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What can be done about excessive wind noise?
The audio has lots of wind noise, what can I do?
Promoted
Response
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You will encounter wind noise with most action sports that take place at faster speeds. We have designed the camera and firmware to optimize your audio experience for action sports in general. With the Easy Edit software you are able to adjust the microphone gain for the ContourHD1080p to ensure that you are capturing the best audio possible. If you have a 720p version of the camera, you will need to upgrade your firmrware to version 1.33 or later in order to be able to configure the audio and video control settings (please fer to the Download/Updates section of our website for more information).
Please refer to the software FAQ for the recommended settings for the microphone gain based on the activity and exposure to wind. Additionally, some of our users’ suggestions suggestions to reduce wind noise can be found on our forums.
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You will encounter wind noise with most action sports that take place at faster speeds. We have designed the camera and firmware to optimize your audio experience for action sports in general. With the Easy Edit software you are able to adjust the microphone gain for the ContourHD1080p to ensure that you are capturing the best audio possible. If you have a 720p version of the camera, you will need to upgrade your firmrware to version 1.33 or later in order to be able to configure the audio and video control settings (please fer to the Download/Updates section of our website for more information).
Please refer to the software FAQ for the recommended settings for the microphone gain based on the activity and exposure to wind. Additionally, some of our users’ suggestions suggestions to reduce wind noise can be found on our forums.-
jfechtner October 11, 2010 11:23Hi Ken - the two links in your post do not work. Any chance you could update them as I think I will find the info useful?EditDeleteRemove
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Yes, neither of your links work. -
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EMPLOYEE
I’m
confident
While Ken sorts the links out here is my current favorite idea, its a baby sock over the camera to act as a "muff" for the mic hole. You can adjust the mic gain with Easy Edit and using the camera configure tool, also you can just try a small piece of electrical tape over the front LED light and over the mic hole. All of these methods work, you just have to find out which is the best idea for your application. I hope this helps you out a bit.
Cheers,
Dave. -
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David,
"small piece of electrical tape over the front LED light"
Are you saying that sound travels into the unit via the LED light area? If so, I guess I will need to cover that as well.-
It has been found that putting the tape over the front LED helps, as in some applications the amount of air hitting the front can force its way past the LED and contribute to the wind noise picked up by the mic. Does that hep explain it better?
Cheers,
Dave. -
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Wonder which method works best at 70mph on a motorcycle...
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Apparently the Baby sock works well in that application !!
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@70, only an external mic will do if you want audio of the bike ( or you)
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I will be fixing the link very soon, we are sorting some organization on our forums out first. Once that is done, I will have the links replaced. Thank you for your patience everyone!
Ken Goldstein
Contour Support
206-792-5226 -
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I’m
frustrated
Isn't it possible to make a software update where the frequency of the windnoise is eliminated? Offcourse it will affect the quality of the remaining noise. But the way it is now, the microphone is completely useless for paragliding. I know that other camera's are using this sollution too.
This is the only huge disadvantage of this further fantastic camera. So please solve this problem instead of us using a sock or something.
Matthijs
The Netherlands.-
Hi matthijs,
I will put this to the software team and see what they can come up with.
Dave. -
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My bro in law(pro cinematographer) suggested placing a small piece of plastic just in front of the mic. This was cut from the packaging of a lens kit fastened with double stick tape. I haven't tested this yet but will soon and post the outcome.
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Nope didn't help. Tried covering the LED and mic opening with duct tape. Still had wind noise. If the lower housing were sealed the unwanted noise could be better controlled.
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I think us consumers should not try to make technical adjustments. Specially because many of us are not capable to do such things. Its the responsiblity of the producer to provide us with a good performing product. So I hope it can be solved with an easy software update. Visual, its the best product. But the microphone setup is crap. Come up with a sollution, Contour. Dont let us solve your problem!
This will definitely cost you sales!!!! -
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Right... even the author highly recommended against it being repeated.
I'm thinking I'm just going to dip it in silicone sealant :) -
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Cool write up and might try after the warranty is up.
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I tried these ways:
1) fullface helmet use, with microphone upset and covered with foam, foam between internal plastic chassis and external one (trail mount)
When you drive the wind is unbearable, but strangely, when you turn your head to the left side the wind noise disappears, so the wind enter into the chassis from others holes like lens rotation system...
2) near engine attached, same configuration, no wind noise -
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I know there is a great amount of turbulent air flowing between the helmet and the camera. Next trick as an on going personal R&D is to fashion a foam "donut" to seal off this area. Will post the results later.
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this is the air flow against mic and engine side
http://contour.com/stories/air-flow
http://contour.com/stories/air-flow-n...-
interesting post about camera position, could you example the camera set up. Example, was it the most windy when upright and quietest when on the side? thanks.
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interesting post about camera position, could you example the camera set up. Example, was it the most windy when upright and quietest when on the side? thanks.
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This is the latest try. I wrapped the housing with foam rubber. If this lowers wind noise,I'll work on sealing gaps between the case halves.
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I’m
Helpful
I like the foam cover! I've done something similar with mine but used an old fluffy cover from a broadcast camera mic. Works well in reducing a significant amount of wind noise, but what people need to remember is any corner or gap in the case will create noise and the mic will pick that up. Even wind off your helmet will be noisy.
If you really want to get tricky you can whack a mic into an iPhone and use it's audio recorder and sync it up in post. Just clap infront of camera when everything is recording so you have a sync point. -
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Tried different ways, this one came with the best results
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I Just made something like this out of an carwash sponge. Tested it with car on the highway. It helped reducing the noise. but you still hear a lot of wind. Is this correct? If I find some time tomorrow, I try it on my bike, and post some pic's. Has somebody posted a movie to compare the noise with and without sound reducing measures.
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Nice! I won't repeat what my wife said about the first pic. :-O lol. I was fab'n a foam wrap for the lower section earlier and need to finish. About ready to break out the masking tape and silicone sealant! Mask out the seams then apply the sealant over seams.
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Ok so I finished it. Didn't totally wrap it,looks more like a ContourHD in a burnt hotdog bun. If the weather is good tomorrow I'll give it a try.
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I’m
happy
So I need to look for a different foam color
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Just picking. I still haven't tried the "bun" yet.
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The waterproof case does a good job of cutting the wind noise, albeit it will add some bulk AND it blocks all but the loudest sounds, even normal speech. Plus, it's inexpensive and exceedingly well made.
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2That is not a sollution. You cant have the Waterproof case connected to your helmet, too heavy. Work on the software, Contour! Its the best possible sollution.
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Is it a big difference on motorcycle helmet camera vs camera+case?
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Getting excessive sound issue when using camera on horse back at anything other than a walk. I have tried the waterproof case in and out of water. The issue is it cuts out almost all sounds. Only sounds picked up clearly, were those created by direct contact with the case. Bubbles, touching, wind, etc. Sounds transferred through the case is an issue with or without the H20 case. Maybe contributes to the excessive wind noise? This possibly indicates the mic needs to be better isolated from the case somehow. Hope this helps. Chuck
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Hi cwoody,
Have you adjusted the Mic gain at all to assist in reducing the wind noise
effect?
