming in the edit.

I definitely don't regret using the wireless. At least it is captured when I'm done capturing the video and there's NO sync issue because it IS in sync with the video. Would be nice to have the flexibility when some church finally refuses to let me use the wireless, though.

Amazingly enough - none have ever mentioned anything about the wireless headsets we use (Family radio channels)