External audio jack

DiMattia · 05-13-2014, 10:13 AM

Looking for a pentax dslr w/ a external audio jack ... it does not have to be the most expensive or advanced camera out there but it needs to have a external audio... what pentax dslr do you suggest? I bought a k-r w/o doing much reading on them and once I got it found out it does not have a audio jack so im selling the k-r on ebay ... and I need to replace it with a pentax dslr that does have a audio jack.

T.I.A.

Adam · 05-13-2014, 10:35 AM

The models with external audio include the K-7, K-5, K-3, and K-01. I'd recommend one of the latter 2 as they also have manual video controls and a more user-friendly file format.

BTW: no for-sale links are allowed outside of the Marketplace.

PiDicus Rex · 05-14-2014, 06:54 AM

Can recommend the K-01 for video production use, so long as you only want the audio to be there as a back-up to audio on a dedicated recorder.
Mine has proven it's worth many times over in the past year.

Unfortunately, for Audio, it has it's limits.
First by a 32kHz sample rate, and a noise floor that is way too high - background sounds get lost in the hiss.
Second by an limiter that kicks in during loud recording, such as rock bands and racecars.

Best practice with the K-01 is to record the audio to a dedicated recorder and send a feed to the camera, or rig a shotgun mic to get a clear recording to sync the external recorders sound to in post.

If you don't have an external recorder and need to use the on-board audio recording, the K3 is a better choice.

( The K-01's other limits are, lack of HDMI out in Record mode, use of video processing for SR instead of Sensor Shift, and Pentax's use of around a 20mbits data rate for the video CoDec )

kadajawi · 06-21-2014, 03:22 PM

And I don't like the K-3 and K-01 for video. I gladly trade in manual video controls for that wonderful shake reduction and the codec the K-5 has. Before I'd get a K-3 or K-01 I'd get any DSLR from Canon or Nikon... after all if I have to work without in body shake reduction, at least I want to be able to use lenses that have shake reduction. Nikon allows external recorders via HDMI, Canon probably too. Their codecs are probably also better. Some of those cameras have a flip out screen, which is a nice advantage. Canon has the wonderful Magic Lantern.

Pentax' post K-5 cameras have no advantage over their competitors for video, but plenty of disadvantages. At least despite the K-5's disadvantages it does have some nice advantages too.

Steve.Ledger · 06-21-2014, 03:57 PM

From what I have seen of K-5 and K-5II video I have to agree with kadajawi, the K-01, (also K-30 and K-50) video is inferior.

PiDicus Rex · 06-22-2014, 07:02 AM

Can't agree fellahs.
Side by side, without Magic Lantern, the Canon video is no better or worse then the K-01 vision.
Heck, the 'standard' data-rate for the 5D2 was 22Mbits, it's All i-Frame variant is an advantage, being 45Mbits.

Yes, the Canon's can see in to darker locations, and the Nikon's have the extra stop or two of dynamic range over the Pentax.
But,.. Price vs Performance, the Pentax kit is waaaay out in front.

SR, as I've said before, is not a big deal for me, even if I had a lens with it, I'd disable it, same as I did with my XL-1 in the DV era.
There's more advantage to running the camera on a shoulder mount rig or a tripod then to having any form of SR IMHO.

kadajawi · 06-24-2014, 05:44 PM

Originally posted by PiDicus Rex

Can't agree fellahs.
Side by side, without Magic Lantern, the Canon video is no better or worse then the K-01 vision.
Heck, the 'standard' data-rate for the 5D2 was 22Mbits, it's All i-Frame variant is an advantage, being 45Mbits.

Yes, the Canon's can see in to darker locations, and the Nikon's have the extra stop or two of dynamic range over the Pentax.
But,.. Price vs Performance, the Pentax kit is waaaay out in front.

SR, as I've said before, is not a big deal for me, even if I had a lens with it, I'd disable it, same as I did with my XL-1 in the DV era.
There's more advantage to running the camera on a shoulder mount rig or a tripod then to having any form of SR IMHO.

Yes, without Magic Lantern Canon would not be attractive. However Magic Lantern does exist, and it works. And that creates a huge advantage for Canon.

Nikon has tiltable screens, better quality, and lenses with shake reduction, higher frame rates, ...

Yesterday I've watched a firework and then went to a concert, so I had my tripod with me. Even then I left my SR on, and it helped smooth pans and other camera movements. (Granted I don't have a video head, but my tripod is still pretty smooth).

