I love this thing, but I am so not happy with the audio. Is anyone? I downgraded to the .36 firmware after the .38 cause all sorts of audio issues.

Tried internal mic, get crackles and noise and distortion.
Tried an external mic ( I have the CAN external cable) and it gets way over-boosted and distorted, slightly better than internal.

Is there a magic mic that works best?
Is the CAN cable with the mic on it better?

 

I've avoided upgrading to .38 because of this. Curious what other folks are seeing.

 

Right I should clarify. For me the .36 audio sucks too. .38 was worse.

 

I'm not....

 

SmartyCam HD
latest firmware (upgraded 3 weeks ago)

https://vimeo.com/122421098

 

Spyrex, have you contacted your dealer or AiM Sports Technical support?

 

That sounds acceptable. A couple questions:
--What rev firmware is this?
--Are you changing any settings for audio?
--What MIC are you using (internal, can cable with mic, or an external mic)?
--Where do you have your Mic located (if external)?

Not yet. I've had similar results with 2 units (first one had a lens issue).

A few posted here about issues with the .38 firmware, which I experienced (cutouts, crackling, etc).

I dropped down to .36, which is better, but external mic is way over-boosted/distorted and the internal mic still gets crackling and cutouts.

I'm going to test another mic to see if that is issue, and also try mounting in a different location in the car.

 

- It's .38
- Default settings
- no external mic
- no special positioning. Just the camera as-is on the rollbar.

 

Ok, appreciate that. I just talked to the guys at AIM. A few suggestions from them I'm going to try:
--First, the .38 firmware was really designed for the gen1 HD cameras. he suggested for mine which is a Gen2 to run the .36 version
--If using the internal mic, you can try leaving the door open to see if that is better.
--for an external mic, you need to get it placed somewhere that will get minimal wind noise + a consistent exhaust note - he suggested frunk, trunk, dash, side panels - the unit will dynamically adjust the audio, to a point, but at some point if it's too loud it gets over-driven

Anyway, got a few things to try - I'm pretty sure its not an issue with my camera, I think the car is just too loud combined with the wind noise in cabin at 100+ mpg and need to tone down the input - I may try some hackish type stuff like putting a small resistor on the mic in put to lower the power level ...

I'm determined to get this working. :-)

 

Hmmm. That's interesting.

When I put .38 on several Rev1 SCHD's at Sebring a few weeks ago, that's what screwed it up for me. I went back to .36

On the new cams (Rev2), I have had NO trouble with the audio on .38, and I leave the internal mic on and the gain set to auto. I have had a fraction of the complaints from Rev2 customers (more than six dozen so far) than I have had from Rev1 customers (more than twelve dozen sold). I had to send back a little less than six percent of the Rev1 cams for defects, but no Rev2's...

Let us know!

 

I don't recall the exact comment but he said something to the effect that .38 was meant to address the leveling on the rev1 internal mic as it was not as effective as the rev2.

Its possible my Rev2 issue with the Gen2 was an external mic issue, not a firmware issue.

 

I have found that the audio is significantly different from one PC to another. I would test your video no your home TV and see if it the same.

 

Does anyone know which version works better for th HD GP?

 

I have used .38 on over two dozen with no issues.

 

Pc
iPhone
iPad
Mac

All same.

Went back and listened to some videos. .38 was definitely bad on my rev2. Internal or external mic had lots of craxkling and cuts

The .36 is ok. Internal mic not great. External is ok but need to find a mic with less output drive or find a quieter location or wrap in foam.

I built a franken-mic going to try this weekend.