GOPRO vs Audio Recorder - inflight test

Which gives better cockpit audio? Direct into a GoPro or via a separate audio recorder? I test both inflight.

#shorts

[samothy]

I heard a plane flying above my house a couple of days ago, checked flight radar and it was EYZ! The engine sounds so good on ground from 3500 feet away, loved seeing her in person.

Edit: I was certainly confused why EYZ took three flights that day, now I know why!

[liftcreator]

Both sound good. I'd still lean towards the audio recorder, but if I hadn't heard them side by side I probably wouldn't be able to tell in your videos. I record into the GoPro because it's easy, but if anything happened to that one camera, having a separate audio source with your other camera(s) is a good idea for redundancy. You could probably process the GoPro audio a fair bit to smooth it out, but that's just more work (or do it once and save it as a preset).

[kevinbarber]

I think the GoPro audio is fine and does the job well. Plus gets you some precious time back for ease of editing and allows more time for flying👍

[FaeFriends]

I the GoPro more - it has that live sound that makes me feel I'm right there in the cockpit.

[overdekop]

Both sounded good. Recorder might be a bit more “hifi” but the readability in direct mode was outstanding

[JoshAntBrown]

Separate audio recorder sounded cleaner definitely.

Does the audio recorder record from the same headphone output source, or are you using a different method of getting audio into the audio recorder?

I ask because I currently use the same audio recorder directly recording from the headphone output of the plane but found the audio levels out of the plane were way too high for the recorder and I needed to add a ~40db pad/reducer (stereo audio attenuator 40dB, found on ebay uk) into the line so the audio didn't clip and distort. I imagine this might also need to happen if you're using a GoPro too.

When all the audio is at the top end it becomes harder to pull out the detail and the range/depth which is possibly why the engine sounds much louder when the mic is active too since everything is competing for that smaller space.

I've not tried running directly to the GoPro yet but can't see why the audio should be this bad if everything else was the same for the audio recorder.

[TheEdwardFrye]

Stefan, based on a flight I just completed with a video coming out this Wednesday, from now on, I intend to record both directly into the gopro AND into the sony voice recorder. My reason for doing so is both quality from the recorder, but also redundancy, I've had the gopro record only dead air, and I've forgotten to turn on the recorder. For multi segment flight recordings, it will make resyncing that much easier.

[twmba]

I've transitioned recently from using GoPro audio to a separate recorder. My main reason was because with the voice recorder, I can verify the audio is actually being recorded via the levels on the recorder LCD screen. With all the cabling, I've had a couple of flights when an other wise great video recording had no or intermittent audio. Very frustrating. With the separate recorder, you can get a quick visual confirmation that the audio is being recorded which I really like. I haven't noticed much difference in the audio quality between the GoPro and the Zoom recorder

[jamesdean]

Hi mate, a couple of points here.
1. You could do the age old clap to help your syncing time.
2. You could record into your recorder and then send the headphone (of the recorder) output into the gopro. That way you can easily auto sync in post because it's "the same".
3. You could do the same as above and send everything into different tracks so you have more control over the audio later on in post. If you're talking over traffic control etc. Something like a Zoom F3 etc.
4. If everything you use allows you can timecode sync all your devices.

Goodluck with it all.

[tds]

I've that exact Sony recorder on recommendation from your previous videos. There is something to be said for the simplicity of it. Especially with battery life. Just turning it on with the plane power and forgetting about it until the shutdown is worth it by itself.

[papics]

I have experimented with both, but the auto gain of the GoPro was an issue sometimes. I use a Zoom H1n recorder and am very happy about it.

[midlifeflyer]

Well, since I have the same recorder, I have to vote for it 😅. But why not both? You have multiple cameras. This can provide audio backup in case of a failure.

[Bansheekilr]

Try throwing on a low pass filter in post to filter out some of that noise. Maybe a gate filter would help out too. This may take up as much time as using the outboard recorder and syncing it

[drivenelement]

Yeah dude the go pro sounds fine - save yourself the hassle! You work hard enough on these videos for us already

[peterlong]

My friend Max Trescott from Aviation News Podcast and all round Cirrus guy says “Hey Peter! Most people will tell you not to use the audio on the GoPros, and I don't. I had an extra Zoom H4n Pro audio recorder from my podcast activity, and I use it to record in the plane”

[AudioTones]

As an audio tech Stef, I have to agree with you. Recording into the Sony ***does*** sound cleaner, but I’ll need to check on something better than iPhone speakers 😂

[johnathanasiou]

Both sounded great but I'd keep the audio recorder co-hooked in as a backup if possible, just in case the GoPro audio fails

[implasmatbh]

I think both sound very similar but the recorder is just the tiniest bit better.

[anthonyfazio]

i use the GoPro 9 for recording audio and video and I am very happy with it. that being said, I'm not posting my videos.

[marcel-koks]

To be honest, i prefer the go pro sound. It adds a bit of roughness, makes it less polished. I think it makes the sound more interesting.