Buy the Rode NTG 2 or Hire the Sennheiser MKH 416?

D

DoubleP

Member
Hi everyone

For the last 6 months I’ve been toiling with my unfinished script, also while acquiring some vfx skills and currying some favours from other talented people by acting as a the guy with the camera for free (so I may call upon them some day).

Now I’ve finally got my script, found actor willing to work for free and also found a location or two.

Only problem - not a big one, but huge. Sound!!! I’ve never recorded dialogues or ever used external mics for that matter with my beloved DVX (having only video-ed – NOT DIRECTED - music videos and promos for crappy bands that nobody knows about). And having just about enough budget for props & costumes for the movie and food and transport for the actors (the crew…which is me and some other guy will probably starve) I can just about afford the Rode NTG 2.

From what I have read on this site, it’s a decent mic for what its worth. But I’m wondering if it’s worth spending even less money and HIRE the Sennheiser MKH416 for a week (which is how long it’ll take me to get the talky bits). The rode costs £130 to buy without the boom while I can get the MKH 416 + boom pole + fluffy + cable for £60/week).

What do you guys reckon? My only worry is that I’ve read the MKH 416 is not very forgiving in how the mic is placed from the mouth of the actors. And being inexperienced in sound I can totally see myself screwing up. In that case would it not be advisable to own the Rode NTG instead of rehire the 416 if it ever came to a reshoot. Maybe some of you guys who have worked with the 416 can give some advice on how to use it properly and not screw up. By the way the dialogue parts of the movie are all indoor, mainly in front of a green screen.

Thank you all for your help and advice. My movies name is The Brick Wall by the way. It’s a psychological thriller. I’ll post more details about it in the User Films section in case anyone’s interested, as soon as I have finalised a few more things.

 
You can afford just the NTG2? What about boompole, shockmount, wind protection, cable? With a camera mounted mic it makes very little difference which mic you end up using.
 
DoubleP said:



And being inexperienced in sound I can totally see myself screwing up. In that case would it not be advisable to own the Rode NTG instead of rehire the 416 if it ever came to a reshoot. Maybe some of you guys who have worked with the 416 can give some advice on how to use it properly and not screw up. By the way the dialogue parts of the movie are all indoor, mainly in front of a green screen.

Thank you all for your help and advice. My movies name is The Brick Wall by the way. It’s a psychological thriller. I’ll post more details about it in the User Films section in case anyone’s interested, as soon as I have finalised a few more things.
Click to expand...

At the risk of sounding (ha) like a broken record, all I can say is hire a mic but with an experienced sound person to go with it.

Sound is extremely critical and so why are you risking it?

Your life will be a lot easier on this project if you can put the money you would use for owning something towards hiring a person with their equipment that they know inside and out. Then relax and focus on your project. Believe me, it's best that way.
 
all I can say is hire a mic but with an experienced sound person to go with it.
Click to expand...

Exactly. Hiring a competent audio person will get you all the gear you need, as well as having someone who knows how to properly use it!
 
DoubleP said:
.... Maybe some of you guys who have worked with the 416 can give some advice on how to use it properly and not screw up. By the way the dialogue parts of the movie are all indoor, mainly in front of a green screen.

Click to expand...

A point to consider ... unless you're shooting on a properly deadened soundstage, a 'gun mic is problematic indoors whether you're talking about the 416 or the Rode. The 416 is especially unforgiving. Look into a hypercardioid instead, whether you decide to hire or buy.
 
Thank you all for your replies. I just spent the morning calling up a few hiring places so see how much it costs to hire a sound technician.

I'm based in London. So everything is really expensive (A DVX here can cost upto £2000 ($4000) as opposed to $2000 in America). Here are a few hire companies in and around London that I could dig up online.

www.decodeuk.com
www.ibhltduk.com
www.axisfilms.co.uk
www.stronghire.com
www.filmscapemedia.com

The lowest rate to hire a technician they told me about is £200/day as opposed to hiring just the Sennheiser 416 kit for just £15/day. Since I need the technician and his equipment for at least a few days, it seems to be way more than I can afford to spend at the moment. Does anybody know of or had experience with any other place around London that would be more affordable perhaps.

Also Steve said that the Rode or 416 gun mics may in appropriate to use indoors and maybe I should get a hypercardioid instead. The hypercardioid that seems to be recommended in the sticky in sound section is the Oktaka. But most uk dealer (the big ones are www.dv247.com and www.turnkey.co.uk) don’t sell that. In fact the equipment hire places listed above only have me66, mhk 416 or the rode ntg ones. I don’t even see any hypercardioid listed on their sites. Can you guys suggest any other one that might be more get-able in London. (Its really inconvenient to get hold of things here).

Thank you all again
 
DoubleP said:
....
Also Steve said that the Rode or 416 gun mics may in appropriate to use indoors and maybe I should get a hypercardioid instead. The hypercardioid that seems to be recommended in the sticky in sound section is the Oktaka. But most uk dealer (the big ones are www.dv247.com and www.turnkey.co.uk) don’t sell that. In fact the equipment hire places listed above only have me66, mhk 416 or the rode ntg ones. I don’t even see any hypercardioid listed on their sites. Can you guys suggest any other one that might be more get-able in London. (Its really inconvenient to get hold of things here).

Thank you all again
Click to expand...


The industry standard hyper is the Schoeps CMC641. Others to consider might be the Audio Tecnica AT4053a or the AKG Blueline SE300/CK93 or ULS C480/CK63 combos. Sennheiser MKH50 also has some following.
 
DoubleP said:
Thank you all for your replies. I just spent the morning calling up a few hiring places so see how much it costs to hire a sound technician.

I'm based in London. So everything is really expensive (A DVX here can cost upto £2000 ($4000) as opposed to $2000 in America). Here are a few hire companies in and around London that I could dig up online.

The lowest rate to hire a technician they told me about is £200/day as opposed to hiring just the Sennheiser 416 kit for just £15/day. Since I need the technician and his equipment for at least a few days, it seems to be way more than I can afford to spend at the moment. Does anybody know of or had experience with any other place around London that would be more affordable perhaps.

Thank you all again
Click to expand...

From what I know about conditions with UK filming (in the production arena, esp. TV) I know that there are people looking for work. Despite what you have been quoted, you can always bargain. And you can think about putting out an advert for someone. Post them in rental shops and other similar places. Call the film schools and ask if anyone wants to work for cheap and be able to add to their resume. That's what I do here (and I've had some really talented assistants.) I also look and post on CraigsList here.

Even in Los Angeles skilled people will work gratis if they like your project.

Keep trying.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top