Dave. -
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turning the gain down just means I need to turn up the playback volume
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I've not noticed any change in mic gain reduce wind noise, except in reducing the volume of all recorded audio.
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How well does it work? And how weird do you look with that on your head? :)
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how does it work in wet day (not like rain)?
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1I noticed in a few pics that the laser warning sticker has been removed. Big mistake. I took mine off and my first outing resulted in terrible wind noise (sking). When I got home I realized that perhaps that sticker was strategically place so I put it back on. Remarkable improvement, try it.
Unfortunately for me I am having other issues but Contour is helping me out.-
Looking for the mic yesterday, I relalized I have never removed the "laser warning sticker" as well. Guess I will leave it be for now. Thinks I will next try a thin sock over the entire unit.
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you guys are so elaborate. take a piece of scotch wrapping tape and put it on the mike hole. it smoothes the surface almose eliminating wind noise. -
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The laser warning sticker is pretty much the same solution as a piece of scotch tape, and I assure you it does not eliminate the wind noise at 30+ miles per hour.
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I am doing some addition testing. Using electrical tape, I covered all seams where wind noise could be getting in and covered the mic with a piece of foam. With the gain set at 20 wind noise was reduced, unfortuantly so was all other sound. Too much so. I will test again with unit taped up but with gain moved up to 35.
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The best results come from the sock or foam methods, because the sound is being transmitted from the camera body, not from wind leaking into the camera body. If you could completely streamline the camera you would still have some degree of wind noise due to just the wind passing over the camera body. Your choices are to isolate the microphone from the camera body, or isolate the wind from the camera body.
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I’m
feeling childish
I would think that Contour would be embarrassed at the ugly lengths we are expected to do to resolve their real design issue.
Obviously they did not think that the loud wind noise, overcoming all other noise, was a problem. Otherwise they would have changed the body design to reduce the noise, or they would offer a real slip cover or something.
Maybe something that would eliminate the flopping and shaking between the camera and the mounts. Did the GPS design remove a screw from the top of the rail assembly? The rails flex out from the camera.
(Covering the mic hole on the front of the GPS with a disk of foam made no difference.)
I will try this:
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I’m
ripped off
2Is Contour working on this problem at all? Or do we need to solve it on our own? Why does the manufacturer not come up with a sollution????
This will cost sales!!!!
I am sad that i went for the Contour instead of buying the GoPro.
This sound problem spoiled my fun completely. -
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EMPLOYEE
1Hi All,
Well we do admit we got the mic wrong,regarding the wind noise, with Contours prior to the GPS version, we redesigned the enclosure and used a different mic for the GPS which made the difference. However as it looks like some of you with the ContourGPS are still seeing this issue we need to look into this.
Now I know the suggestion of reducing the mic gain is going to upset people but this has proven beneficial to most, but I do acknowledge it doesn't work for all. If you feel that your camera has an issue with the mic then do contact support via the form on the support home page so they can work with you to resolve your issue.
if you do have concerns then I do encourage you to contact support so we can work with you.
Cheers,
Dave.- view 2 more comments
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I also bought my (VERY expensive) ContourHD 1080p for motorcycle use, and frankly the microphone set up is absolutely useless, and these units should be RECALLED.
Mic gain changes make no difference.
There was no warning that these are useless above walking speed and therefore unsuitable for the purpose for which they were sold.
In my country, that contravenes consumer laws so that's what I'm going to pursue.
You have admitted you got it wrong. Where is the solution? -
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I almost bought a Contour for motorcycle use, man I am so glad I went through the FAQ section before I bought one. The advert of the guy on a motorcycle looked so good, but now I have my doubts. Thanks for posting your comments. I will see if there is a better product on the market first. Or maybe wait for Contour to sort out the mic problem first.
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1How about an external mic jack retro kit. Give the user the option to use a external clip on mic. I'm waiting until the warranty is up before performing the mod. GoPro may have the audio down,but that's not what we bought a camera for in the first place.
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What about researching what the formula 1 guys do with their cameras and mics on the cars? I suspect it's all contained within one unit like the contour unit. Just an idea.
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Most said they use an external mic.
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In the future...How about an external mic jack. Mounted onto the PC board accessed through the back cover. Of course one would need to unplug the mic before opening the cover.
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Instead of all this foam... why not try a splitter of some sort that will cut and smooth the wind away from the mic, or the entire base of the unit for that matter... it could clip into the rails on either side of the unit... not sure about fitment for various applications but in theory this will work better than foam.
Aerodynamics will help much better when fighting the wind... sorry for stating the obvious. -
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Been there,tried that. Still too much air pressure around the camera.
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1Thank you David, for the admission of the problem. That goes a long way in my book. Going the extra mile with solution for your earlier adopters would seal my faith in your company.
I will give the mic gain adjustments another try. I'd much rather deal with these types of things via email and forums while I work instead of consuming time on the phone, but I will contact customer service it the gain settings still do not make a difference. -
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Put it in a wind tunnel and design something that way.... best and most effective method... i would imagine the camera lens cover is the culprit. a plexi-glass cone of some sort would work if not distorting the view too horribly. maybe software can have the camera focus through the "wind barrier"
Similar idea with rifle scopes were the zoom will focus through or "ignore" close up objects like iron-sights.
now what we need immediately from contour guys is better software. If there was a way to connect the camera to a computer and have it run in real-time with sound and video, all this trial and error will move along much faster.
that also goes for setting not only sound settings, but ive spent the last 48 hours trying to get the best video output of this thing and its proving more tedious than catching flies with chopsticks!
...> some type of estimator or calculator if you would to set the video settings where we will get a time frame back of battery power...not just some words describing how the battery is going to feel. but i guess that in itself would take hundreds of hours in lab testing(or algorithms) to get the calculations down. -
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Kind of reminds me of a Barenaked Ladies song...If I had a Million dollars.
I'd hire a professional film crew to follow me around.
I think an external mic jack would be a nice add on. -
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How about an external mic via a bluetooth headset?
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Had that thought before. Would be pretty cool to be able to pair to helmet headsets.
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Now we are talking....
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Be cool to be able to Bluetooth to smart phone for viewing.
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Do you mean viewing the playback of the video(s) in the camera or just realtime video?
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Upload to phone,view and send. We don't carry a laptop in our pocket but we have a phone at hand....
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ok so i just took the gps out for a spin and i adjusted the mic sensitivities down to 12 from 55(mounted to my helmet, right cheek just above bottom liner) and at 80mph the wind noise is negligible.
Only when i turned my head did the wind really make any noticeable noise. It picks up the sound of the engine and pipe beautifully...
i didnt try to do any voice over but tmrw ill post a link... ima take it for a long ride and try talking but really these guys have done all they can with it, i think its all position and sensitivity adjustments from here.