Using a shoulder mount... I like being mobile, with as little gear as possible. And I believe with SR I can get a smoothness you can't get from a shoulder mount. Would have to try that though.

PiDicus Rex · 06-24-2014, 06:55 PM

ML,.. I reckon only about a third of the Canon owners I work with use it. The rest are split with more not knowing about it, and the rest not installing it out of fear it will ruin their warranty.

kadajawi · 06-25-2014, 05:33 AM

Are those Canon owners into video? For me ML would be the only reason to get a Canon. I wish Pentax would hire the ML guys. And if Pentax were really evil, they would stop them from developing ML for Canon. (Though that would piss of many people who might boycott Pentax as a result, so it might not be the best idea...)

PiDicus Rex · 06-25-2014, 08:02 AM

Most of the Canon owners I know are 'into video'.
The few Nikon owners I know are photo-only, with a singular exception, but he used to be an Alpha shooter and got sick of his Sony overheating.
I only know four other 'film & TV' Pentax owners, of those, one shoots 'only photos', the rest do both.

I'd love to see the ML team give Shadowman some assistance, or Pentax to sub-contract them as software engineers.
It would be delightful irony if they were paid to develop new features and improved current ones on our cameras, using skills developed for Canon's.

kadajawi · 06-26-2014, 03:28 AM - **1 Like**

Hm. Sony overheating? Weird. And wouldn't a new Sony solve that problem? I mean Sony is the brand that builds their cameras around LiveView, so they shouldn't overheat...

I think the ML team needs full access to the source code/processor specs, then they could come up with something pretty nice. And the ML team knows what the users want, unlike the Pentax firmware team which only knows what stills photographers want.

05-13-2014, 10:13 AM	#1
DiMattia New Member Join Date: May 2014 Posts: 4	External audio jack Looking for a pentax dslr w/ a external audio jack ... it does not have to be the most expensive or advanced camera out there but it needs to have a external audio... what pentax dslr do you suggest? I bought a k-r w/o doing much reading on them and once I got it found out it does not have a audio jack so im selling the k-r on ebay ... and I need to replace it with a pentax dslr that does have a audio jack. T.I.A.

05-13-2014, 10:35 AM	#2
Adam Administrator Site Webmaster Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Arizona Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 51,608	The models with external audio include the K-7, K-5, K-3, and K-01. I'd recommend one of the latter 2 as they also have manual video controls and a more user-friendly file format. BTW: no for-sale links are allowed outside of the Marketplace. Adam PentaxForums.com Webmaster (Site Usage Guide \| Site Help \| My Photography) PentaxForums.com server and development costs are user-supported. You can help cover these costs by donating or purchasing one of our Pentax eBooks. Or, buy your photo gear from our affiliates, Adorama, B&H Photo, KEH, or Topaz Labs, and get FREE Marketplace access - click here to see how! Trusted Pentax retailers:

05-14-2014, 06:54 AM	#3
PiDicus Rex Veteran Member Join Date: May 2013 Location: Melbourne, Australia Posts: 1,381	Can recommend the K-01 for video production use, so long as you only want the audio to be there as a back-up to audio on a dedicated recorder. Mine has proven it's worth many times over in the past year. Unfortunately, for Audio, it has it's limits. First by a 32kHz sample rate, and a noise floor that is way too high - background sounds get lost in the hiss. Second by an limiter that kicks in during loud recording, such as rock bands and racecars. Best practice with the K-01 is to record the audio to a dedicated recorder and send a feed to the camera, or rig a shotgun mic to get a clear recording to sync the external recorders sound to in post. If you don't have an external recorder and need to use the on-board audio recording, the K3 is a better choice. ( The K-01's other limits are, lack of HDMI out in Record mode, use of video processing for SR instead of Sensor Shift, and Pentax's use of around a 20mbits data rate for the video CoDec ) Last edited by PiDicus Rex; 05-14-2014 at 07:01 AM.

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06-21-2014, 03:22 PM	#4
kadajawi Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2010 Posts: 2,799	And I don't like the K-3 and K-01 for video. I gladly trade in manual video controls for that wonderful shake reduction and the codec the K-5 has. Before I'd get a K-3 or K-01 I'd get any DSLR from Canon or Nikon... after all if I have to work without in body shake reduction, at least I want to be able to use lenses that have shake reduction. Nikon allows external recorders via HDMI, Canon probably too. Their codecs are probably also better. Some of those cameras have a flip out screen, which is a nice advantage. Canon has the wonderful Magic Lantern. Pentax' post K-5 cameras have no advantage over their competitors for video, but plenty of disadvantages. At least despite the K-5's disadvantages it does have some nice advantages too.

