Should I get a new mic or work with what I've got (ME 66)

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Evan Shaw

Member
Ok. So there I was. All ready to buy an NTG-3 this afternoon. I was going to get the full kit on B and H with a pole and softie etc. It was literally in my shopping cart. Then.. out of nowhere my intern who was organizing some of our gear comes to me with an ME66 K6 that seems to be in perfect shape. Apparently the guy who had my job before me had it, and it got shuffled around somehow and I had no idea we even owned it.

So, my question is this. I realize the NTGs are (arguably) better values for the money. But since I have the ME66 should I just stick with it, get a softie and a boom (which apparently we don't have either) and call it a day...saving several hundred $$? Money is fairly tight. I can swing the NTG, but I think I'd rather save the money and spend it on a bigger need that on something I already have if the ME66 will do the job.

I shoot mainly interviews in studio, and a few here and there out of it, but I do some run and gun type stuff. I work for an athletic department, so the most demanding thing I'll be using it for will be shooting bench sound during our football games. I need something that can cut through the noise of a stadium and pick up a conversation from a few yards away. Can the ME66 handle that fairly well?

I'm admittedly not very well versed when it comes to audio, so I'm trying to catch up this weekend before I decide on what to buy Monday.

Thanks for any help!

Evan
 
The K6 / ME 66 is an excellent mic. and will do very well for you. Just get a Rycotr S-series for it and you'll be fine.

You also have far greater flexibility with the K series as you have loads of other mic. heads available so you can get extra heads and the same K6 module can then do several other jobs as well.

If you do want to go better - don't forget that Sennheiser have recently slashed the price of the original MKH 416 so it's now very much cheaper.
 
Evan Shaw said:
I need something that can cut through the noise of a stadium and pick up a conversation from a few yards away. Can the ME66 handle that fairly well?
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Nope. The NTG-3 won't do that, either. In fact, there's not a mic in the world that can accomplish that. The effective working distance for most mics when it comes to dialog is about 12", 3' tops. The more extraneous sound you have, the closer the mic needs to be.

When you hear clear audio from the sidelines during a game, you're hearing sound collected with a parabolic system. You'd need a Big Ears system, but prepare to spend quite a bit on that... or rent if you can.

John Willett said:
If you do want to go better - don't forget that Sennheiser have recently slashed the price of the original MKH 416 so it's now very much cheaper.
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Very true, and I think we can thank RODE for that since they came out with a very strong competitor to the 416 that was half the price. With the reduced price on the 416, the NTG-3 is still $300 less and, in my opinion, is still the better deal.
 
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C2V said:
Nope. The NTG-3 won't do that, either. In fact, there's not a mic in the world that can accomplish that. The effective working distance for most mics when it comes to dialog is about 12", 3' tops. The more extraneous sound you have, the closer the mic needs to be.

When you hear clear audio from the sidelines during a game, you're hearing sound collected with a parabolic system. You'd need a Big Ears system, but prepare to spend quite a bit on that... or rent if you can.
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I may have exaggerated the distance a little bit. I don't mean across the field sound, or even sound on the field. I'd definitely need a parabolic for that. I mean for stuff like this...

http://www.hulu.com/watch/123951/sounds-of-the-game-episode-21

Which is shot with a boom and a shotgun.

At most probably 5 feet away. Some extraneous stuff is fine, but I'd obviously like to keep it as clean as possible. Sorry for the confusion there.

Thanks for the replies!
 
Evan Shaw said:
I may have exaggerated the distance a little bit. I don't mean across the field sound, or even sound on the field. I'd definitely need a parabolic for that. I mean for stuff like this...

http://www.hulu.com/watch/123951/sounds-of-the-game-episode-21

Which is shot with a boom and a shotgun.

At most probably 5 feet away. Some extraneous stuff is fine, but I'd obviously like to keep it as clean as possible. Sorry for the confusion there.

Thanks for the replies!
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Some of the players are wearing lavs and transmitters. Some of that is from a boom, but look at the framing: the boom is able to get in to about 3' at times. Sometimes closer. That's where you need to be to get clear audio.

Now, a long shotgun will have a narrower angle of acceptance, and can help in situations like that. But you're literally working with a longer mic, will need a longer zepplin, and will have to watch the framing a little differently. Both the 416 and the NTG-3 are short shotguns.
 
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You can do a lot better than a ME66. It's a brittle sounding mic. If you are a beginner, sure, learn on it. But a Rode NTG-2 will blow it out of the water, and an NTG-3 will make minced meat out of it. Shotguns indoors is not a good idea, but you can get away with it more with some mics (like the NTG-3) but the ME66 will illustrate why one shouldn't use shotguns indoors. I've owned one and am so much more happy with my NTG-3.

I'd sell it and put the money towards a better sounding mic.
 
Ok. It looks like we're going to go with an NTG-2, and use the ME-66 as a replacement for the mediocre on-board setup we've got now.

Now... on to the studio stuff. I realize we shouldn't be using a shotgun for the indoor stuff stuff. What do you guys recommend? Is the NT3 (Not NTG-3...I really wish Rode would get a new naming system...) decent for the money? Most of the examples I've found from it seem to be music, so I'm not sure how it works for normal interview setups etc. Or is there another that I should be looking into?

Thanks for all the help!
 
Green Hornet said:
I like the AT 4053B, the others sound brittle and tinny to me.
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Exactly. At initial listen one may think that the brightness of the NT3 is good for clarity, but the fullness of the 4053b is much more natural, and you can boost the highs a bit if needed. But you can't EQ in more fullness if it isn't there to begin with.

Ty Ford told me that based on my test he likes the NTG-2 more than the NTG-3 for the same reason. He likes the un-hyped frequency response of the NTG-2, where the NTG-3 sounds too bright (to him). I prefer the NTG-3. I like a little more brightness, just not to the point of sounding brittle. Also the NTG-3 is about 6db more sensitive than the NTG-2 which is better for signal to noise ratio.
 
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