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http://contour.com/stories/1st-ride-2011
here u guys can hear the difference in wind noises. when tucked my visor deflects the wind right into the camera but after the accel you can hear how little wind noise there is even at 80+ -
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When you referred to "visor", did you mean the visor on your helmet or the windscreen on your motorcycle?
Allen -
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Wondering the same thing. Was your screen defecting the air around the camera or was it exposed?
Take it out for a longer spin! -
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when i tuck the camera is in the worst position
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Kocho333, thanks for the info about the placement of the camera on your helmet. I ride a hayabusa and it's windscreen comes up higher than it appears that yours does. I'll still have to give the camera placement on my helmet a try to see if it makes a difference for me.
Thanks again.
Allen -
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I think the main thing is the mic sensitivity. when it was at the default setting it was picking up the wind just walking around outside but now it muffled it even riding.
Regarding the wind screen; my bike is a 09 ninja zx6r, factory wind screen. i was planning on getting a double bubble or just an extended one but not sure how it'll affect the flow of air while sitting upright( i would def be under the air flow when tucked tho, as opposed to right in the middle of the air flow when tucked as it is now).
as far as placement... im not 100% satisfied because it hits my right shoulder pad of my jacket when i turn my head but i think its much better than placing it on the top of the helmet. -
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I've put the 'double-bubble' windscreen on my motorcycle; definitely helps with less wind hitting my chest.
I've tried setting the mic sensitivity setting to about 12 or 13 on one of my ContourGPS cameras. All it did was decrease all of the sound.
This coming Sunday, I'll try to mount the camera down on the lower part of my ICON full face helmet and see if it makes a difference.
(just a little worried about putting on the helmet since that's in the area where I hold the helmet while I'm putting it on.)
Thanks again for sharing your experiences.
Allen -
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I too have the gps model. Perhaps it does have something to do with the aerodynamics of the helmet and the wind-screen that causes it to not pick up wind. I have noticed when turning my head to the right it picks up a pulsing noise from the wind like some type of fast but steady tempo...strange
If I get any sun this weekend ill do some more quick runs with different settings as well as mounting to different locations on the helmet.
As far as placement being in the way of putting on the helmet, i pull while holding the straps just under the camera and adjust/remove from under the chin. That's become habit for me... Ill snap a few more photos when the sun comes up... -
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so i've proven myself wrong. its a real pain the way this thing is designed, the MIC needs to be relocated to the side or rear of the camera. I took it out again today, its a bit windy(and freezing) but at constant highway speeds the wind is very noticeable. the reason i say to put the mic on the side is because when turning my head 90 deg. there is no wind noise at all(wind tunnel effect).
Honestly i dont see why it cant be placed inside the back door!?! Im sure even closed it will be able to pick up decent sound but not have the constant barrage of wind!can someone who has taken their contour apart give this a try? it might need a small air hole for the sound to travel in better but i think this is the best bet besides an "out of the unit" mic
ill post some more clips by tonight
http://contour.com/users/kocho333 -
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Won't work. It will do the same thing inside the weather proof enclosure. The body of the camera being struck by the wind is enough to transmit the wind noise to the microphone. The weatherproof enclosure is also in contact with the camera body.
Only thing that would really work is a plastic bubble that does not come into contact with the camera. That would look pretty cool going down the road looking like a surveillance camera.
If I turn my head to the side, putting the camera side of my helmet towards the rear of the bike, the wind noise is gone, because the camera is out of the wind and in a bubble of calm air. So if you like video taping what your passing, it will work fine.
Sometimes this can work when the camera side is facing forward, because you are creating a bubble of dead air in that space of negative pressure. Depends on your windscreen.
I am going to go back and play with the mic gain and sock methods again as last ditch effort before resorting to calling customer service. -
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I’m
glad I am now using 100% Dual-Lock helmet mount! No rail slop!!!
Yesterday I shot some runs with the camera facing backward on the helmet. Still got wind noise... Goes away when I turn my head.
With the mic set in the low 20's, the wind is not as loud, but I can no longer hear the narration I am giving as I ski. -
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Hi petervanarendonk
I made two sound level tests, the camera was mounted to the car like this
http://support.contour.com/contour/to...
The first test with out any protection to the camera and you can see it here
http://contour.com/stories/sound-leve...
On the second test the camera was protected with the foam and you can see it here
http://contour.com/stories/testing-th...
On both tests I drove the same speed and then decelerate to 70 km/h
The next step was to play the movies on the pc with the same speakers volume level
I measured the sound level of each movie from the speaker
For that I used Bruel&kjaer 2260 Investigator
On the first movie LAF max was 90 dB
On the second movie LAF max was 80 dB
10 dB difference on these measurement is 71% less noise
I think that's good-
galileog, were you using a ContourHD or ContourGPS?
Allen -
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galileog, were you using a ContourHD or ContourGPS?
Allen -
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thanks,
I'll listen into it. I’m not familiar yet with cutting and posting movies. So just some pictures.
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What bike is that? Looks like a later model Triumph (I've got a 1050 Tiger and some parts look similar), but I could be wrong...
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Speed Triple 1050. Model from 2005.
It works fine, only in stationair the image shakes. And you see a nice view of the front wiel and road. -
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Allen, I'm using the ContourHD
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The whole idea of buy a ContourHD over the other guy's was size. I'll be damned I'll have a "dive brake" hanging on the side of my helmet.
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Me too... had some wind noise karting this last saturday. I got a ContourHD and 2 of my friends got GoPro. The sound their GoPros recorded are perfect, no wind noise at all. In my video, I can't even hear the kart's engine...
I've seen some fixes in Google, including a full disassemble of the camera and stuffing it with foam (including the mic). Although I'm very good with electronics, I don't want to disassemble my camera and I wouldn't recommend this solution to any friend. And I also think I wouldn't have to disassemble it to fix such problem.
And I think it's inadmissible to such a nice cam wear a sock or a foam armor (it's just karting, I'm not on a motorbike or a stock car). I bought this camera mostly because of it's design, otherwise I'd pick a GoPro since it got better mounts (bought a rotating mount and it doesn't lock, broke on the 2nd day and never actually used it), better sound, expansion slot for viewfinder... but it's just ugly, bulky and... have I said it's ugly?- view 1 more comment
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I agree - ugly+bulky...but camera in a sock or foam?
What can you say about video quality? -
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I noticed in an internet search companies like WindCutter.com offer peel and stick wind cutting material for microphones. A combination of furry fleece like material and foam. There website claims foam is not sufficient for significant wind. I'll give it a try.
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Some external mic example (we wan't a little bit wind flow..) http://contour.com/stories/finnish-ra...
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I've tried tape up possible way but no works..wondering if I should get the waterproof case.
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I’m
frustrated
I've tried tape and extra microfiber cotton, then taped it up on top then another piece of cotton-LED and Mic area but still didn't work at 45mph, mic sensitivity was set at 10. The above methods (foam pads,...) are great, but geeze the Gopro is more compact with the case on without needing the foam pads. I'm just wondering how the waterproof case would do. Most of the videos on utube has music when they do have waterproof case
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Hi Donger,
The water proof case does reduce the wind noise as it isolates the mic from wind flow, as a consequence the mic will have to be turned up to compensate for the case blocking out the sound.
