Record, Decode and Edit Surround Sound with Holophone’s H4 Supermini or Portamic 5.1

Product Manager Tutorial

There are three methods to decode Dolby Pro Logic II– encoded audio using a hardware-based workflow: with Holophone D-CODE; with an A/V receiver that has a built-in Dolby Pro Logic II Decoder; or with the Dolby Professional Pro Logic II decoder. All will decode the audio; The D-CODE, however, has many more features than, say, the A/V receiver, and is much more expensive as a result. Choose the option that best suits your studio and budget. For this tutorial, I’ll show you how to decode in two different ways: first, with the Holophone D-CODE; and, second, with an A/V receiver and Final Cut Pro so you can learn how to decode and load your audio into an editing program.

When recording with either of these mics, standard mic setup and practices apply. The mics are first connected to the cold-shoe connection on the camera or alternately attached directly to a stereo recording device. Next, the appropriate levels are set and the audio is monitored throughout the recording process. It’s only during post that the encoded audio is dealt with differently. Knowing how to take these recordings from the field and into post will only make you more of an asset to any production and give your projects the three-dimensional, immersive experience you want.

I. Decode Dolby Pro Logic II Encoded Audio with Holophone D-CODE

Step 1: Connect your Camera to D-CODE

When taking the recorded audio from the camera or stereo recording device, you must first connect the camera outputs (or recorder outputs, if you’re using a stereo recorder) to the Left and Right (L/R) audio inputs of the decoder, located on the front of the device). Once the recording device has been connected to the D-Code’s inputs, you’ll have two output options— analog or digital— for connection to your workstation, depending on your setup.

Step 2A: Connect D-CODE to your DAW Digitally

To connect to your workstation digitally, connect the USB cable from the USB port of the D-CODE to your computer’s USB port. In order for FCP to recognize D-CODE, select the D-CODE as your audio input device in FCP’s Capture Presets Editor (this will be explained in more detail in part II, Step 3, on page 20).

Step 2B: Connect D-CODE to your DAW via Analog Inputs

If you’re connecting to an analog audio input device prior to connecting to your workstation, connect the six outputs of the D-CODE to your six-channel audio input device, such as the MOTU 2408mk3 or Emagic emi6/2. In order for the sound to translate properly, the output channels from the input device must be connected to the DAW’s inputs in standard SMPTE order: Track 1 Left Speaker (L), Track 2 Right Speaker (R), Track 3 Center Speaker (C), Track 4 Sub Woofer (LFE), Track 5 Left Surround Speaker (LS), and Track 6 Right Surround Speaker (RS).

II. Decode Dolby Pro Logic II– Encoded Audio with an A/V Receiver

Step 1: Connect your Camera to the A/V Receiver

Alternately, an A/V receiver can be used to decode the encoded recordings of the H4 SuperMINI or PortaMic 5.1. To start the decoding process, you need to first connect the camera or stereo recording device to the Left and Right (L/R) audio inputs of the A/V receiver. Next, set the receiver to surround mode Dolby Pro Logic II. Once the surround mode is set, you need to select a sufficient volume for output (generally this level is around -12dB to 0 dB).

Step 2: Connect the A/V Receiver to your Audio Interface

You can only use an analog connection when working with an A/V receiver, unlike when working with the D-CODE. The six outputs from the back of the receiver are connected to your six-channel audio device— again, in standard SMPTE order (see Part 1, Step 2B).

Once the audio has been decoded, whether using the D-CODE or A/V receiver, it is ready to be loaded and edited using digital editing software. For this example we’re using FCP, but these recordings can be loaded into any editing software. Note the video is being captured through the Canopus ADVC 300 and is selected as the video input source (since the audio has been decoded, it needs to come from the decoding device in order to get the full six channels of audio).

Step 3 Set up your Capture Presets

Click on the FCP Menu and select Audio/Video Settings. Next, click on the Capture Presets tab. Under presets, highlight DV NTSC ANAMORPHIC and click edit. In the QuickTime Audio Settings section, choose the audio capture device. For this example, I’m using the Emagic emi6/2m. The driver has been updated and named A62m. Under Format on the Capture Presets tab, choose 48.000 kHz 16-bit, 6-channel. At this time you can change the Capture Preset name for easy future reference; select OK. Once you’ve created the new presets, select your new capture preset and click OK. If you’re going to be recording in 5.1 on a regular basis I would suggest creating an Easy Setup by clicking the Create Easy Setup button and naming it. This step will save all your presets up to this point. In order to monitor the audio properly, you’ll want to make sure you’ve assigned your audio tracks to the proper speakers in your 5.1 monitor setup. Standard SMPTE order applies here as well.

Step 4 Capture the Decoded Audio in Final Cut Pro

With the input settings in place, you’re now ready to capture the recordings. Click on File, then Log and Capture, to bring up the Log and Capture window. Next, select the Capture Settings Tab. In the Capture/Input drop-down menu, choose your new six Channel Audio preset. In the Log and Capture window select the Clip Settings Tab and check the Audio and Preview boxes. Scroll down and activate each of the six Capture Audio Channels by clicking the green button beside each track. Select the Capture Now button to begin capture. The captured clip will appear in your browser window with one video track and six audio tracks (see clip SNOWMOBILING4, highlighted in blue under the tracks column indicating 1V, 6A). Drag this clip to your timeline, where you’ll see the video with all six tracks unfold. You can see these tracks by scrolling up/down in the audio timeline window. Note the distinction between each waveform, which lets you know that each channel has its own unique information. Now you’re ready to start editing the audio and video as you normally would. When finished, you can export and encode to AC3 or any encoding format of your choice.

Tools Used: Holophone H4 SuperMINI and PortaMic 5.1 surround microphones (with Dolby Pro Logic II encoding); Holophone D-CODE; Canopus ADVC-300; Emagic emi6/2m; Apple Final Cut Pro

Your Guide

Ryan Scott Fitzgibbon
Technical & Creative Coordinator
Holophone

Ryan joined Holophone, based in Toronto, Canada, in 2006. He coordinates various A/V projects, promotional videos and tradeshows for the award-winning surround sound microphone manufacturer and has worked with its R&D team in developing a line of microphones that let users simply and effectively capture ultra-realistic 5.1 tracks.

Ryan has logged countless hours streamlining the workflow for recording, editing and re-encoding audio with Holophone’s H4 SuperMINI and PortaMic 5.1 surround microphones. He has also consulted with various television networks about how to bring surround sound audio into live production.

Ryan Says Keep in Mind...

Recording surround sound doesn’t necessarily require the complicated mic setups it once did. Microphones created specifically to record surround, like Holophone’s, are helping to take the mystery out of the recording process. Our microphones can now capture, from a single point, the six channels of audio typically required for a surround mix, making them adaptable to a variety of on-location and in-studio applications.

To work within the current stereo infrastructure, Holophone’s mics use Dolby Pro Logic II encoding technology to take the mics’ six channels and decode to two. Holophone’s camera-mountable surround mics with Dolby Pro Logic II encoding include the H4 SuperMINI and PortaMic 5.1.

Holophone

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