ALMOST loving my GoPro Hero 5s, but thinking about ditching them

[sixstringsteve]

I'm thinking about offloading my hero 5s and going with the YI 4k or possibly sony. I actually love most things about the Hero 5, but the handling noise is KILLING me. I've had the past 4 GoPro Hero black editions, and they've all served me well, and none of them have had this issue. The handling noise on the hero 5 is a deal-breaker. It's taking a lot of time in post to edit it out, and even then it doesn't come all the way out.

I realize most people don't use the audio on their action cams, but our hero 4 was flawless. I don't know if it's the waterproof design, or if they redid something with the mics.

Anyone have a 4k action cam they like? Here are the features I need:

- replaceable battery
- 4k 24 fps capability
- rugged
- small
- good audio
- an option to make it waterproof (in a housing or something like that). I actually prefer if the camera itself is not waterproof.


Maybe I'll just go back to the hero 4. It worked extremely well for me.

 

[BlueWolfFab]

I noticed that in your last set of videos

 

[spencurai]

If you're doing vlogging and you have a decent phone then you need to get the Osmo-mobile. The Osmo Mobile uses your phone and stabilizes your footage. Most people don't realize how good of video you can get out of an iphone 6/7 or Samsung Galaxy s7 or whatever equivalent phone is on the market. If you go the iphone route then there are many optional mics you can stick on it to get good vlogging audio. Gopro is an action cam and sucks as a vlogging camera.

If you want to step up your game a little bit on the camera side then I suggest the Sony A6300 because it has 5 axis image stabilization and the video just looks incredible...for 1000$ it CANNOT be beat for stills or video! I shot on the A6300 as a B camera for this year's Warren Miller film and the editors LOVED the quality of the footage from that camera!

 

[sixstringsteve]

Thanks for the suggestions.

The hero 4 was great for vlogging for me. I have a nice setup with a good mic when I want high production value, but I miss the grab and go ease of my hero 4. It worked great for me. I've got a feiyu F3 stabilizer that worked well with my hero 4, but now that the hero 5 is a new shape, I can't mount it. I need to see if I can find a new mount that'll work with the hero 5 and maybe my phone.

I have an A7SII and a rhode videomic pro, a nice slider, and some other toys to go with it. It's a fantastic setup, but a little much when I'm climbing around on the roof of the Airstream and I just want a quick shot of what has transpired.

I also have a panasonic g7, which I LOVE, except for one thing: no auto-iso in manual mode. I can get around that, but my sony has spoiled me with its auto iso in manual.

 

[sixstringsteve]

Check out how awful the sound is on my latest video. I'm embarrassed to even use it. This is the hero 5 black. The side door has been removed, and the audio is set to "wind reduction."

[video=youtube;SjNQpw2KHmo]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SjNQpw2KHmo[/video]

We bought a sony X3000 and it's SOOOO much better in the audio department. There are some things I like about the hero 5, but the audio is unusable. The hero 5 has been relegated to MTB footage only. What a waste.

 

[BlueWolfFab]

I didn't hear really any issue in that video, maybe a little bit of rustling but it almost sounds more like noise from your hands or mount however the camera is held.

In the video about Fred's interior is the only audio issues I've noticed.

 

[sixstringsteve]

It sounds like someone is running a backpacking stove in the background every time someone talks. Probably not discernable via a cell phone, but with headphones on its awful for a $350 camera.