Gear for YouTube videos (reviews, vlogs, etc)

ffxcores

[fully disclosed]
Supporting Member
Location
Virginia
If you do any video reviews or similar, what kind of setups are you running? Not only what gear do you use for recording, but editing and production?

I have been doing audio work a long time, and recently have done a few videos with just a GoPro 8 and a little GoPro Session, and last week added a pair of DJI Osmo Pockets (one original and one 2nd gen).

For audio I use Audacity normally, and video editing I do Lumafusion on the iPad. Still very much in the learning process though.

I’m hoping to do some “rig walk around” videos this year if I get some willing participants. I also have a Mavic Mini drone and would like to get some good footage with that to incorporate.
 

meisanerd

Need Bigger Tires
Do you have any gear for recording audio, or is it just the cameras?

For editing, I use Davinci Resolve (the free version). It does like having a bit more power to throw at it, so it does depend on what you have for a computer.
 

Brunnie

Bumpers Installed
Supporting Member
Location
Colorado Springs
I use NCH Software Videopad for video editing, and their Wavepad for audio editing. I bought a refurbished Macbook to do the work on. Gearwise, I have a Nikon Z50 with gimbal, 3 action cameras, several microphone choices, and a small tripod.
 

reaver

Lockers Installed
Supporting Member
Location
Caldwell, ID
Do you have any gear for recording audio, or is it just the cameras?

For editing, I use Davinci Resolve (the free version). It does like having a bit more power to throw at it, so it does depend on what you have for a computer.
I do this for a living, and I'll second the resolve recommendation. If your computer had the power to run it, it's light years better than premier.

Honestly, what camera you have doesn't really matter so much. What matters is content first, then audio, and lighting.

In. That. Order.
 

ffxcores

[fully disclosed]
Supporting Member
Location
Virginia
Do you have any gear for recording audio, or is it just the cameras?

For editing, I use Davinci Resolve (the free version). It does like having a bit more power to throw at it, so it does depend on what you have for a computer.
Audio I have Rode Wireless Go II as well as their lav mic plus a cheap off brand lav mic as a secondary.

I use to have mixing boards and Shure mics but now on the desktop just have the Rode NT-USB if I want to add a voiceover.

I remember testing out Resolve in the past on my crappy desktop. Now that I have a good one I should give that another try. Lumafusion on iPad is great, but I’d prefer to use the desktop.
 

RamblinRover

First Fill-Up (of many)
I like to video things myself and have given thought to doing videos ( haven't yet ) so when I watch videos I'm always paying attention. Saw this Gone Moab video and was like what's that? The picture seems to stay nice and smooth even though the truck seems to be moving around a bit and I liked the GPS feature as well. The camera seems to be out of production but may have a new version I haven't gotten that far yet. Just thought might be interesting here.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NHRnWPKLzZI
 

Brunnie

Bumpers Installed
Supporting Member
Location
Colorado Springs
I like to video things myself and have given thought to doing videos ( haven't yet ) so when I watch videos I'm always paying attention. Saw this Gone Moab video and was like what's that? The picture seems to stay nice and smooth even though the truck seems to be moving around a bit and I liked the GPS feature as well. The camera seems to be out of production but may have a new version I haven't gotten that far yet. Just thought might be interesting here.
Many of the inexpensive action cameras have image stabilization built in. I have a camera mounted on the air dam and as horizon reference you can see the front edge of the hood. You would be surprised and how the vehicle rocks and rolls yet the image is rock solid.

The GPS feature in that video is an add on program. I heard how it is done but can't recall how to do it.
 

reaver

Lockers Installed
Supporting Member
Location
Caldwell, ID
Audio I have Rode Wireless Go II as well as their lav mic plus a cheap off brand lav mic as a secondary.

I use to have mixing boards and Shure mics but now on the desktop just have the Rode NT-USB if I want to add a voiceover.

I remember testing out Resolve in the past on my crappy desktop. Now that I have a good one I should give that another try. Lumafusion on iPad is great, but I’d prefer to use the desktop.
So the preamps in most cameras are merely passable. Can you get by plugging a mic directly in? Yeah, of course. But, you're going to get much better audio quality using an external recorder.

If you go that route, stick with the quality recorders though. Lots of folks prefer zoom. I prefer tascam. Both are good.
 

meisanerd

Need Bigger Tires
I own a tascam as well, nice device for recording. Work has a zoom, it isn't as good, I think they have marketing on their side moreso than quality... Better than what is built into cameras, but I wouldn't buy one personally.

The Wireless Go II also does recording in the transmitter portion for backup purposes, it isn't that bad of quality as long as you have a decent mic connected. Set it for uncompressed, you lose a bunch of potential record time, but gain quality. The built-in mics for those are ok in a pinch, but a good lav plugged into them can make a fair difference.
 

ffxcores

[fully disclosed]
Supporting Member
Location
Virginia
So the preamps in most cameras are merely passable. Can you get by plugging a mic directly in? Yeah, of course. But, you're going to get much better audio quality using an external recorder.

