200-300$ mic for filmmaking?

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RaduR998

New member
Hello,

I'm planing to buy a mic for my video productions.I am going to shoot as well as outdoor and indoor and I need a reliable mic which would perform well in both conditions.I have a budget of 200-300$.

P.S:I was think of NTG-2;AT897 or AT8035/AT8015

Please help me with your opnions please :D
 
honestly, they're all in the same league and will get you good sound. the rodes tend to be a bit hotter, the ATs a bit warmer, but it's going to come down to how properly you use it. the 35/15 i believe will have a bit better 'long range' quality, but they are also physically longer
 
RaduR998 said:
I am going to shoot as well as outdoor and indoor and I need a reliable mic which would perform well in both conditions.I have a budget of 200-300$.
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As mentionned before, the NTG-2 is a good one, but one mic for all can't really do it. At least, a very few mics could do it in that price range.
But something I've learned recently, using blankets and carpet can help the absorbtion of the sound, and make a mic that would initially pick up echo, perform a lot better. So, the NTG-2 indoor, with blanket out of the frame and carpets on the ground could help a lot for sure. Boom it as close as you can to get the best Signal-to-Noise ratio and you should be good to go.
 
If you can only afford to go with one mic given your budget, I would recommend the Sennheiser MKE600, which can be bought for about $330 by itself. I sold my Rode NTG-2 after using the MKE600 for a couple of months, as I found that it performed better indoors ( less sensitive to off-axis reflected sounds ) and had a nicer sound with vocals. If your budget is really tight, the Audio-Technica AT875 is another shotgun mic that performs well indoors, though it's a bit weak in the lower frequency range, but this can be fixed with some EQ in post.
 
RaduR998 said:
What do you think about Azden SGM-2X? Because it comes with two barrels : 8'' and 15'' ?
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I've never used any Azden audio product that I thought was any good, and reading a few of the reviews on the B&H Photo web page it doesn't sound like this mic is any different.
 
RaduR998 said:
What do you think about Azden SGM-2X?
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Owned an SGM-1x once. It's a nice addition to any starter kit. It'll improve your sound for sure when it's your first mic. But when I moved to the NTG2, the quality was just horrible to compare with. It's a fair entry level mic, as long as you don't pay over 130$ for it. Sold mine for 100$.
 
The only 'one mic' setup I'm comfortable recommending is the Sankin CS-3E, which is NOT an interference tube shotgun.. it ain't a low budget mic though. Azden gear is not highly regarded by most audio professionals and their 8'' and 15'', both are likely an interference tube design, and either 'could be' an issue indoors. In the pro world, long shotguns are rarely used and would at the bottom of the wish list.. IMO
 
Rick R said:
The only 'one mic' setup I'm comfortable recommending is the Sankin CS-3E, which [..] ain't a low budget mic though.
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Exactly what I had in mind. When you're living out of your gear (as many are doing here) it might be thinkable to invest in one. But as I'll speak for the hobbyist part, it's simply not an option.
 
I have a NTG2, a Sennheiser MKE 600, and two AT 875s. The AT 875 is usually my first pick, the MKE 600 has better side rejection and I would use that as a fist pick for outdoors. What makes the AT 875 shine is how senitive it is, so not much gain is needed from the camera or recorder, so less noise from the preamps. It does need phantom power where the other two have the battery option.
 
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