Equipment Emporium Inc.    voice: 818-838-4457 or 800-473-4554  FAX:818-838-1667         15235 Brand Blvd, Suite A-110    Mission Hills CA 91345

We are authorities in production sound recording for video and filmmaking. We also have lots of accessories for videography; and are dealers for Casablanca, AVIO, and Renommee non-linear video editors; as well as turnkey AVID & AVID Liquid (aka Pinnacle) editing solutions.  If you would like a copy of our 2005/2006 "cowboy cover" catalog (free, of course), please phone or e-mail us. We are working on a new 2007 catalog, coming later this year.

Note that we have lowered many prices in order to compete with "New York" discounters. Always call us to check on the latest pricing, and remember to refresh your browser, since we have heard reports of folks looking at olde pages from ancient searches rather than the current ones.

Camcorder buzzing and video monitors

We have encountered several instances of videographers coming to us complaining of audio buzz appearing on their soundtracks, even though they were using proper mic to camera interfaces (such as BeachTek, Studio 1, XLR-DV, etc).

The problem turned out to be the connection to the video monitor! Prosumer camcorders can be very sensitive to the presence of any AC grounding problems. 

Many video monitors conduct AC current back to the camera body, where it infiltrates the circuitry via the common ground on the video input connection. This manifests itself as a buzz on the audio track, and sometimes as interference in the picture as well.

This is less of a problem when the video monitor is powered from batteries, but not in all cases. It depends on the specific monitor and the specific camcorder.

If you are experiencing buzz, try switching your monitor to DC or battery power. Also try disconnecting the camera from its own AC power adapter if you are using one.

The next action would be to completely disconnect the monitor from the camera during recording.

We would strongly recommend that at the beginning of the shoot you do a record and playback test to check for monitor induced buzz. Usually buzz will be heard in the headphones during recording, but some folks have claimed that the headphones were clean and that the buzz was only audible at playback.

If your monitor does create buzz, then only connect to it during set-up and rehearsals. Remove the cable during actual takes.

If you would like to join our private e-bulletin list, please reply to eqe@earthlink.net  We promise to never share your email address with others (What, are we crazy? You're our client base!) However, we will keep you informed of new stuff, and special bargains, close-outs, overstocks, and deals for the hell of it.

Send mail to  eqe@earthlink.net   with questions or comments about this web site, posted articles, catalog requests, or for sales / rental assistance. Because of spam proliferation, it is IMPORTANT that you fill in the SUBJECT line with something notable. Due to the high volume of e-mail that we receive, it may take a day or two to respond.

If you need immediate attention, please phone or fax. Prices and product availability subject to change without notice, although we try as hard as we can to keep this site up to date. To order, just phone us. 

Or purchase from our sister site on-line at the General Store of the Equipment Emporium & National Association of Forensic Video.  Visit our on-line E-bay outlet store for "cash & carry" specials.

Visit VideoEditSystems.com to learn more about AVID, AVID Liquid, and Casablanca digital video editing.

SUBSCRIBE to this webpage ( http://www.equipmentemporium.com )
for FREE e-mail notices when this webpage changes.
This is called FEEDWHIP.
Just enter the URL of this page and your e-mail address.
CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP AND USE THE BACK BUTTON TO RETURN
 

Copyright © 2006 Equipment Emporium Inc.  

Last modified: 03/26/08