If you go that route, stick with the quality recorders though. Lots of folks prefer zoom. I prefer tascam. Both are good.

I own a tascam as well, nice device for recording. Work has a zoom, it isn't as good, I think they have marketing on their side moreso than quality... Better than what is built into cameras, but I wouldn't buy one personally.

The Wireless Go II also does recording in the transmitter portion for backup purposes, it isn't that bad of quality as long as you have a decent mic connected. Set it for uncompressed, you lose a bunch of potential record time, but gain quality. The built-in mics for those are ok in a pinch, but a good lav plugged into them can make a fair difference.
Yeah, the Wireless Go II will give me 7 hours of uncompressed recording on the transmitters in case there’s any interference or anything.

I do have a Tascam DR-05 as well but I’m more than happy with the quality of the recording direct in the camera from the Rode system, and of course have the direct recording as well as a fallback.
 

ffxcores

[fully disclosed]
Supporting Member
Location
Virginia
Many of the inexpensive action cameras have image stabilization built in. I have a camera mounted on the air dam and as horizon reference you can see the front edge of the hood. You would be surprised and how the vehicle rocks and rolls yet the image is rock solid.

The GPS feature in that video is an add on program. I heard how it is done but can't recall how to do it.
I use a program called Telemetry Extractor to do it for mine. Here’s a small clip: https://streamable.com/wb81oo

They have tons of styles and templates you can use. https://goprotelemetryextractor.com/
 

reaver

Lockers Installed
Supporting Member
Location
Caldwell, ID
Yeah, the Wireless Go II will give me 7 hours of uncompressed recording on the transmitters in case there’s any interference or anything.

I do have a Tascam DR-05 as well but I’m more than happy with the quality of the recording direct in the camera from the Rode system, and of course have the direct recording as well as a fallback.
I still have and use my dr-05. I bought it probably 13 years ago. You can run the mic into it, and use the line out to feed the camera. This means you can easily sync the audio in post, or just use the camera audio if something goes horribly wrong with the Dr-05.

I prefer the dr-40 or dr-70 for the XLR inputs and phantom power. As well as the - 12dB safety track (best tascam feature, and what originally sold me on the dr-40d).

Theres SO much that goes into making good videos, that I'm still learning new stuff every day.

Also, if you want, shoot me a pm, and I'll give you my number. You can text me any questions you have, and I'm happy to answer them.

This is what I use, and have shot films with:

Sony fs-700r with atomos shogun sitting on a custom rail dolly, using the dr-40d and a senheiser g3 lav.

20181103-133256.jpg
 
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meisanerd

Need Bigger Tires
My usual setup is main mics into a Tascam DR-60D which feeds into the Blackmagic Pocket 4k, with shotgun on the Nikon D750 as backup/sync audio. The action cam is for shots where I don't want to risk the good gear, at which point audio is just mic into Tascam and whatever garbage the action cam can collect for sync purposes.

One thing we've learned at work (usually because some of the noobs forget to either set levels or hit record on the audio recorder) is that you can never have too much backup audio. Video is harder to get redundancy (unless you go multicam for different angles), and most people notice when the light on the camera isn't on, so we've had fewer issues with that.
 

meisanerd

Need Bigger Tires
I'll also add that I've been collecting gear for a while now. And the best gear to use is what you currently have, never wait for the better thing to just go out and shoot. Audio might not be great, video might look like garbage, but all of those make for a good learning experience. And poor gear in good hands can produce better videos than good gear in poor hands. And as you shoot, you will learn what pieces you need for improvement, and what ones you can live without.
 

Brunnie

Bumpers Installed
Supporting Member
Location
Colorado Springs
Just wait until you run a trail and have a camera up top, and one on a windshield, get back to the motel, dump the memory cards and.... the one camera somehow got set to slooooow motion and none of the video is usable. UGH!!!!

Lesson learned... double/triple check camera settings.
 

ffxcores

[fully disclosed]
Supporting Member
Location
Virginia
So following up on this a long time later, I’ve used the Wireless Go II system two whole times. If anybody wants it for $200 + shipping let me know. Still like new (2 Tx 1 Rx).

I’ve still not done a single video where I’m away from the camera that would necessitate wireless.

Related to the main topic, what’s really frustrating is putting a bunch of effort into editing a video and cutting and syncing and all that and getting a couple hundred views in months, and I make a half-assed 15 second with music only and I get 3,000+ views in less than an hour.
 

ddashraeh

Test Drive
Location
USA Seattle
Hey, thanks for sharing your YouTube setup! I'm new to this forum but I wanted to chime in. Your gear sounds solid, especially the GoPro 8, Session, and DJI Osmo Pockets. For audio, Audacity is a great choice. I recently discovered an online video editor called Movavi Online Video Editor (at https://www.movavi.com/online-video-editor.html), which might save you some time during editing. It's user-friendly and can add some flair to your videos. I feel the frustration of putting effort into editing but not getting many views. Sometimes those short, half-assed videos unexpectedly go viral!
 
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