Looking for a high quality video camera.

[tjclem]

A friend is looking to make music videos and wants a high quality camcorder with a remote and external mic input. under $500 Any suggestions? Thanks...t

 

[bholder]

I'm fairly happy with my Zoom Q8, haven't done a lot with it yet, but so far so good (see video link in sig).

 

[tjclem]

He really wants it to have a remote.

 

[N. Kentucky Bass]

Tell your friend $500 won't even get him in the door. Some of my good mics are 3x that ... each. If he wants decent quality and he's doing it by himself, he'll need at least two cams for variety, preferably three. Live sound is a very complicated issue depending on the venue. And then there's the software side of the process.... It's a real can of worms. And a huge time sink. That's why most live videos look and sound like crap.

This thread is a few years old but will give him a starting idea:
How to create a budget-minded, quality music video for YouTube

 

[DirtDog]

I've been looking into this. Mostly by looking at the equipment list from YouTubers whose production I like. 4K camera and lens(es) - $2500.

 

[BossOnBass]

I bought a used canon XHA1 from eBay for about $350. They're long discontinued but info can be found here:

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Prices are low because it uses minidv tapes and is not a modern device but the video quality is still very good. It has two xlr inputs and a remote. I used it to shoot my band video that made it up on ReggaeVille:

 

[tjclem]

Tell your friend $500 won't even get him in the door. Some of my good mics are 3x that ... each. If he wants decent quality and he's doing it by himself, he'll need at least two cams for variety, preferably three. Live sound is a very complicated issue depending on the venue. And then there's the software side of the process.... It's a real can of worms. And a huge time sink. That's why most live videos look and sound like crap.

This thread is a few years old but will give him a starting idea:
How to create a budget-minded, quality music video for YouTube

Thans for the link but he isn't looking for studio quality

 

[N. Kentucky Bass]

Thans for the link but he isn't looking for studio quality

I'm afraid we live in an age when everyone expects studio quality -- or at least an attempt to get there -- otherwise they skip to something else. The average person in this country watches hours of video every day. They are experts at what is good and what is not. Your friend is free to do whatever he wants, of course, but low quality clips get very few views. No reason why he cannot pour time into a doomed project. Seems like a waste of time unless he's desperate to get one or two virtual fans.

Here are some statistics just for streaming audio on Spotify. It measures "skip rate," which is defined as the time from starting a track to skipping to another -- before end of song.

• 25% of users skip in the first five seconds
• 33% skip by 30 seconds
• Almost half never finish a song

These are mostly professional quality audio clips. I suspect video is even worse because if the video looks like crap, it's a pretty good bet the audio sounds like crap. And who wants to waste time on more crap when there's so much quality available?

Here's a link to the research: The Skip

 

[DirtDog]

Thans for the link but he isn't looking for studio quality

I've got a Zoom Q4n - paid under $400 for it. So this type of "camcorder" kit is in your buddy's budget range. It's got a 3MP CMOS sensor capable of HD 1080p/30fps. Video quality is OK. It's got multiple lighting conditions options. Sound quality is excellent with the built-in x-y mic system. Similar in price and specs to othe products from GoPro, Sony, Panasonic, etc etc.

The Zoom Q8 is marginally better (higher resolution video, still HD not 4K) and it's got the ability to take an external mic. Still under $400.

This system falls short of my current expectations for "high quality" in terms of the final product compared to the better YouTube production out there. HD is OK, but to live up to expectations, I need to have 4K capability and excellent audio quality. I see offerings around the $500 mark for entry level 4K video cams (e.g, Panasonic Lumix), but they are all lacking capabilities for onboard high quality audio capture suitable for music applications.

Want both? Check this out to see the price/capability range (Canon specific, but other manufacturers will have similar offerings at similar price points). Full disclosure: I have nothing to do with the following link, simply using it for illustrative purposes. You're looking at $1000 minimum for both 4K and excellent audio capabilities.

Canon HD & 4K Camcorder 2018-2019 Model Lineup and Comparison | Top Reviews | Bundle Deals | SmartReview.com

 

[DWBass]

You should be able to find a nice Canon with remote and hot shoe. The Zoom cameras are great but I don't think they have wireless remote feature (wired only). If they add that, they'll really have something.

Here's one in your price range. It has Wi-Fi and with an app on your phone, it can function as a remote.
Invalid Link Removed

I have an older Canon that records great video and sound with the built in mics. I can't recall if it has external mic inputs or not. I'll check when I get home but the built in mics are great. I can't remember if it has RC capability either. I think it does but I can't find a remote for it (bought used).

