I am amazed at the new GoPro Hero4 Silver—one of two new Hero4 cameras; there is also the GoPro Hero4 Black. So many great improvements with these, they are almost a whole new product line yet still carry the same pricing. The Hero4 Silver/Music is $399 MSRP and includes: The Frame, rechargeable battery, removable instrument mounts, microphone stand mount adapter, protective lens and cap, 3-way pivot arm and USB cable.
The most visible change is the touch screen. Heretofore an optional screen plugged into the back of the Hero3+; it is now built into the back of the camera body and somehow maintains the same size and depth. My existing collection of Hero3+ frames and water-proof enclosures are interchangeable with the Hero4 cameras.
The Hero4 cameras have improved image quality, better low light performance with auto frame rate adjustment and now they have twice as powerful processors capable of up to 2X faster video frame rates.
I found shooting video better than ever. With my GoPro Hero4 Silver, I use QuickCap- ture for one-button recording of short videos to play on my classroom’s large flat panel monitor. Since the touch screen is now part of the camera, it is easy to change settings at any time as required with each new clip.
Such a big leap from my Hero3+ camera, I’m finding even more ways to use the Hero4 Silver.
Barry Rudolph is a recording engineer/mixer who has worked on over 30 gold and platinum records. He has recorded and/or mixed Lynyrd Skynyrd, Hall & Oates, Pat Benatar, Rod Stewart, the Corrs and more. Barry has his own futuristic music mixing facility and loves teaching audio engineering at Musician’s Institute, Hollywood, CA. He is a lifetime Grammy-voting member of NARAS and a contributing editor for Mix Magazine. barryrudolph.com
