used neumann - good deal?

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djembeplay

Well-known member
Hey,

What do you guys think about $850 for a Neumann KMR81I? It is used and in pristine condition.

Think it's a good deal?

Thanks.
 
850 its about what normal uzed 81 goes, if it in pristine condition and you like the sound it is very nice mic
 
Good deal for a great mic, very versatile, quite forgiving also in the hands of unexperienced boom operators and, in my view, a very good camera mic (if you have to go down that path).

Martin
 
the mic is sensitive to high humidity - starts buzzing , not every one , but it does happen, so work inside zeppelin to minimize the moister
 
Awesome, thanks for the feedback guys.

Are these common to find for sale at this price? Heh, I am trying to decide if I should jump on this deal or not.

I do want a great shotgun... but I do also get sick after I buy expensive things sometimes, lol.

One thing... it doesn't come with the stock softie... is this a problem? The stock softie can be replaced cheap anyways, right?

Also, the cheapest price I found this new for was at B&H for about $1,350. Is there any place that you guys know of that sells it new for significantly cheaper? I mean, if there is, I may consider just buying new.

Oleg, I will mostly be shooting outside with it on hikes and camping trips. Does moisture bother it only if it is really foggy out or an extreme condition like that? Or will something even more mild like a humid summer day bother it?

Xaxa, so you didn't find the length a problem or an obstruction for camera mounting? That is mostly what I will be doing with it, as I need to stay light and portable.
 
buy audio techica 4073 for what you need , grate mic for grate price - the exta what you save buy something usiful for your self as i alwais say -vacation from this site :)
 
Really? An AT 4073? Isn't the sound considered inferior though? I want stellar audio as I may be recording anything from instruments to wildlife. How do you think the sound compares?
 
djembeplay said:
Awesome, thanks for the feedback guys.
Xaxa, so you didn't find the length a problem or an obstruction for camera mounting? That is mostly what I will be doing with it, as I need to stay light and portable.
Click to expand...

We used the KMR81 for our last project, mainly on the boom outside (in a blimp), but also quite a lot on the Camera (with a softie). As camera mount I used a combination of the Sennheiser MZS 6 and the MZQ 6; it isolates very well from handling and camera noise and is small and compact. Not really a cheap option but I tried out many shockmounts and this simple combo works best for me. I didn't find the length to be a problem. But handheld shooting is certainly not as confortable as without.

We used the KMR quite a lot outdoors in bad wether, sometimes quickly switching between indoor and outdoor shoots. I never had moisture problems up to now. I also used it on an trip to India during monsoon. No problems there either. But I also heard about people with moisture problems. So no guarantees.

Just consider this: If you intend to use it primarily on camera it might be a waste of money, depending on your camera pre-amps. I love the sound the of KMR81 but you will loose a lot of it when your pre-amps are bad. When used on a PD150 or Z1 without external mic pre-amp I was always very disappointed. With a good preamp, however, its a very good camera mic. So if you follow Olegs advice with the AT and get a Sound Devices preamp with the rest of the money you will almost certainly be happier.

Martin
 
also remeber that the kmr out is about 12 db less then the 4073 , so if you intend push the camera preamps it would add more hiss in very low levels recording
staright to the camera , mics as 4073 are much better option
 
Oh wow,

I am glad I asked you guys first! I was about to buy this KMR.

Oleg, by "on the camera ? even better", do you mean the AT4073 sounds even better than the KMR on-camera?

Alright, I will definitely look towards the 4073. Is this the best shotty I can get for camera-mount?

I have a couple more things to run by you guys... Another thing I was thinking is... are there any pre-amp options that are easily portable and usable by a solo shooter? Any that can be camera-mounted as well? Or are they all fairly relative to the size of a home stereo system pre-amp?

So the HVX pre-amps arent too great, huh?

Last, what do you guys think of Mini-Disk recorders? I have a nice model right now and can record PCM to it... I don't know though, it only takes an 1/8' adapter and most of these mics need phantom power it seems.
 
you can go staraight for hvx , in your situation , less it more
get wierless mic and hook it on someone and run the secend channel

how it sounds on the camera - probably it would sound the same , but since the 4073 has much grater output you will open the gain much less , you will need some good protection from the wind , the k-teck have nice one with suspension to hook on the camera .
about minidisk m it wouldnt give you any better sound then the camera .
kmr has more acurate sound but it is a total waist in your situation .
 
by the way , if you dont work dv , you can live your camera mic in on position and get some stereo image so you can add
 
Oleg 2 said:
by the way , if you dont work dv , you can live your camera mic in on position and get some stereo image so you can add
Click to expand...

Oh, you mean leave the stock mic the camera comes with to one channel and record with the external mic to a seperate channel?
 
djembeplay said:
AAh, I see, I see...

What do you think about the option of running a KMR into a small, portable pre-amp like this:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=8011&A=details&Q=&sku=406896&is=REG&addedTroughType=categoryNavigation

It looks like I could strap this guy to my belt or tripod maybe?



Also, how does the 4073 compare to the sennheiser MKH-416 for a camera-mounted mic?



Thanks a ton for helpin' out Oleg.
Click to expand...


that one does not have analog outs - as i said you dont need it at all in asituation you are
the 416 better mic , but olso doesnt give you any bonus as camera mount
 
djembeplay said:
Oh, you mean leave the stock mic the camera comes with to one channel and record with the external mic to a seperate channel?
Click to expand...

to 2 chnels and another 2 use fopr 2 external -shot gun and wireless -
the hvx can do 4 chanels
 
Ah, ok.

So the only option for a pre-amp would be something way too big an bulky for one person to operate alone... especially someone who needs to stay light and portable like myself, right?


I will most likely go with the AT4073 based on your recommendation. There is no other shotgun that will yield cleaner sound than this going straight to camera, right?

One thing that came to mind is... In your opinion overall, do you think I would be better off going with a shotgun or a cardiod / hyper-cardiod for my purposes?
 
cool- So AT4073 hands down, right?

And, I dont know the general size and power requirements of pre-amps, but it would probably be way too heavy, bulky, and cumbersome for a solo-shooter like myself, right?
 
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