camera (video or stills) primarily for (quality) audio

Luke

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Location
Milwaukee, WI USA
Name
Luke
Hey all,
I'm guessing it will be more of a video camera than a still camera, but I figure you gear heads can point me in the right direction faster than an afternoon of Googling.

still photo or video quality is almost of no importance whatsoever. I will use this almost exclusively for capturing audio direct from my stereo. But it just seems like the internet is more geared to sharing videos than sharing sound files.

Often in my business (selling rare records on the internet) I will need to give potential buyers an idea of what some surface noise sounds like (or even what a rare track sounds like musically....believe it or not, there are still some songs so rare that people can't find them on the internet).

Here's a photo of the "testing station" in my home office. I am thinking that a tabletop tripod could be positioned such that the camera shows the record I'm selling while some RCA plugs (or balanced XLR connectors, but I'd prefer to leave out those big, connections.....the last few ounces of sonic quality are not that important).

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by Luke, on Flickr

Adjustable sound input levels would be nice (maybe mandatory?), and I'd like to just be able to use stereo RCA cords rather than get an adapter to go in with a 1/8 inch stereo plug. But if there are better options that don't have RCA and only use 1/8" stereo jack, I guess that's OK, too.

Also, this is strictly for business, so it doesn't need to be the latest and greatest of anything. Really just the best rig that is simple to use and is fairly flexible for audio.

And maybe something older is better if the files sizes are smaller that would be a bonus.....as long as the sound quality wouldn't be compromised. Thanks in advance for sharing your knowledge. Also, if any of you have an old rig lying around that is well suited to the task and you're not using it anymore, shoot me a pm.

Here's an LP with a REALLY ugly mark, but that mark does NOT make a sound. A mint copy of this LP is worth over $1,000. Other than this mark (that doesn't sound), this record is perfect. So you can see why it might be helpful for someone to be able to hear what this record sounds like.

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by Luke, on Flickr
 
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There's nothing out there currently that will do this without going way out of your budget. Older pro video cameras have what you want in audio, but they don't record directly to flash memory. Older DV camcorders would be at the top of the list, but they will require that you capture the video/audio via i1394 or FireWire.

You'll want to look for a small mixer like a juicelink or beachtek that will cleanly boost your audio into the camera and already have the required RCA or XLR connectors.

Alternatively, something like an iRig adapter for your smartphone would be the simplest.
 
A few years back I recorded sound only direct to computer via the tape out on the amp - there are a few programs which help in this & I avoided recording to mp3 then

all you need is a cable
 
I would use one of your existing cameras to grab the images, and buy a Zoom H1 audio recorder.
$100
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/699403-REG/Zoom_H1_H1_Ultra_Portable_Digital_Audio.html

If you don't have it, get Adobe Premiere Elements 13 and sync the audio with the video or still slide show.

You can get away with this setup all in for $170 (Premiere elements is on sale right now) and you'll get a better audio recording device than you will find on any camera anywhere near that price.
 
Thanks, Roger. I already have an interface for recording LPs to a computer, but I'm not interested in learning new software to try to figure out how to get an mp3 and attach it to a video file. Same goes for Andrew's suggestion.

I can't believe with all the bazillions of cameras and camcorders out there that NONE of them have a mic input jack and allow me to set a volume level.
 
Plenty of them do, except you didn't want 1\8 input, and they're all 2.5 or 3.5mm plugs. Every Panasonic GH series has it, as does my FZ1000, FZ200 etc. All of my video capable Canon DSLRs also have it.

But none of them have RCA or XLR plugs.
 
Plenty of them do, except you didn't want 1\8 input, and they're all 2.5 or 3.5mm plugs. Every Panasonic GH series has it, as does my FZ1000, FZ200 etc. All of my video capable Canon DSLRs also have it.

But none of them have RCA or XLR plugs.

OK, if I need an adapater to the small plug, then I guess I gotta do what I gotta do. I'm fairly sure the FZ series cameras don't allow you to set a volume level manually. And I'm guessing I'd need to go pretty far up the GH tree to get that function. The GH4 (and likely even the old 3) are out of my price range.

Do any of the cheapo video recorder things allow that?
 
I believe 1/8 inch and 3.5mm plugs are the same thing. Actually I believe that the true dimension is 3.5mm but 1/8 inch is a close enough approximation for those who think in inches.

1/4 inch is the larger size plug one normally comes across.

-R
 
The older models such as the GH1 or GH2 would work just fine for this. The GH1 even came with an AC adapter and records to MP4.

My old Canon HF100 camcorder has a mic input, but records to AVCHD, as do many similar camcorders, so that's not a good solution either.
 
The older models such as the GH1 or GH2 would work just fine for this. The GH1 even came with an AC adapter and records to MP4.

My old Canon HF100 camcorder has a mic input, but records to AVCHD, as do many similar camcorders, so that's not a good solution either.

Thanks for your responses, Kin Lau. Do you think this unit might be a good solution? Looks like it does mp4. It's definitely around the right price. Canon VIXIA HF R500 Black Refurbished | Canon Online Store|Canon Online Store
 
Thanks, Roger. I already have an interface for recording LPs to a computer, but I'm not interested in learning new software to try to figure out how to get an mp3 and attach it to a video file. Same goes for Andrew's suggestion.

I can't believe with all the bazillions of cameras and camcorders out there that NONE of them have a mic input jack and allow me to set a volume level.

Well, they do, but the internal amps are pretty garbage.

If you went with the Zoom recorder option, you could use it's in built pre-amp. Or the other option is to get a pre-amp unit to go between the audio source and the camera input.

The zoom has a 3.5mm input and output jack. That should do what you want with any camera and then you'll have to learn no new software at all.
 
I would use one of your existing cameras to grab the images, and buy a Zoom H1 audio recorder.
$100
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/699403-REG/Zoom_H1_H1_Ultra_Portable_Digital_Audio.html

If you don't have it, get Adobe Premiere Elements 13 and sync the audio with the video or still slide show.

You can get away with this setup all in for $170 (Premiere elements is on sale right now) and you'll get a better audio recording device than you will find on any camera anywhere near that price.

+1 for Zoom recorder. I opted for the Zoom H2n. Excellent sound quality, lots of flexibility.
 
I believe 1/8 inch and 3.5mm plugs are the same thing. Actually I believe that the true dimension is 3.5mm but 1/8 inch is a close enough approximation for those who think in inches.

1/4 inch is the larger size plug one normally comes across.

-R

Panasonic GH2 has a 2.5mm mic input. Found a 3.5 to 2.5 adapter on Amazon.com.
 
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