Boom Pole, Don't Need One?

S

superhardrocker

Active member
Do you need to buy a good boom pole? Or can you just buy a low budget 80 dollar pole? I know you need a shock mount but the pole doesn't effect the sound quality right?
I read an article that says you should make your own pole.
 
So pretty much my question is,
"Is an 80 dollar boom pole going to be much different from a 500 dollar boom pole?"
Sound qualiity wise...
 
A better boom pole will be:

1) Lighter
2) Stronger
3) Quieter
4) Better looking
5) Longer
6) More convenient (regarding XLR placement)

You decide if it's worth it.
 
I second Shawn's opinion!

You should really try to get a carbon fiber pole for all of the reasons above, but especially the fact that less handling noise is transferred up the pole!
 
Regarding home-made poles: painter's poles are designed for painting, monopods are made for cameras, and its almost always less expensive to buy a good boom pole than it is to make one of comparable quality. A good boom pole is a lot more than just a long pole with a threaded tip, and it requires a great deal of manufacturing and prototyping know-how to satisfy the qualifications Bballplaya283 listed.

Of course, if you really want to tape a $600 mic to the end of a $5 mop handle, be my guest.
 
superhardrocker said:
So pretty much my question is,
"Is an 80 dollar boom pole going to be much different from a 500 dollar boom pole?"
Sound qualiity wise...
Click to expand...


OK for the flip side answer. No, it's not going to be "much different". In fact a properly modified painters pole is not going to be "much different". The question really is is it enough different. That depends to a certain extent on what you are doing with it.
It is even arguable that the painters pole (PP) has some advantages over a cheap boom pole.

The BIG pluses with a good pole are weight (though the painters pole I have weighs about the same as the same length K-Tek graphite pole I was just using), size (the K-Tek and the PP weighed about the same but the PP was only two sections so only shrinks to about 6 feet, the K-Tek gets down under 3 feet), convenience (size flexibility is a major factor here). Less important in my opinion is rigidity (the PP is definitely less rigid), handling noise (I didn't find a big difference - I think the shock mount is a much bigger factor here) and internal wiring ( I don't use it anyway so for me it's no big deal).

Cheap boom poles fall in between the PP and a "good" boom pole in some respects and can be worse than the PP in others. Having worked around a number of cheap boom poles I have notice that a common problem is the locking collars. They either get stuck or very hard to lock and lock or they don't lock securely. PP's as a rule have pretty good locking systems that don't slip and aren't hard to operate. Also cheap poles because they try to at least look like the pricier models often have a number of sections and because of cheaper construction are often weaker and heavier than the "good" poles.

And of course if your getting paid looks count, if it's your own deal that isn't so important.

Personally If you have the $300 for a good pole it is money well spent. If this is strictly your own deal, or if your doing FX work or you don't have the money I would tend to favor getting a PP that is light and finding someone to machine a different tip for it while saving up some cash for the above mentioned Gitzo. I would not recommend "taping" a mic to anything. Machining the new tip for my PP took about 1/2 hour and I'm not particularly fast or have a big shop. You should be able to find someone local who has a home shop and would do it for very little, or check with the local Jr. College or high school metal shop teacher. The whole thing shouldn't cost more than $20-$30.

And as I said before (flame retardant) I made the PP for FX recording, and have kept it around for backup on production shoots. We rented a K-Tek for actual use. In practice most of the time the PP would have been fine but it's inability to get under 6' would have been a problem a few times. And of course air travel is pretty much out of the question with the PP.
 
ebay has always has painter's pole to mic thread adapters if you cant find someone to make one for you. dont know how good they are though.
 
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