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iPhone recording audio/video- external mixer?


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Hi all!

 

I'm trying to help a co-worker get a set-up to do some basic on-camera interviews. I'm trying to come up with as idiot-proof a solution as possible for them.

 

So, I'm thinking using their phone as the primary device is going to be the best way to start. What They'd like to be able to do is use lapel mics to get audio. Two to four people at a time (though maybe just two?). And, there's not necessarily someone who's going to have the time and skill to edit after the fact, so the audio needs to be captured with the video (as opposed to in a separate device to be combined after the fact).

 

I'd love some input on:

 

- an interface that is going to work seamlessly with iPhone and Android, and is conveniently portable. I'm looking at the Zoom U-44 as an option.

 

- I assume I am going to need a "camera adapter" or some other dongle to connect an interface to an iPhone? Are there right/wrong dongles to get? Do I need one for an Android, or will that just work with any appropriately-terminated USB cable?

 

- Any recommendations for lav mics. Also, it seems that lav mics generally are 1/8 TRS. I'll need adapters to plug those into a standard interface?

 

- Does anyone think lavs are the wrong idea? These interviews are going to be held in all kinds of uncontrolled locations, with no one manning/monitoring the audio or video once it's rolling. It seems that lavs are the most likely solution to be sure to capture the voices we need.

 

 

Thanks for any thoughts!

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With four inputs, you're bordering on a "pro" setup with a mixer (which may have a built-in interface) and a simple podcasting mixer. A couple of things worth looking at are the Roland HS-5 and the Rode Podcaster Pro. It has four mic inputs, some tricky software for automatic gain setting and adjustment, and it records directly to an SD card or provides USB output to a Mac or PC. I don't now about to a phone other than an analog output, but that could work. Rode, Audio Technica, and several others make plenty of lav mics with XLR connectors (what the Podcaster Pro takes) and you might be able to come up with the right package for what you're looking for there.

 

Another possibility is the Roland HS-5, though it's more oriented toward (up to) five musicians playing together.

 

I think that a setup with four talkers and nobody in control is asking for chaos, but that's a different sort of problem.

 

This sort of product is somewhat out of my area of expertise and I'm only suggesting these two because I've seen the at trade shows, the companies know their business very well, and if you can work with their feature set, you should come out fine.

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Thanks for the input/help!

 

Maybe I'm under-estimating folks' ability to make tech work, but I'm really hoping for a "plug things in, turn them on and it all just works with no concern for buttons, knobs, sliders, or menus". Maybe it's a fantasy to think that that will work :) I really want a no-feature interface.

 

The Podcaster is interesting, however. I may suggest that if they really want more than 2 people that a device like that is really the way to go, and someone will just have to take the time to learn it.

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