Baby Ball Gag enough for wind protection?

[jgastelb]

I plan to get the oktava mic with hypercardiod this weekend. I'm planning on using it mostly for indoors but wanted to know if I were to use it outdoors would the baby ball bag give me enough wind protection in most cases? Or, should I take the plunge and get the furry friend as well? No one seems to mention the 'severe wind protection' which is $49 (from the soundroom) when purchasing this mic so I take it it may not be enough to cancel some of the noise???
Jgastelb

ps. I have the rode ntg-1 which works well outdoors and has the same diameter as the oktava so I'm thinking I can use this baby ball bag for both mics...

 

[Petrus]

BBG works quite well by itself unless the wind is strong. Usually Octava is used only indors and there BBG is plenty enough for boom swings, as Octava is very sensetive to air movement.

You should get the furry thing is you are planning to use the Octava outdoors a lot, just to be on the safe side. All wind protection works as a hi-cut filter, so too much wind protection is not a good thing in critical work.

If the business end of NYG-1 (all side holes are hidden) fits all the way inside the BBG it would work. Have to test this myself.

 

[MattinSTL]

I doubt the ntg1 is going to work with the BBG... it's going to be too long.

I've said before that there will be many times when you can use the Oktava outdoors with great results... the same booming rules apply... if you can boom pretty close then you can use it indoors or outdoors. If you can't boom close, or if you need extreme attenuation of unwanted, off-axis sound, then you need a shotgun.

On a calm day with barely a gentle breeze the BBG will be enough... but if there's a significant breeze then you'll need the Jammer. Basically if you step outside on a cool day where you're comfortable when the air is still, but it makes you want to put on a jacket when the air is moving... then the BBG needs fur... if it's a hot day and you notice that the air is moving enough to realize a difference in comfort versus still air... you need fur on the BBG.

The BBG alone is just about enough to control indoor, dynamic booming... so you can swing the mic from one person to another and the BBG will usually handle the windnoise 100% fine (depending on the boom op).

The BBG alone is at least twice as effective as the "extreme conditions" screen that sells for $49... and of course that's reflected in the price... but even still, I woudn't BANK on wind control in an unpredictable situation. Adding the fur to the BBG doesn't hurt your highs noticeably in most normal dialog situations. I say when in doubt get the fur out.

As for using the BBG on other mics... if they are close in diameter and they are hyper, cardioid, or even omni... then you can use the same screen. The problem with shotguns is that they have a long interference tube with a diaphragm at the back of that tube... wind hitting the diaphragm is what causes wind noise... and of course the shape and design of that interference tube is what gives a shotgun it's sound and rejection characteristics... soooo... that means you need to have that entire working system, everything from the end of the interference tube all the way to past the diaphragm, within the same working dead air space. Follow me? When you see a softie you're still looking at a similar idea... a softie is an open-celled foam center, with a fur "jacket", and a sealing gasket that holds tightly onto the mic body after the diaphragm... this effectively puts the entire working system of the shotgun within the same consistent wind protection... so even though the diaphragm is at the back end of that tube full of slots... you still need to treat a shotgun as if the entire length is important, because it is.

I'm sure it's a common misconception that the diaphragm is at the front of the tube, but even if that was the case it still wouldn't matter... the interference tube is critical to the mic's performance.

 

[jgastelb]

Thank you guys!

I was thinking that maybe I could use the bbg with the shotgun but it sounds like a no-go for this. The shotgun is definitely longer and wider (22mm) as opposed to the Oktava (20mm). I went ahead and took the plunge and ordered the Oktava (hyper capsule), BBG and windjammer. I think that this will give me more options when it's absolutely necessary to get that outdoor shot that cannot wait. Though, I will use my Rode for outdoors but I'm curious to hear what the Oktava will do. One of the other members had a Children's Shakespeare teaser on the dvx grab section and he used the Oktava (outdoors) with all of the forementioned accessories and had a very clean and crisp sound so that's why I asked. Thanks again for being very informative.

Jgastelb