 

[tjclem]

Thanks

 

[pcake]

if your friend has a modern phone, he might get better results shooting the video with the phone and the music on a reasonably priced recorder and then syncing them up. my phone (samsung galaxy S7) gets much better looking video than cheaper camcorders, particularly in normal room light or lower light. most phones have faster lenses - as in they take in more light - than inexpensive cameras and camcorders, and that makes a difference.

 

[LBS-bass]

if your friend has a modern phone, he might get better results shooting the video with the phone and the music on a reasonably priced recorder and then syncing them up. my phone (samsung galaxy S7) gets much better looking video than cheaper camcorders, particularly in normal room light or lower light. most phones have faster lenses - as in they take in more light - than inexpensive cameras and camcorders, and that makes a difference.

I've been following this thread myself, as I've been thinking about how to upgrade our video as well. I'm drawing a similar conclusion. Full-length movies have been made with the iPhone and I know there are phones that shoot better video than my iPhone 7. I have audio and video editing software so should not be that big a deal to record audio separately and sync with the phone vids. Now the question would be which audio recorder to purchase.

 

[DWBass]

if your friend has a modern phone, he might get better results shooting the video with the phone and the music on a reasonably priced recorder and then syncing them up. my phone (samsung galaxy S7) gets much better looking video than cheaper camcorders, particularly in normal room light or lower light. most phones have faster lenses - as in they take in more light - than inexpensive cameras and camcorders, and that makes a difference.

Agreed. I had an older Samsung Note 3 and that thing took some of the best videos including sound. I miss that phone (was job issued).

 

[diegom]

if your friend has a modern phone, he might get better results shooting the video with the phone and the music on a reasonably priced recorder and then syncing them up. my phone (samsung galaxy S7) gets much better looking video than cheaper camcorders, particularly in normal room light or lower light. most phones have faster lenses - as in they take in more light - than inexpensive cameras and camcorders, and that makes a difference.

Have you actually used this method?
If so, what audio recorder did you use and how did you sync?
This could almost the best bang x buck solution!

Diego

 

[pcake]

Have you actually used this method?
If so, what audio recorder did you use and how did you sync?
This could almost the best bang x buck solution!

Diego

i used to use a decent USB mic and record on my computer while video was picked up by another source. also used one of these https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/H2N--zoom-h2n-handy-recorder a few times. i'm currently contemplating the Focusrite Scarlett 2i2.

i used a cheaper version of video vegas - back when it was still owned by sony - to basically pull the audio track on top of the video and save it. since the audio and video should be the exact same length, it really is that easy. if you turn off the video first, you can cut the few extra audio seconds off by cropping. you can do this with a number of video programs including Flash Integro's VSDC Free Video Editor. my son swears by this one, btw. and it really is full featured and free, although for me, it had more of a learning curve where vegas was easy peasy, but vegas isn't free and VSDC actually creates better looking video, depedning on the source.

 

[DirkP]

The Zoom music-cams are the most convenient ones. They run for hours, the audio quality is very good, you can set one up in a minute. I use a Q4 to record gigs of my band.
This said, the video quality isn't impressive. You can make halfway decent videos if the light is good, but even iPhones make much better videos. If someone buys a dedicated camera in the age of smartphones, the video quality should be remarkable better IMO. No matter how good the audio quality is (and it is good).

If you already have an iPhone or another smartphone with a good camera, you could use it and maybe a mic like the Shure MV88.

The camera with the best video quality I've ever seen in relation to costs is the Sony Alpha 6300. The new 6400 and the 6500 are as good or better but more expensive. But only if you use 4k, the HD quality is remarkable worse.
The 6300 can be had for about 700,- now. The kit lense is useable, but with prime lenses you get even better results.
The Sonys due to the size and construction have a problem with heat and shut up sometimes after 10 minutes of 4k video, but the quality is incredible good.

Solution means nothing if the cheap plastic lenses used are of poor quality and have a low aperture as is the case with the Zoom and some action-cams.

The Sonys have a useable mic-preamp/audio-in (rare in this class of mirrorless cameras)

Two other cameras that have a very decent video quality but no mic-preamp are the Canon G7X Mark II (Only HD, but good quality) and the Panasonic LX15 / LX 10. Both in the 500,- class. The Panasonic has a very good lense with an Aperture of 1.4.

The Sonys are APS-C, the Panasonic and Canon are 1".

When I use my Sony - it has a shoe - I record with a Zoom H6 to SD card but connect the line-out of the Zoom to the mic-input of the Sony. Most of the times the quality is sufficient and if not, it's much easier to synchronize the movie later if the video has audio, too.

A remote for the Sony is 5,-. But cameras like the Panasonic or the Sony can be used with smartphones or iPads. You even see what the cameras see on your device.