Cheers,
Dave. -
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I’m
undecided
Ok. I'll give it another try. If not improved, I'll just have to wait until Vholdr comes out another model that doesn't have the noise issue. The sound sync idea is great, but I really don't want to carry my fone in my leathers on a roadcourse. The idea of modifying it myself with an external mic is great, but yet again, I have to run more wire into my bike's bodywork. I bought the camera without hesitating because Vholdr has a great design. In addition, the Gopro is just plain old ugly and bulky.
Thank you, Dave. -
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I’m
happy
Alrighty
Got my waterproof case in. Tested at home, the sound was muted at mic sens 5, then I moved it up to 40, mounted on my bike, and took a test ride up to 70mph, it was an amazing improvement over the bare camera itself- I could actually heard the engine now rather than the wind.- view 3 more comments
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Not a bad Idea Cwoody!
I was thinking about buying a watercase, Because mine sponge is totally worn out after 2 weeks intensive driving.
But if it's too heavy for your helmet.... -
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I only do powersports so mounting the cam onto my helmet is the last thought.
I'm mounting it to the bike. -
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I’m
not happy.
They fixed it! And it will only cost you $499.00 :(
http://contour.com/camera/contour_plus
Wonder if they will have a trade in program?-
I'm all for a trade in program, I really don't mind paying for a difference.
Wondering if there is a video without the music, and also mounted on a motorcycle. It'll show how much they had it improved minus the Mic jack -
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I’m
listening for a solution, because right now, there is none .
2Maybe some sort of a retro-fit kit for the mic?
Please!!!!!
You can't just hang us out here with the lousy sound when there is a fix!!! -
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I’m
waiting for a fair compensation.
1We are the early adaptors for Contour. They should reward us for that and compensate us for our misbuy with a fair trade in!
When Toyota discovers a malfunction, they have a recall for thousends of cars.
So now lets see how Contour handles with their customers...... -
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I’m
pissed
1I truly doubt that Contour will help us out with the wind noise problem. If it costs them some money, they won't do it.
They tell me that I have to pay for the shipping to ship my defective Contour GPS back to them. It's supposedly the terms of their warranty. I've spent more than $1000 USD in Contour cameras/products and they still feel that I should have to pay for the shipping back to them when they are at fault for the defective camera. Just doesn't seem right and doesn't sound like they have a good customer service department.
The customer service department is good until something has to come out of their pocket. (i.e. - shipping a defective camera back to them)
Allen -
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I'm actually not having issues with excessive noise - I just turned the mic sensitivity down to 10 on the Contour GPS settings and have minimal wind noise up to 75 MPH with a helmet mount on my dirt bike. Next run out I'll lower the mic sensitivity to "5" for kicks...
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I went to 12 and had far less wind noise but also far less sound in my final videos. If I wanted silent films I'd just mute the audio.
Are you adjusting the volume level through post processing or just living with the very low sound level? -
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My sound level seems appropriate. I can easily hear discussion during normal conversation and while riding, the engine noise of my dirt bike is quite audible. I've also ran the camera on my dune buggy with a roll bar mount and did not have a wind issue there. The engine noise was the prominent sound in all the videos (max speed 56 MPH per the GPS).
I'll be on a week long trip covering several dune locations and I'll be messing around with the waterproof casing and sound settings for that time....I'm curious to see if the waterproof case eliminates any wind noise while using higher mic sensitivity settings. -
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I’m
frustrated
I have the Contour GPS model. I take it that Contour is not working on any fix for the excessive wind noise? I take that other than 'Put A Sock In It' we are being left out to dry! Kicking myself now for not purchasing the Hero Pro. You can bet I won't be endorsing the Contour to friends!
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1I feel ripped off...... cheated....... and so on....!
And countour does nothin to help us out!!!!!! -
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Hello everyone, I'm a audio engineer who's been interested in this issue. I've just got my Contour GPS today! And I'm excited to get recording, I knew early on the mic issues with this camera but the GPS and bluetooth sold me on it, plus knowing the fact that most the audio issues can be fixed. Just a FYI, In the audio recording world fur/hair works best, that why you see those furry mics on boom stands for interviews etc. fur works better than cloth or foam hands down.
I can tell right off the bat the socks and foam will only help partially for 50+ mph wind. My best guess before I've tried anything yet is the water proof case will actually most likely give the best results and not void any warranty (as per the modify the mic method). But I also plan to test out a bit of fur easily bought at any craft/fabrics store, the thicker and longer the hair the better.
So I'm wondering has anyone yet tested the waterproof case yet to see how it does with the wind issues? I myself don't have the case but will probably in the near future. -
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I have been wondering if rounding of the flat parts on the front of the camera would have an effect. I want to place two way tape to hold some flexible thin sheet dense foam under the lense portion where the one flat area is located (making it rounded). I haven't had time to test it so was wondering if I should bother. As for the lense, I am always on the lookout for something that will act as a see thru dome cover, something like a gum machine prize container.
Again any thoughts on whether I should bother. -
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160mf I can tell you rounding corners will not help.
I took my motorcycle out for a ride yesterday with the GPS unit and had gaffer tape completely cover the mic port as well as the LED and some of the air leak areas plus turned the mic sensitivity down to 12 from [default 33]. And the results were still not great. Anything above 40mph is strong wind noise. I plan on trying to improve on this in time and I will post results. I'm still getting lots of air leak causing turbulent wind noise, I'll see if i can improve on the air leaks with fur soon.
EDIT - update. The gaffer tape helps but only marginally as i expected, worth doing if you go no alternative, it reduces the wind hum and slightly improved muffler sound, which is all you can really hope for with this setup. Next I will try the fur and see if I can improve this further.
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Sean, Were you able to figure out a viable solution to the wind noise?
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What I was thinking is making that same area rounded so the air slips around the camera.
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One thing for everyone who is testing. If you want to test your ideas, blowing on the camera should give a rough idea if your test is working. If you blow on the camera as is at different angles and on different parts there is definitely a difference in noise created.
Once your bench test reveals a possible solution then try it in the field. This should speed up the testing as it would appear everyone is waiting for their next outing and then you have to download before you find out if the results were good or not. -
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I resolved the noise problem! I just turned off the audio and dubbed it in later,like a cheap porno.Before I spend $499 on another Contour I'll buy a 4Kam system.
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i have tryed all of these and nothing worked still alot of wind noise so i made an external mic now is great but really who ever built this cam really has no idea i mean who puts the mic on the front of the cam where the wind is strongest
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Before I get flamed here for being negative let me say I attempted to contact customer service about this issue numerous times and got no where. Contour's "play with the mic gain" solution is a very lame attempt at dodging the issue. I also came up with a cheap to produce and much more stable mounting system but Contour again wasn't interested in hearing from me.
