Hdd Camcorder
Is there a way to make good audio recording with an HDD camcorder?
I would like to record music sessions on video.
I am wondering whether anyone knows a hard disk drive camera to which one could connect an external microphone. ??
Also could someone explain why everyone seems to prefer mini DV to HDD. It seems so much easier not to have to mess about with the tapes...
Consumer grade hard disc drive with a mic jack:
Canon HG series.
Sony XR series.
Consumer Flash memory with a mic jack:
Canon FS series (standard definition only)
Canon HF series.
Sony HDR-CX series.
The problem with all of the above is that just having a mic jack is only part of the puzzle. You did not tell us the music you are dealing with. If it is loud - and this does not have to be amplified - loud acoustic instruments like drums, piano, etc... are loud enough to cause the camcorder's automatic mic gain to get overwhelmed resulting in a muddy sound and clipping (sounds like static) which cannot be fixed once it is recorded.
The added problem with hard disc drive camcorders is that prolonged high levels of audio cause enough vibration where the hard drive heads will park. They are trying to protect the hard drive from damage. The result is a "buffer overflow" error and no video recording.
Flash memory and miniDV tape do not suffer form these issues.
As for the other reasons "why everyone seems to prefer mini DV to HDD":
Many consumer hard disc drive camcorders have issues with high altitude. Not enough air pressure (above 9,800 feet) results in the hard drive not working.
Most consumer standard definition HDD camcorders record to a very highly compressed MPEG2 video format. Many video editors cannot deal with this directly, so an extra conversion step is required before any editing can begin. Most consumer high definition HDD camcorders recordr to a very highly compressed AVCHD (MTS) file format that many video editors have trouble dealing with - if they can deal with it at all. Flash memory camcorders use the same formats. MiniDV tape uses a different format, DV, that pretty much all editors can deal with - if your computer has a firewire port for importing. Same for HDV, but only certain configurations of MovieMaker can deal with HDV.
Since the hard drive in the camcorder can hold so much video, the tendency is to fill it before dumping it to a computer. If the camcorder is lost or storlen or broken before the video is moved to the camcorder, how are you expecting to get the video? With flash memory or miniDV tape, the media is removeable - so your are only out that which was still in the camcorder.
In three years when you want to go back to a recording of something that you did not use in a final project, where are you expecting that video to be? Since flash memory is relatively expensive, it is not used as an archive storage media. The camcorder's hard drive can't be used as a long-term archive place - so are you planning to buy a bunch of bigger hard drives connected to your computer (or maybe NAS) for storage? With miniDV tape, at about $3 per tape, when you don't re-use the tape, the original capture IS the archive. A single 60 minute miniDV tape can hold 14 gig of computer hard drive space or 60 minutes of standard definition video. A 60 minute miniDV tape can hold 63 minutes of high definition (HDV) video that would take about 44 gig of hard drive space on your computer. As digital tape it is an acceptable method for archival.
If you get a high definition camcorder, how are you expecting to playback on a HDTV? When you are done editing, export the finished video project to a compressed data file for uploading (the camcorder does not matter) to YouTube; Send the video out to a DVD authoring tool for burning a standard definition DVD (like WinDVD); render a medium quality file for computer playback (which you could connect a computer to a HDTV) ... and with a miniDV tape based HDV camcorder, export the project to the camcorder - and connect the camcorder to the HDTVwith component or HDMI cables. Yes, you can connect camcorders that use other storage media to a HDTV, but generally that is only to watch unedited video...
There are many more reasons, but lets get back to camcorder selection. What you REALLY want is a camcorder with a mic jack AND manual audio control. The least expensive camcorders with both are the Canon HV30 and Sony HDR-HC9 (they both use a small 1/8" - 3.5mm stereo mic jack). There are some other Sonys that also have a very rudimentary "Normal" and "Low" (for high audio environments) mic gain control in a "MicRefLevel" menu setting.
Your next job will be to select a mic. A good stereo mic like the Audio Technica AT-822 would go nicely with either the HV30 or HC9.
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