Sound unit 38 lesson part 3

This is the final part of my notes from today's sound lessons. It focuses on mixers, recorders and monitoring. First things first MIXERS DO NOT RECORD! Levels are a technical word for volume.

There are two types of mixer; the field and the studio mixer. There are two pictures underneath showing each of the two mixers.

Sound is picked up from a microphone which is attached to and XLR cable slotted into a slot in whichever mixer. This can either be left just like that to pick up just sound or can be joined with another cable from the mixer to a camera or recorder.

A field recorder is a portable handheld recording device, this is where you can adjust microphone levels and the recordings are saved on an SD card. There are omni-directional microphones situated on the top of the recorder and these are used to record Ambient sound. Field recorders can be used to record Dialogue and Ambient sound together.

• Sound can be monitored whilst recording is in place by plugging in headphones. 
• In the studio monitor speakers are used to allow crew members to listen to the sound whilst recording. These are used a lot by DJ's. 

Three key words featured in the final video we watched during class were: Literal, Subtext and Fanciful sound.

1. Literal Sound- this is the sounds of the things you can see around you. 
2. Subtext Sound- this is the sound of the energy around you. 
3. Fanciful Sound- these are noises such as moans or whale noises.