I tried everything mentioned to fix this issue and found that the problem is with the shape of the camera itself.It has nothing to do with wind entering the camera from the mic hole, around the led, or anything other part (If so the waterproof case would solve the issue, end of story). After buying a camera, a spare battery, and a waterproof case I spent hours testing various ways to "fix" my new camera and I found the solution.
That's the good news, the bad news is you can do one of two things: 1) You can overdub with a recorder but that a pain. So I chose option 2) Cut the darn mic out and mount it external. Heck, dangling off the camera by the wires in open air gives an improved sound. I have my camera mounted on my mx helmet. The mic rests behind my ear inside my helmet. I made a quick connect so I can plug/unplug it, the wires are in a semi rigid cable so they don't flop around.-
Hi DanfromNB,
You won't get shot down here. We never dodge the issue , we look for solutions and learn from them. This is why the ContourGPS and Contour+ have different mics in different locations and in different chambers to combat the wind noise. You should have found that the waterproof case should have reduced the wind noise substantially as it provides a sealed barrier to wind getting to the microphone. Im sorry that you feel the way that you do, but we do try to get things right , but we know that we haven't always done so.
Cheers,
Dave. -
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1have had the original vholder and 2 contourHD720p's, but since they all have crashed beyond repair over the years (last one last month), i am currently looking out for a new camera, and because i have a lot of accescoires and batteries, the contour is first choice.
But what's annoys me is the the wind issue is still not fixed, although is was allready reported at the original vholder.
OK, now there is the ContourPlus, but that thing is damn expensive (& GPS doesnt interest me) and besides buying an extra microfone you'll will have an wired camera instead of an wireless one "as intended" .
It's a hard choice, but perhaps i'll HAVE 2 switch to gopro :( -
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Well the mic on the front of the camera was problematic, but I really can't think of a better place for it, anywhere on the camera would have its problems. I have mounted the camera on my warbird, not really expecting anything but a lot of wind noise, but what do you expect at 170 mph. Once I would get to speed skiing or biking the wind noise soon overcomes any mic's ability to get good sound.
Well the Contour + just came out and I instantly upgraded, not for the mic feature, but for a few of the other cool aspects. The external mic was a nice add on. So I rigged this up on my bike helmet and it seems to work really well. It is actually a stereo mic I had left over from an old recording Walkman. Since it is is a mono input, it only gets one channel, but it is all I really need. I put one of my boom mic's wind screen over it and it does ok. No snow, so have to wait for ski season to start back up to see if it can handle the slopes as well. Either way, I usually dub music over the video, since I don't think anybody wants to hear my grunting. I may run an audio output on the aircraft's intercom out to the camera for a bit of humor aspect. It seems that most of the folks that come for rides seem to get a bit airsick whenever any maneuvering is done.
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Has anyone used velcro across the front instead of just tape?
I'm karting tomorrow and will try sticking the pile side across any seams that might cause turbulence.
Let's see what happens. -
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I recently purchased the Contour HD 1080p and noticed the wind noise issue while mountain biking.
Has the company come up with a fix besides spending $500 on the newer version?-
Hi Dictatorsaurus,
We are looking a several possibilities at the moment to reduce the wind noise on the 1080 models, but there isn't any specific fix at the present.
Cheers,
Dave. -
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Thanks for the update, David.
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I’m
ripped off.
2This topic goes back a year now....
And there is still not a specific fix at present???
Shall I all tell you a secret? I'm sure it will NEVER come!
And I am stuck with an expensive and for my sport useless camera in the mean time. Contour should offer us an intresting swap price to trade for the new model with the external mic.
That is what we nowadays call: customer service. -
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I’m
frustrated
1That's a brush off, NOT an update.
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1Not playing apologist here for anybody, but be realistic. Any mic exposed to wind over 2 mph will make noise. There is no magic solution. In aircraft, we use two mics, one for the noise and one for the voice & the noise, then they subtract the noise electronically. This solution is very expensive, like over $100 for the mic alone.
I have both cameras, the + and the GPS. I have made separate mics for the +, but even with the dead cat covering and foam, it will not work much over 8 mph. It just begins to sound like a scene out of Dune, no matter what you do. So if your obsessed with the ability to put audio on your tracks, do what Hollywood does, overdub it. They can't make it work either. Or you can invest in noise canceling technology mics, like the ones from David Clark. You can buy them from Sportys.
On the other hand, I really don't have much to say when I fly, ski or ride (aside from heavy breathing or grunting to cancel G's). I made the mics to record what other people say when I am stopped, not moving. Which I suspect what these mics are for anyhow. -
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Apparently the noise is more excessive than other comparable cameras. That's what users are complaining about.
I have 60 days to return this camera. If I can't find a solution to reduce the vibration (yes the mount is slid all the way in) and a way to quiet the wind noise, I'm sending the contour back and going with the Gopro. -
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I’m
frustrated
That IS apologist, and I'm glad your cames make you happy.(now that you've modified one AND lowered your expectations.)
Mine however, does NOT do what it was advertised it would.
And despite contour's admissions they got it wrong, there is still no fix, no real info what they're working on (if anything), just excuses.
I want a fix, or my money back.
I know I won't get the money, so what do we need to do?
Create an anti-contour site and Facebook page?
At the very least, shouldn't we warn potential buyers??? -
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Which mount are you using? I had an issue with my Vented helmet mount. THe pivot pin was too short and allowed the mount to make bouncing noises as I rode along. Customer service sent me a longer pin immediately and solved the problem. Now if I can only stabilize my head the video will look better.
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I'm using the vented helmet mount.
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1I actually didn't modify one, I made a mic for windy environments to plug into one. Read carefully. I personally have had three different cameras from different manufacturers. Audio was not a strong point on any of them. I think adding an external mic input was a good compromise on the plus. I never lowered my expectations, I just know what the limitations of gear is. When a product doesn't meet my expectations. I sell it and get something better, or at least perceived better.
By in large, almost all the video capable gear I have used has poor response in the wind, unless I hook in special mics just for that. Have you ever tried to talk on a cell phone or bluetooth while your in the wind? But most of us that fly or jump out of planes know that. Motorcyclists know it as well. So if you bike or ski faster than a few MPH you will get it, no matter what camera you use.
You should explore your consumer options and return it. I don't think any manufacturer will make you happy, ultimately. Then again, you can explore your options. I really didn't like a whole lot about the GoPro, but it may make you happy. I find its form factor to be nearly useless and its mounts very unstable. As I've mentioned before, I have found their cameras complete with mounts on the slopes, they just come off. Kind of a large moment arm for leverage to pull it off.
BTW, Dictatorsaurous, call customer service, they will send a new pin for the mount, I got it in a couple of days. A bit of sticky back velcro between the vented mount and the helmet, small dot on the front and one on the back keeps the mount a lot more stable and firmer. The velcro has the added benefit of allowing a bit of pivot adjustment to the mount, at least a couple of degrees either way. -
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Velcro on the camera body, the length of the sides and cover the front so a bit of the "fuzzy" will hang down off in front of the mic pickup. You may have to experiment some with placement and each mount will be a little different. I know working with the camera (1080HD and GPS+) are a little more than what some people want (perfection out of the box) but - big BUT - it does get you to know your equipment and how to really get it to perform for you.
