Which is the Quietest 16mm sync sound camera made

Dperkins · March 2, 2004

Which is the Quietest 16mm

Im looking to purchase not rent, I live in Hawaii and we will be shooting sync sound outdoors 75% of the time mainly on tripods some handheld stuff .Clean sound is vital for our production so camera noise is a major issue. I am a new Filmmaker but a Pro audio post production guru dude! I've put together a nice mic package for location recording now i need help in selecting the right camera for the job .The time you take to respond is appreciated.

Thank you

DPerkins

Bruce Arledge · March 2, 2004

Hello Deperkins: As a post production mixer. TV. I've found shooting outdoors can actually cover some of the camera wine and be a blessing. IE: wind, traffic, crowd, natural street noise. Of course if the situation calls, one can use a longer lens putting some distance between camera and microphone. I've shot with

the Arri 16 BL which has it's own blimp and most recently with a CP-16 which

isn't too bad if not in too close. If I noticed some "wine" I pop in a DBX CAT

and/or attempt some notch filtering in post...and that can work at times depending presence. I also use some good directional mic's like Senn 416 which has good rear cancelling or if I'm really bold and the scene will permit, I'll use a RF mic with the small "tram" mic hidden in the tie knot or under the collar giving you presence with out having to raise the gain pulling up all those unwanted sounds. (I'm sure you know all this as a mixer) Indoors...well I've gone so far to drape blankets over the camera - in one the case of using a old Bell & Howell with a motor...(High School project) The camera noise was so loud that we ended up adding music from a practical radio and some dog barking efx to cover the wine of the damn motor...not all to appropriate to the scene but it worked. Speaking of camera noise, you would be surprised how silent, or almost so the Panavision cameras are. I was working on a sitcom and happened to standing by this old camera operator and I found his breathing was actually louder than the camera in operation. <But to the issue:> My choice would be the Arri. BL

Just some thoughts...Bruce Arledge

Mitch Gross · March 2, 2004

It's really dependent on the kind of money you have to spend. I'm NOT a big fan of the Arri 16BL, which even within it's blimping can still emit noise. It's also not compatible with modern lenses or modern accessories. I'd rather use the Eclair NPR or even better the Eclair ACL, which can run whisper quiet.

But if you have the money an Aaton LTR or XTR series cameras or a well-tuned Arri SR 1, 2 or best yet 3 will run quieter than these other cameras. The Arri SR-3advanced and the Aaton XTRprod both run around 18db @ 1 foot. Depending on the condition of older Arri SRs or Aatons they can run as quiet or perhaps even quieter.

Phil Rhodes · March 2, 2004

Hi,

Eclair NPRs are available pretty cheap, aren't they?

Damn, I'm tempted, but I need to conserve funds for the DSR-570 Plan.

Phil

Mitch Gross · March 2, 2004

Damn, I'm tempted, but I need to conserve funds for the DSR-570 Plan.

Not to change subjects here, but if you're really looking at the DSR-570 then you should seriously consider the new Panasonic cameras debuting at NAB. For about the same price as the 570, there will be a 24p camera that's basically the same as the lovely SDX900 but it will use data card memory instead of a tape transport system. Much better camera for the same price plus no more damn tapes and their resident costs and issues. Hey--no more decks! Use whatever deck you have now for layouts for the client. Might make a lot of sense for an individual such as yourself.

Tim Carroll · March 2, 2004

Mitch,

How exactly is that going to work. Are you going to be slapping a big hard drive on the back of the camera? I mean, those cards for still cameras hold next to nothing when you look at the video data size. Will folks be bringing three or four hard drives to each shoot, instead of tape?

-Tim

Mitch Gross · March 2, 2004

Tim--

Check out the Panasonic press release.

http://www.uemedia.net/CPC/cinematographer...icle_6800.shtml

Tim Carroll · March 2, 2004

Mitch,

Boy, that's humbling. I am the moderator (more like traffic cop) of the forum for that site. I should have know that was there. Oops. Thanks for the heads up.

-Tim