choice of mic on low to no budget

N

n1c02

Well-known member
I've been reading alot of threads and asking ALOT of questions... and I have my shotgun mic for outdoor scenes.. I understand now about the echo effect of using it indoor... was testing and wow... I dont have alot to put into a "good"mic at this point.. looking to work my way up as I go.. so ... here goes maybe a loaded question... I have been told to use a hybercardoid indoors...

what are your thoughts of the http://www.sterlingaudio.net/prodimages/sterlingAudioAdmin/products/gallery/ST31 FET-Specs.pdf mic... I know it might be not even on the bottom of the choices for most or even all.. but im working on a very very limited amount right now

I can get this for almost nothing and I thought that if it would work for now I would get it.. I am running my mics through a behringer mixer and then into camera/ possible laptop running audition or ? ... sorry I guess that is two questions.. Do you think using audition for my live sound recording from the mixer is a bad idea or should I be using something else?

Thanks
Terry
 
N1c02, here's the thing: If this is the only mic that is in your budget, then go for it, if you need something right away.

I have always advocated "newer" sound engineers buying lower priced gear. Sure there is better stuff on the market, but your ears may not be able to pick out why. And if you cannot tell that difference, you cannot take advantage of it properly. And that only comes from using gear that is NOT at that level. Once you can actually pick out the issues/flaws on your own, then move up the chain. And.....if you decide that audio is just not your "thing", you won't be so heavily invested in it, that you have to sell the gear at an extreme loss (economy ain't that great right now).

Experience with different gear is crucial to you if you want to pursue a career in audio. When asked by another engineer what you think about Brand X, Model Y.... you will be able to give an experienced opinion, rather than just parrot someone else's opinion.

As to your second question, I am always leery of using a computer as a recorder. Too many thing can go wrong. A dedicated audio recording device is always the best route. No worries about drivers, resources being taken up by hidden programs and processes, viruses, etc. And portability issues.

I know this may not help you immediately. But it may help you in the future, if you decide audio IS your "thing". LOL, and if you do...........our intervention meetings are at the Y, 8:00PM everyday beginning with the letter R. Welcome to our Insanity Club. You think camera guys are nuts........ The funny thing is, sound guys are usually the most informed about any process on set. Including camera ops.
 
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Yes I was thinking about that.. I hope to get a Zoom H4n soon ao for now I will got from mixer to camera.
and thanks for the reply.
 
No prob, friend. I always try to help other aspiring audio guys, an d share what little I know. Just know this, audio is one of those specialties that has a huge learning curve, but very under-appreciated on set. We are the "whipping boy" of many directors. LOL. Camera department say something ain't right and the set shuts down, audio says the same thing.."WTF, audio.....geez, let's move on, we'll fix it in post." Even though they all say "oh, yes audio is 50% of the movie experience".
But let's not go down that road.:happy:
 
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I have learned alot both by reading and watching the good,bad, and ugly of films and seems audio is one thing that sticks with me.. you are right bad audio= poor film... unfortunatly, im on a very low budget working on my first and very small screw so I am trying to learn as much as I can as I go. I have been working on this project for over a year now but I refuse to "just" film" and go with it. I feel if I can help it. I will do everything within my power um and wallet to help it. Ive been a musician for 20+ years, and that means nothing coming into creating an illusion that the viewer actaully feels they are a part of. I hope one day that I am able to hire an actual sound guy, ect. but even with that, I feel it is very important to know what is gonig on in all aspects of the process.
 
I assume you know this already, but just as a reminder, that microphone is phantom power only. You'll need to supply power from your mixer/preamp/recorder/camera somehow to use it. You may have already faced this with your shotgun but just to cover all the bases ...

- Greg
 
That mic is a cardioid mic designed for closeup work recording musical instruments. I know the specs call it a "hyper-cardioid" in one place but the rest of those pages you linked to call it just plain cardioid and the polar patterns illustrated are definitely cardioid, NOT hypercardioid. Hypercardioids are more directional, almost as directional as a shotgun. I would expect it to be only marginal ar best for recording dialog as its normal working distance would be fairly close, 6 to 8 inches from the mouth, too close to be able to keep out of the shot. Also it appears to be a side-address mic, definitely not suited for use on a boom pole.

Nothing wrong with recording to a laptop per se but it can be awkward to do in the field. Also, most laptop sound cards aren't the best audio quality in the world so without a high quality external audio inteface to replace it, the added hassle probably isn't going to buy you any real improvement over recording straight to the camera.
 
Not only side address, it's a mid-size diaphragm. In other words, this thing is very large for any considerable boom usage. It will get very heavy, very fast, when used on a pole.
 
I own one of these mics and have used it for indoor dialog and seems to perform well. It is a Hyper and does require Phantom, also on another note, this mic weighs more than most small condensers so be prepared for the weight on the end of a boom.

For the price you will be satisfied with the results im sure, I was and Im a fairly picky guy. and it only looks to be side addressed because the looks of the grill but it is direct addressed.
if that is all you can afford I think it will do you good. keep in mind wind protection as moving it about can cause some issues from the air movement.