1080HD - I hang it off the back of my bicycle, great sound as the wind hits the back of the body first and is somewhat protected by the seat post.
GPS+ is mounted in front on the head tube (lots of bump sounds when hitting seams in the road, etc.) and it does have better sound than the 1080HD but this does seem to work for me. No Velcro "fuzz" on the GPS+ yet but I will try a few more times then use the "fuzz".
I can see people as I pass them and when edited, GPS+ gets them from behind and 1080HD shows them from the front in a "passing shot". Kind of neat but it does take some time in post production. -
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I’m
frustrated
I'm not after perfection out of the box.
Just performance as advertised without user modifications.
Should I have to put a new gearbox in my top of the range car?New avionics in a Lear jet?
If I'd wanted a silent-movie camera, is have bought one. Had I known the contour was only useful for audio overdub, I wouldn't have bought it. -
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I’m
winded.
I did not buy my Contour based on any sound claims. Thinking back, I cannot recall any of the camera comparisons talking about sound-at-speed. All of them were concerned with video quality.
I bought it because I wanted to wear my camera on a regular basis, and that is not possible with the GP. Sticking up like an antenna.... No.
Heck, I knock off this one in the trees. A top mount would not stand a chance.
Would I like good sound, at speed? Yes. Should I really expect that? Now, I don't know.
Does anyone here have experience with a GP? Does it Not have any wind noise problems? I would really like to see/hear a comparison. Or any other economical video cameras, sport-style or not. Would my Nikon SLR show wind noise in it's video? Probably. I will have to try, I guess.
For now, I set the mic to 50, so I can pick up conversations better, and turn down the volume when the speed picks up... I have given up on coverings, foam, etc. Just looks too weird. You lose all style points.
p.s. Dual-Lock really is super-velcro.
p.p.s Was really bummed when last week when Contour Connect app was doing non-stop crashing on my new phone. Worked fine at home before and after, but getting ready for the hike/ski on Round Top, it would just crash and lock up the phone. Then after that, the camera would not make any sounds. Had no idea if it was recording or not, though it was. https://vimeo.com/28209910 I'll try it again this weekend.
Let it Snow! -
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I have the GoPro and I can tell you there is no wind noise, but you can barely hear anything even when you turn it on "high." I have raced both 2-strokes and 4-stroke dirt bikes on cross country races, and it sounds like I am idling. Just ordered a new Contour on Ebay because I wanted HD, and am pretty worried about wind noise but we'll see.
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I too am disappointed that Contour made a device that was intended to be used while in motion and yet the Wind noise is overhwelming.
After reading this Thread, I recruited an old Black Sock from my Wife's Sock-drawer and will try wrapping my Camera with it.
Thumbs down to Contour! -
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I’m
frustrated
I'm sorry, but I have to be blunt about this whole situation. The mic that Contour installed on the 1080hd just sucks. I know we buy these cameras for the superior video quality and mounting options, but the audio is just trash when the camera is used in any automotive application. First, I tried it in my truck as a dash cam, where the mic picks up more RF noise off of the engine than any mic I've ever seen. Now, when using it as a helmet-cam on my motorcycle, the mic picks up so much wind noise, it COMPLETELY drowns out my loudass aftermarket exhaust. Come on Contour, yall are SO close to building a superior product, and I even think you nailed the video, both as far as quality AND options, but yall have GOT to do something for all these customers who are having such problems with the mic....this just aint gonna work, guys!
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I’m
happy
Hi,
I use the contour on my bike mostly, (Supermoto riding) and encountered the same problem. The solution i used was the one that seemed the easiest and i'm pretty happy with the audio as it is now, before the sound would go from exhaust notes to wind noise at about 30-40km/h, now the wind noise kicks in at way higher speeds and even when it does my bike can still be heared when accelerating at around 80 km/h.
I also tested what this mod did to normal audio and I could clearly understand myself and a friend with whom I was talking when he was walking a couple of meters away.
What I did was really simple, just unscrew the contour's outer casing, ( I am aware that this voids your warranty but so do alot of other audio mods for this camera)
after this you end up with the outer pieces and the camera itself. You will now see the inside of the bottom part of the camera, which has the laser warning sticker on the outside. The inside shows that there's a hole beneath the sticker as other people here have mentioned.
On the camera itself there's a corresponding hole which leads to the actual microphone. Now, assuming you kept the container the camera came in, there will be a small plastic triangle in it which was supporting the camera in the box. On this piece there's a small white foam sticker. Just peel it off the triangle and carefully place it over the microphone hole in the camera itself. The foam will make the cover fit a bit more tightly but it should still screw in place with little effort. This also makes it almost impossible for the foam to detach from the hole. Now the wind noise is greatly reduced! And when using the camera in normal situations without wind noise it will still perform quite well!
Just screw the whole thing back together and you're done! And your camera will still look exactly the same instead of looking like a block of foam or looking like you stole some baby's socks.
Secondly, if you want superb audio with this camera at high speeds, I advise you to install a external microphone. -
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I’m
hopeful that there is actually a solution, after all.
David, Ken,
Could someone from Contour please test to confirm or deny the approach that Pssymon has worked for him.
If so, there must be a way for us to replicate his solution with factory approval.
Let it Snow! -
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i actually performed the mod exactly how Pssymon described yesterday, and it did a little to help the wind noise, but not really a whole lot. i even cranked the mic sensitivity back up to 59 and it started picking up plenty of RF noise from my truck's engine this morning. I'm still in the process of tweaking the mic sensitivity to try and find a sweet spot for wind noise and for RF noise, but Pssymon's described mod still isnt a perfect fix.
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Well I think this is about as good as it gets without changing the appearance of the camera, as I said in my previous reply I've seen video's with an external microphone attached and this is a perfect fix imo. The downside ofcourse is that it takes abit more fiddling with the insides and you'll have a microphone sticking out all the time.
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It's obvious that the makers of the ContourHD Camera are reading this thread. I'd sure like to know what is their official position is, on this issue. I drive a "Cruiser" motorcycle and would love to be able to watch and hear the rumble of my Bike as it goes down the road... especially during the Winter months, when my Bike is in storage. I would be OK with sending my Camera back to the factory for some kind of upgrade that drastically improves the Sound Quality.
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The reply from the makers are on the very first thread. Although their advice does not work they have not come back with any other proper suggestions to solve the problem. I am not to sure what this comment actually means "We have designed the camera and firmware to optimize your audio experience for action sports in general" It does not say anywhere on the package sound is terrible at speeds above 40km/h in general. They will NOT be doing anything about the sound problem because it is going to cost them money, all they want you to do now is buy the Contour + at $400 to solve the problem.