06-21-2014, 03:57 PM	#5
Steve.Ledger Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Far North Qld Posts: 3,301	From what I have seen of K-5 and K-5II video I have to agree with kadajawi, the K-01, (also K-30 and K-50) video is inferior.

06-22-2014, 07:02 AM	#6
PiDicus Rex Veteran Member Join Date: May 2013 Location: Melbourne, Australia Posts: 1,381	Can't agree fellahs. Side by side, without Magic Lantern, the Canon video is no better or worse then the K-01 vision. Heck, the 'standard' data-rate for the 5D2 was 22Mbits, it's All i-Frame variant is an advantage, being 45Mbits. Yes, the Canon's can see in to darker locations, and the Nikon's have the extra stop or two of dynamic range over the Pentax. But,.. Price vs Performance, the Pentax kit is waaaay out in front. SR, as I've said before, is not a big deal for me, even if I had a lens with it, I'd disable it, same as I did with my XL-1 in the DV era. There's more advantage to running the camera on a shoulder mount rig or a tripod then to having any form of SR IMHO.

06-24-2014, 05:44 PM	#7
kadajawi Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2010 Posts: 2,799	Originally posted by PiDicus Rex Can't agree fellahs. Side by side, without Magic Lantern, the Canon video is no better or worse then the K-01 vision. Heck, the 'standard' data-rate for the 5D2 was 22Mbits, it's All i-Frame variant is an advantage, being 45Mbits. Yes, the Canon's can see in to darker locations, and the Nikon's have the extra stop or two of dynamic range over the Pentax. But,.. Price vs Performance, the Pentax kit is waaaay out in front. SR, as I've said before, is not a big deal for me, even if I had a lens with it, I'd disable it, same as I did with my XL-1 in the DV era. There's more advantage to running the camera on a shoulder mount rig or a tripod then to having any form of SR IMHO. Yes, without Magic Lantern Canon would not be attractive. However Magic Lantern does exist, and it works. And that creates a huge advantage for Canon. Nikon has tiltable screens, better quality, and lenses with shake reduction, higher frame rates, ... Yesterday I've watched a firework and then went to a concert, so I had my tripod with me. Even then I left my SR on, and it helped smooth pans and other camera movements. (Granted I don't have a video head, but my tripod is still pretty smooth). Using a shoulder mount... I like being mobile, with as little gear as possible. And I believe with SR I can get a smoothness you can't get from a shoulder mount. Would have to try that though.

06-24-2014, 06:55 PM	#8
PiDicus Rex Veteran Member Join Date: May 2013 Location: Melbourne, Australia Posts: 1,381	ML,.. I reckon only about a third of the Canon owners I work with use it. The rest are split with more not knowing about it, and the rest not installing it out of fear it will ruin their warranty.

06-25-2014, 05:33 AM	#9
kadajawi Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2010 Posts: 2,799	Are those Canon owners into video? For me ML would be the only reason to get a Canon. I wish Pentax would hire the ML guys. And if Pentax were really evil, they would stop them from developing ML for Canon. (Though that would piss of many people who might boycott Pentax as a result, so it might not be the best idea...)

06-25-2014, 08:02 AM	#10
PiDicus Rex Veteran Member Join Date: May 2013 Location: Melbourne, Australia Posts: 1,381	Most of the Canon owners I know are 'into video'. The few Nikon owners I know are photo-only, with a singular exception, but he used to be an Alpha shooter and got sick of his Sony overheating. I only know four other 'film & TV' Pentax owners, of those, one shoots 'only photos', the rest do both. I'd love to see the ML team give Shadowman some assistance, or Pentax to sub-contract them as software engineers. It would be delightful irony if they were paid to develop new features and improved current ones on our cameras, using skills developed for Canon's.

06-26-2014, 03:28 AM - 1 Like	#11
kadajawi Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2010 Posts: 2,799	Hm. Sony overheating? Weird. And wouldn't a new Sony solve that problem? I mean Sony is the brand that builds their cameras around LiveView, so they shouldn't overheat... I think the ML team needs full access to the source code/processor specs, then they could come up with something pretty nice. And the ML team knows what the users want, unlike the Pentax firmware team which only knows what stills photographers want.