Super/Hypercardioid for MS recording

N

naavt

Well-known member
Hi,

I've bought an Ambient AT208 Emesser for MS recording and at first I've intended to pair it with my AKG CK93 Hyper Mic but I've noticed that the Ambient Figure 8 not only has more sensitivity but it also has a lower noise level than my AKG.

I'm now after a Super/Hyper mic to pair with the Emesser without going bankrupt (ideally in the 700USD figure), and with the smallest footprint available since it will be used for many hours straight on a boom pole (observational documentary work).

If I had the money I would surely invest in a Schoeps Colette but right now I cannot even stretch to the DPA MMC4018+MMP-C which is cheaper.

I've came across the Audix m1280B-S. It has the right size, weight and price but for what it seems it is used for music mainly. Has someone tried it out for field recording? Can someone advise me on which mic with the characteristics I'm looking for?

Thanks in advance.
 
Hard to go wrong with an audio-technica at4053b. About $600 or hunt for a used one. Really punches above its weight - I don't know if you can do much better in that price range and it's used by a lot of sound guys. I own one and it's pretty remarkable, even does shotgun duty sometimes.

The Oktavia is a popular choice but noted for handling noise and it pretty much always needs a blimp if it's in motion - lots of air noise when you move it.
 
Hi
I have the AT4053b. I agree with Michael Carter above "Hard to go wrong with an audio-technica at4053b." May even be your best choice regardless of $$ for your purpose. Maybe rent one to try? Good luck.
 
I concur, the 4053 is a nice mic for little $$. I've seen them on eBay for $350... but not often.
A related thread on MS mics over on the JW sound group
Oktava has figure-8 capsules for the 012... but like the other Oktava capsules, a lot of clean gain ($$$ preamp) would be wanted as well.
 
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Owning both the Oktava and 4053b, there isn't much comparison. The 4053b is a very good mic indeed. For a few bucks more than the 4053b, you might also want to look at the Neumann KM-184. I haven't heard this mic, but there is little doubt about its' DNA.

Grant
 
I used Neumann KM84s a lot in my music recording days. A nice all around SDC... very smooth (similar to a 'good' Oktava). AC guitar, strings and drum OH were the most common usage for me. Never used any of the Neumann 180 series (183/4/5), it's allegedly more 'edgy' than the original 80 series and some folks really like the (hyper) 185 for dialog. It costs about $300 more than the AT4053 and $300 less than Sennheiser's MKH50. Neumann states the sensitivity at 10mV, about the same as a 012. I believe there is a D185 (digital version) available.
 
The Audix SCX1 hyper is my go-to mic for indoor dialogue. Got one used for less than 400 dollars on ebay a couple years ago.
 
male_man said:
This might be out of the $ range of this post, but this appears to be a good solution. Does anyone have any experience with this mic?
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/283358-REG/Sennheiser_MKH418S_MKH418S_Stereo_Shotgun.html
Click to expand...

Yes - don't like it at all.

It was originally designed for the Winter Olympics at Lillehammer.

The fig-8 capsule is actually back-to-back cardioids and can be quite noisy - it's best to have the side level 6dB lower than the mid with this mic.

Personally, I would not use it and would, instead, use an MKH 60 with MKH 30 - very very much better.

Though I would use the MKH 50/ 30 or MKH 40/30 if you can as these don't have the problem sode-lobes of an interference tube mic.
 
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