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I think the makers need to correct this flaw, especially since its a product that is to be used while in motion. Telling us to buy another one, is a kick in the ass for anyone who bought their earlier models.
In their testing before the very first models release to the public, they did not know that the Audio sucked?
The flashy Contour displays at Best Buy should have flaunted these things as a Video only, camera... and come out later as a Audio/Video model once they perfected things.
Thumbs down to Contour. -
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I’m
frustrated
It is obvious that CONTOUR does not give a damn :-(
Why should we support them by buying the camera as you can get a lot more camera for a lot less !!- view 4 more comments
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Thanks Dave, but please take into consideration its been a year already. In the meantime when someone at my club asks me about the Contour I have to be honest with them about the sound problem.
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David, I think what ducatifanatic is trying to say, and really what a lot of us are thinking, is that we're glad that Contour has acknowledged and is addressing this issue, as it is a REALLY big issue with these cameras, though we would all like a bit more communication and acknowledgement that (a) the problem is at least being worked on currently, and (b) hopefully SOME progress is being made in the development of a viable solution to this problem.
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1How about this, Contour: Sell us a new Contour w/ case that seems to solve the wind issue, and give us $xxx amount of credit when we return our existing model with an R/A number? You can go pretty high on the dollar amount for the returns, since only a fraction of 1% of cameras sold will actually take you up on it, but we will have a higher level of satisfaction and maybe you won't see 80% of the cameras at dirt bike races being GoPro. And if you do it, just require the camera returned; forget about receipts, and cameras that have been taken apart trying to fix it. Just give the credit 100% of the time.
I am VP of sales for similar sized company and that is how I would handle it. -
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I’m
b
Sack David and hire TBook...-
Hi Michael,
I have removed your personal attack on me and the abusive response that you posted above as it was uncalled for. If you have a gripe do so in a constructive fashion and keep your foul language and abuse to your self please, I really don't want to make you the first person that I have to remove from the forums , but if you continue to spout such abuse again , then you will leave me no option to do so.
Cheers,
Dave. -
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Remove what you like. The attack is on your professional conduct, taking personal offense shows what the true problem is.
Review all your posts and quote me something useful.
You're obviously unaware that your patronising brush offs are a sidebar to every discussion I've heard out here about Contour cameras. We do get together, we do talk, and we do know who's who in the zoo. We understand the mistake, you're suiciding over the fix. The people who bought go-pro usually say the handling of the sound issue left them fearful of ever needing assistance. So they compromise on video and live without the wish list features they want.
Your attitude here is pissing away Contour's reputation and future.
As for the foul language, its a collection of characters on a screen, get over your ego and do your f@$&ing job properly.
Is that better? Finally got your attention though, didn't i? -
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I returned the Contour HD 1080 mainly because of the noise issue.
Is the Contour Plus a big step up in terms of video quality and sound quality? -
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1Guys, they have until now left this thread public and visible. They have made no attempt to hide or censor this thread, until now.
They can't ethically leave a post like those last two on their board. You can voice your anger and frustration without resorting to personal attacks and excessive profanity. If you can't you create a bad image for the rest of us and deserve to have your post deleted.
If you're really THAT upset. Call and talk to someone in person.
Do the rest of us a favor that would like our voices heard here, and those who are looking for other having the same problem. Use some common sense when you post. -
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From my side I fully agree that the personal attacks are out. Abusive attacks are out.
However CONTOUR should take urgent attention to the situation that have people up in arms. The abusive person is not more unhappy than the non-abusive person it is just a matter of expression.
Let`s face it, the CONTOUR Cameras as it stands are virtually useless to all of those users that operate at more than 40km/h. If we wanted still movies we would not bother buying CONTOUR Cameras as there are many other cameras that can give us still movies.
We WANT the sound of exhausts etc as the combination of visual material WITH proper sound give us the ability to share our experience with others that are not in the position to experience what we are experiencing.
Although this thread was started about a year ago CONTOUR must acknowledge that the noise issue was an issue right from the beginning.
BTW sacking David is not going to solve the problem at all. What TBook is saying, as I understand it, is that CONTOUR must acknowledge that this is not a minor problem and give buyers the chance to swop a "noise defective" camera for a "noise capable" camera when it becomes available.
Example of excellent service.
More than a year ago I also bought another brand of helmet cam similar to CONTOUR. It was not used for a year because my situation changed and I never had the opportunity to use it. However my Son, who is a Mountain Bike Racer, borrowed it from me just to find that it does not always work well. He contatced the "Seller" not even the Manufacturer and it was replaced with the most current model available WITHOUT CHARGE TO US.
My Plea to CONTOUR
Please put a News Flash onto your website, acknowledge the problem and tell the users what you are doing to solve the problem.
CONTOUR may think that one person does not have any influence on their sales. Think again. It very, very quickly becomes a snowball and then a massive landslide. -
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I keep on reading about ideas to protect the mic to reduce wind noise but is the mic the problem? I believe the camera is creating the wind noise due to its design and probably due to that flat portion on the front of the camera.
I was out bicycling (road) with the camera on my helmet recently and the day could not have been calmer. Even leaves 30 and 40 ft up top of the trees were still but when I got up to speeds above 30 kph I could hear the wind whistling around the camera and at higher speeds it became annoying. I am not talking about a video I am talking about riding and what I am hearing. Contour should look into this and see if a contoured (no pun intended) cover that can placed on the front of the camera to make it more areodynamic could be developed, I sure people would buy it. -
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EMPLOYEE
2Forum Community ,
This string is not what this forum is all about.
This forum was designed for us (Contour) and our customers to help each other get the most out of our cameras. Although some of you have been very constructive regarding this topic (which we greatly appreciated), other commentary over the last year has been less than position.
We consciously made a decision back in 2009 (when the 720p and 1080p were designed) to invest heavily into the video technology of our cameras – the 720p and 1080p were the first HD sports camcorder at the time. In order to keep the price of the camera in a reasonable range, certain decisions have to be made regarding priorities. That’s business. The audio circuit in the camera is fairly rudimentary and not expected to be all things to all people.
However we learned from our early experience. After the 1080p camera, we did some wind tunnel testing on the camera shape and discovered the mic placement (on the bottom of the camera) was not a good place for a mic hole. Air breaking around the camera at high speed buffets the bottom of the camera as it rolls by. Consequently, we moved the mic position to the front of the camera with the GPS model. There is actually a “dead space” on the front of the camera where the air separates to go around either side. We took advantage of the physics with the GPS camera and it helped a bit, but it did not resolve the issue. Further research revealed the wind noise you here is actually the air vortexes colliding with the camera body as the camera moves through the air. These collisions essentially vibrate the camera. If the camera was perfectly aerodynamic, we would not have this problem – but this is obviously not an option.
Our next opportunity to resolve this issue was the development of the Contour+. Yes, the Contour+ is more expensive, but it is packed with features and technology intended for high and professional users. If you expect professional results, this is the camera for you as you can place an external mic anywhere you wish. The external mic is the BEST way to resolve the issue as it moves the mic away from the camera which is mounted in exposed situations.
