A $1300 question, one mic or two

for_mlove

for_mlove

Well-known member
Lately I've been looking to step up my game in the audio department. I've been recording with a Tram TR50 lav and NTG-2 shotgun into a Zoom H4n, but just haven't been happy with the sound I'm getting. Just added a Mix Pre-d and am super happy with that, but now I want to replace the NTG-2. I've been reading a lot of posts and doing a lot of research and right now I'm feeling torn between getting two good miss or one great mic, here are the options I'm considering:

Option A.
-AT 4053b for interior
-NTG-3 for exterior

Option B.
-MKH 8060 for both and getting an "interior" mic in a year or two

Option C.
-A great recommendation from the DVXuser community!!

I shoot freelance and personal projects, so there's a lot of variety, from sitting interviews to narrative projects to run and gun style shooting.

Thanks for the advice!!
 
Consider the Sanken CS-3e instead of the MKH8060 -- it works just as well as an outdoor shotgun, but the dual-capsule design is a little less prone to phasing effects when used indoors than most other shotgun mics, so it would work better until you can afford to add that hyper. Cost is roughly the same as the 8060.

- Greg
 
gonzo_entertainment said:
You could also consider sticking with the mics and upgrading the recorder.
Click to expand...

I had thought about that, but after adding the Sound Devices Mix Pre-D I didn't think swapping out the Zoom would make a whole lot of difference. I'm coming out the Mix Pre-D into the line level input on the Zoom and the recordings are coming out really clean and clear. I've been super impressed with that pre-amp.
 
I don't think changing the recorder would make much of a difference in this case. While the H4n might not be the best out there, it is quite flexible, and can work well as a bitbucket.

May I ask what kind of work/projects you mostly do? If it's a lot of run and gun, docu and such where you might not have the time to always switch mic, the CS3e is a great suggestion (quite flat, practically no proximity effect, and rejects most fequencies equally well). It might be a tad bit noisy in very quiet locations, according to some who have tried it (but maybe that was the CS3, which was noisier). I would definately go for A instead of B, but between A and the CS3e I'm not shure. I would suggest you rent one for a day and try it out in different places.
 
Option A. The 8060 is really nice, but I find I need an interior mic more often than a shotgun. The 4053 and NTG3 sound great.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top