Good luck
 
recordingwhiz said:
I own one of these mics and have used it for indoor dialog and seems to perform well. It is a Hyper and does require Phantom, also on another note, this mic weighs more than most small condensers so be prepared for the weight on the end of a boom.

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If it actuallly is hyper someone on the mfgr website screwed up. No way are those polar patterns shown for ths mic hypercardioid
 
In actual use it exhibits the behavior of a Hyper.

I purchased this just for giggles just because it was so cheap , tried it on a project I was working on that I had the latitude to experiment and it turned out more than acceptable in indoor dialog. I was using a eng44 into a Tascam 03 I think (dont exactly remember which one of my recorders i had at the time) but now that Im in post with the project the audio from this mic sounds very nice. Unfortunately at this time I do not have permission to post the scene but when I do, I will post it.
In my opinion its very much worth the price and you get a nice work out booming it, but not too too bad.

For the budget minded I highly recommend it.
 
So I'm jumping in late. I had some of the same reactions as above. This is a heavy mic to have on the end of a boom. Side address isn't nec an issue but it's harder ti work with (less intuitive, and not sure how you get a zep on it?).

Cardioid is not the end of the world. In fact if your just starting out it may even be a plus since it is more forgiving positionally. You do need to work close and you will pick up more room. But you always need to work close, the hyper doesn't pick up what it'a aiming at any louder than a cardioid it just picks up more around it. A lot of low budget films are in more "real" locations so as long as the place isn't bounce city it can work well.

Given that I would look at a CAD mic as an alternative. You can get a pair of these for $60. They are also cardioid but very light and small. The sound decent and have not much in bas response so handing noise is very low.

Buying inexpensive is not a bad thing, buying cheap can be. You want to buy inexpensive gear that will be good enough to have some use/ value later on. The mic you linked and the CAD both fit that I think. The CAD are really good as plant mics and for putting in places where the mic is in danger, and they sound pretty decent. Yours is probably going to move on to Foley or VO work. In both cases they won't be throw aways.

If you have a Mac then BOOM RECORDER is a very nice and inexpensive production recording app. I don't know of any on Windows.

As a rule you don't want "normal" audio programs because they are not designed to work the way you need to on set. BoomRecorder is.

A stand alone recorder is a must if your going to be mobile but if you have fixed locations with power then a Mac and BoomRecorder works very well.
 
The ST31 I own is NOT side addressed. it just looks that way, instead of having slots on the side like we are accustomed to seeing.
And I had it on a AT Shock mount and had no issues with handling noise, with high pass on the mixer engaged, yet still had a very nice natural not hyped sound to it, with a nice not too tight operating pick up window with good side rejection.
For the money I don't regret the purchase, altho I do own much better mics for indoor dialog, in my situation this will make a nice high hat or acoustic instrument mic, and a very respectable back up for my other mics, and a nice addition to the mic locker.

I find the slightly larger diaphragm provides a nice balanced timbre.
 
again I know im "cheap" only due to lack of funds so I try to do what I can,, so the current mics I have I know alot will frown upon but. You have to use what you have to get going.. I have a Azden sgmx1 and an MXL 1006... Im currently looking at ways to liquidate some other things that I have to get better.. not sure if that will happen.. but this project means alot and I dont want it falling to te wayside because of bad sound.. so I will have to learn how to use what I have to the best of my ability and see how it goes..... crossing fingers right now and hoing to land a good deal on craigslist or something.

unnamed.jpgmxl1006kit.jpg
 
n1c02 said:
again I know im "cheap" only due to lack of funds so I try to do what I can,, so the current mics I have I know alot will frown upon but. You have to use what you have to get going.. I have a Azden sgmx1 and an MXL 1006... Im currently looking at ways to liquidate some other things that I have to get better.. not sure if that will happen.. but this project means alot and I dont want it falling to te wayside because of bad sound.. so I will have to learn how to use what I have to the best of my ability and see how it goes..... crossing fingers right now and hoing to land a good deal on craigslist or something.
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Just remember the old saying, you can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear.
 
Azden doesn't make a "bad" shottie. It is "inexpensive", though. There is a difference.

Like someone said, there is a difference between "cheap" and inexpensive. At least there is a difference in the definitions to me.
 
If you can score the Sterling I think you will be happy with the results, for all your indoor shoots.

the MXL is probably not going to do you much good, as its pick up pattern is fairly wide so keeping it out of the shot would be kind of hard not to mention heavy. but will be a decent choice for narration or voice-over, so you have a solid mic for that.

And even tho a lot of people frown on the Azden it is still a decent mic that should at least get you workable audio with proper techniques.

so even tho you are on a tight budget you seem to be headed in a decent direction.

Good luck
 
I got the MXL the other day basically free so i couldnt pass it up. I thought of using it for VO.... seemed like a good deal. LOL.. thanks guys for all of your help.. as usual. gotta say. glad you guys are here..
 
The best budget mic is the Studio Projects B1 but it is too heavy to boom. After that, the Zoom H2 is tough to beat. Ultra cheap options include the Naiant mics and some of the cheap Marshalls. But the mics in the Zoom H2 are good.
 
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