Quick Marching Band Recording

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pita37

New member
Hello everyone,

I am a new marching band director and I need some help selecting a mic to record my band. First off, this will only be used to make quick field recordings during competitions so I can show them what is working well and not. I am not looking for CD quality sound, but a decent sound, and a mic that will work with my Canon Vixia HF 800. I was thinking either The Rode Video Mic or the Zoom F1-SP. I apologize for not adding links, but since this is my first post, I am not allowed. I am looking to keep it under $250.

Thank you for all your help and comments.

Rick
 
Seriously for 250 and under, anything that will connect to video, and has 2 mics in an xy pattern, or angled for a nice spread.
 
Congrats on the new job and, um, good luck with it. (Parent of band students)

I'm assuming you want to record the band on a football field and not in parade formation. I'm guessing the camera is far enough away from the band to capture the entire field and maybe the mics on the cameras aren't capturing a good sound. You can try the Rode mics set closer to the band. Use two of them in XY pair. Set them up in the bleachers so they 'see' out over the field.

You might consider adding a pair of omni mics on the sidelines to supplement the Rodes, but I do not think you can get something that is compatible with the camera; which means you have to record to something else and edit the video to add the separate audio track.

What if the camera was closer, would it get a better sound? You might think about getting a wide angle lens so you can move the camera closer to the band, record better audio with the camera mics and still get the entire band in the field of view. Most video cameras have a means to adding additional lens and filters. The front of the camera has a screw mount.
 
Well, it sounds like you're more focused on the visual part, so I guess I'd ask what's wrong, specifically, with the audio in the recordings you've done so far? The reality is that any mic placed where the camera is at is going to give a very distant and probably noise-filled recording. Admittedly, a mic that is not physically on/in the camera will eliminate many of the sounds of camera itself, well, really camera-operations sounds like pushing buttons, since digital cameras are pretty darn silent by themselves; but, the overall sound will not be appreciably better IMO/IME.

It's a bit more work but I think you'd be happier with the results if you got a small recorder and placed it closer to the field, then sync'd that audio with the video, assuming you want better audio. (There's a song about wants vs. needs, so think about what your true purpose is here, and where to invest time - just saying, if it's strictly a visual thing, the camera audio may be adequate for that. Maybe capture a better audio but only sync when you have something you'd like to post, perhaps?)
 
I don't think I could get away with mics on the sideline. We only get 20 minutes to get on the field, play the show, and get off the field. I do like the idea of being closer. Thanks!
 
The biggest thing that I would like to get rid of is too much crowd noise. Being in the stands to get the highest view is good to see if the pictures are locking and setting. I have a tascam r07 I can use on the field. Maybe I will try syncing it afterwards.
 
pita37 said:
I don't think I could get away with mics on the sideline. We only get 20 minutes to get on the field, play the show, and get off the field. I do like the idea of being closer. Thanks!
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I wasn't suggesting to put wired mics up, just something like a Zoom H2n on a boom mic stand so it's well above the level of sideline conversation and not picking up just the stationary percussion.
 
Have everybody in the band record a voice memo on their phone in their pocket. Send all the files to me. :)
 
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