Mixing wireless lav with the Rode NTG3

[Erick Stoll]

I'm in the process of investing in a mid-range sound setup for primarily two-person verité documentary work. I'm more or less settled on the Rode NTG3 as our boom mic--the price point is perfect, and our op is still a relative novice, so the forgiving polar pattern seems helpful.

I've got two sets of the Sony UWP wireless system with the stock lav mic, and I'm looking to upgrade just the mic. I'm shopping in the $200-$250 range.

The Question: Do I need to consider how the lav will mix with whatever boom I choose? If so, what sony-compatible lav would be best?

thanks.

 

[Sam Mallery]

There are different opinions about how well various kinds of lavs cut together with various kinds of shotguns. Personally, I don't think you need to over-complicated this process. The important thing to do is to simply buy good quality lav mics for your wireless system. If I were to only be able to buy one kind of mic for your two systems, my first choice would be the Countryman B6:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produ...N_B6_Omnidirectional_Lavalier_Microphone.html

If I had the luxury of being able to buy a second set to use, I would get a pair of Sanken COS11:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produ...S_11D_Miniature_Omnidirectional_Lavalier.html

The Countryman is my first choice because they're smaller, and easier to hide, and overall less obtrusive when you don't need to hide them. The COS11 are nice to have becuase they sound great, but they can be a little more difficult to hide. That's why it's nice to have both.

EDIT: I changed the link to the B6 so it has the proper Sony connector

Also...

For your budget, you can get the slightly larger Countryman B3:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produ...N_B3_Omnidirectional_Lavalier_Microphone.html

 

[Greg Smith]

Consider the Rode Lavalier as well. It's in the same size range as the Sanken, but the big advantage is that the cables and connectors are interchangeable and field-replaceable, which might be very worthwhile if you develop a noisy cable in a verite-style situation and need to replace it quickly. You'd need the appropriate MiCon connector for your wireless transmitter (and spare cables if you want to carry them). The sound is good, but I don't have an NTG-3 and therefore can't tell you how they compare directly.

- Greg