That stated, there are a number of things that can be done that may improve the audio of earlier model cameras when they are exposed to excessive wind noise:
1. Covering the camera with some type of dampening material will help! As one of our forum users pointed out, this is why professional microphones have a furry/hair-like material over the mic.
2. Decrease the audio gain level of the camera can also help a bit. This will not make wind totally noise disappear, but it should help reduce or eliminate some of the wind noise.
3. Using the waterproof case may help in some situations. If $40.00 for the waterproof case is too expensive, contact daniel[at]contour.com and he will give you a coupon code for our on-line store and you can buy one for $20 + shipping (sorry, we have to limit this to US and Canadian customers only).
4. If you have multiple cameras ( I realize many of you will not, but some of you might), mount one for the best video position, and the other for the best audio position out of the way of any wind noise. I ride motorcycles myself, and have done this on several occasions. I then rip the audio track and layer it on the video track of the other camera.
5. If you want truly professional results, then consider the Contour+.
6. If none of these suggestions appeals to you and the camera’s audio abilities do not meet your expectations, then return the camera to your retailer for a refund, assuming you are still within a return period and your retailer accepts returns (most authorized retailers should). We simply do not have a better answer for this issue.
There is no silver bullet on this one. Contour is all about innovation – we have brought 720p, 1080p, GPS, BlueTooth, and HDMI to the mainstream sports camera market in the last two years. Unlike our competitor that chooses to invest more in marketing than innovation, we will continue to innovate and continue to get better at every turn. The 1080p design is two years old (this camera is discontinued). The GPS design is now a year old. Our optics, audio, and features will continue to get better as we lead the technology charge in this space.
Dave. -
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is there any way that those of us who have fallen victim to this issue could get a discount code or a break on other contour products, such as the Contour+ if we so chose to go that route?
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Hi Chris71Mach1,
Sorry but this is the only discount code that is applicable in relationn to this issue.
Cheers,
Dave -
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When using the waterproof case with this camera, is it possible to get a good sound level of the motor from a dirt bike? That was one of the things I hated about the GoPro...i.e. you couldn't hear the motor very well even on high. Also, thanks for the thorough reply and discount offer.
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Hi TBook,
You will find that increasing the mic gain will do the trick and you will still hear the engine fine.
Cheers,
Dave. -
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The contour HD is not suited for any type of movement. I have viewed so many different method of trying to control the wind noise that it would appear that the company is well behind in customer service other than ungrade to the next generation and that one will still have the problem only less. Also, it you download the software that allows you to adjust the noise levels it could help. I did download the software and now my camera doesn't even start nor is acknowledged by my computer or other computers. What a joke!!! What a waste of money and time. You could have had a great product and been able to beat out the "other" camera, but right now they are sitting and just watching you product go down. That is way when you go into Best Buy or any other of the stores they product is available where your' is not.
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I’m
Extremely dissatisfied
Has anyone even sorted out the wind noise problem!?!?, and no i dont want to turn the camera into a sock!
have tried tape over led light and no difference!
In my opinion all of these cameras should have been recalled for one with say i dunno an external mic or even a camera that performs the way consumers were led to believe.
Nathan (Contour HD1080p)
This reply was created from a merged topic originally titled
wind noise!.-
Hi PerfectCircle,
I will refer you to my post 3 above this.
Cheers,
Dave. -
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I was just thinking about how to fix this too. Previous incar cameras I had for autocrossing would get wind noise too. I had an old Sony TRV280 that all I had to do was put a piece of tissue paper with some tape and presto no noise.
Then I purchased the GoPro since at the time I was in the mood, had the money, saw it at Pep Boys and purchased it. Loved the mounting options that came with the camera right out of the box. Wind noise was minimal but so was sound. My GoPro finally kicked the bucket when my nephew opened the case underwater.
Just this summer I purchased the Contour due to other autocrossers using it and loved the compact design and ease of on/off, recording/not. I have not purchased the external mount yet, but I have the waterproof case to use for skiing.
So my thinking was to design an attachment that sort of mimics a bullet; maybe using clear plastic like the waterproof case but slips on using the RAIL system?
Or maybe make it a split down the middle then you would slide on from both sides meets in the front of the CONTOUR to deflect the air around the front (sort of like a windscreen on a motorcycle)?
Or even an attachment that uses the front of the waterproof case but leaves the back of it open (for sound)? Maybe attaches to the CONTOUR using bungees or elastic clips? -
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1If you have Sony Vegas you can try this plug in. It works quite well. The last ride I forgot to set the mic at the usual 28 - it was set to 33. I used to use a set profile I created in the Audio Plug-in, Track EQ. I can take a snap shot if somebody would like? Video with this profile is here:
http://contour.com/stories/trail-ride-5
For my latest video I tried this plug in and it works great (Floorfish). You can see a tutorial on where to download it and how to use it here:
https://www.youtube.com/user/guerillab...
And see the working example here:
http://contour.com/stories/trail-ride...
At the end of the video is some riding without music...and bugger all wind noise.- view 1 more comment
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Sorry for the late reply - have been away.
Sony Vegas 9 Platinum and then Sony Vegas 10 Platinum for the first lot of my videos. So I used the Track EQ and the profile I made for these.
Now I use Sony Vegas Pro - and the Floorfish plug-in. They are very similar in sound, except using floorfish took all of about 10secs to fix the sound and it took me ages to get the track EQ how I liked it. -
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I did try the floorfish with a video i made and it wasn't a success at all. Maybe you have hints for me? I did try it on this video, but ended not filtering the sound at all
that was with the gps
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WT1Mb3...
After that i went and exchange it for the contour+ (microphone is in the engine bay next to the turbo);
https://www.youtube.com/user/cdnbj42?f... -
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I’m
frustrated
Yea so I wound up getting the waterproof case to try and curb this issue myself...turns out the idea didn't pan out as well as we hoped it would. Basically it drastically muffled the mic, and in the end, I could STILL hear wind noise into the mic, though it obviously wasn't direct wind noise so much as the wind passing around the waterproof case containing the camera. Oh well, Contour finally admitted that the mic placement on our cameras was a design flaw, though they also say that we're stuck with the junk we have with no compensation to upgrade. I guess it's just time to move on.
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Research what the professionals do and you'll find they use big fury covers, NOT foam. So I based my design on those big fury covers. I purchased some fabric with the longest fur from the fabric store. Cut it in a shape so that it covers as much of the camera case as possible without interfering with the record slider switch or the TRail. My concern was that wind noise not only comes from wind over the mike port, but also turbulent wind around the camera body. Eventually I plan to do some experiments to see how much fabric is really needed.
This video is a comparison of snowboarding with and without the suppressor. It shows that fur approach is extremely effective in cutting out wind noise without muffling the sounds you want to hear.
http://youtu.be/qF9xxeZHe94
This video is a more finished product.
http://youtu.be/GS-7xoh_r5E
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You sure that isn't your Cat wrapped around your Camera?
LOL -
