What's a great Mic Blimp that's not the size of the Hindenburg?

DPStewart

DPStewart

Veteran
'Afternoon all,

I need a good Mic Blimp that's not too bloody huge. What's a good and affordable one?

I have the RODE Blimp but this thing is BIG...and it's light in color. It's so big that it's almost always a problem. It's distracting to talent, crew, and passersby.
Everyone ALWAYS either says something or looks at it and tilts their head back as if to say: "damn, what the hell is that thing?"

Especially with its dead-cat on it.

I see much much smaller BLACK(ish) blimps on every behind-the-scenes video I've ever watched. Yet B&H and other online sources seem to only have the RODE and the Rycote. Now the Rycote is indeed a little smaller - but it's light gray also and so that's still not the ones I'm seeing on all the BTS videos.
Even on other people's sets these days I'm only seeing that crazy RODE monster.

Any suggestions?
 
The AT-897 is the longest mic I own - so that's only about, what - 12-inches or less?
I don't have any of those full-length super-shotguns.

I see there's a Sennheiser that looks nice - but almost a thousand bucks just to get something a wee bit less intrusive LOOKING is not something I see happening.

Hey! Does anyone know if I can detach and then later re-attach the thin foam inside the RYCOTE blimp? Because then I could just spray paint the housing without affecting the foam screen.
 
Why do you need a blimp?
OK a blimp works much better in high winds but how many times do you shoot in high winds, I've been doing broadcast audio for 30+ years and yes I run blimps + High wind covers on OB mics that are in a fixed position / or attached to a box lens cameras often high up on scaffolds, BUT for location shoots a use a Rycote 'softie' and never had a problem, I work on the principle that how many shoots are going to be done when the talents hair is blowing around all over the place?..... not many (and if you did do one you will be expecting to hear wind noise).
 
OzGizmo said:
Why do you need a blimp?
OK a blimp works much better in high winds but how many times do you shoot in high winds, I've been doing broadcast audio for 30+ years and yes I run blimps + High wind covers on OB mics that are in a fixed position / or attached to a box lens cameras often high up on scaffolds, BUT for location shoots a use a Rycote 'softie' and never had a problem, I work on the principle that how many shoots are going to be done when the talents hair is blowing around all over the place?..... not many (and if you did do one you will be expecting to hear wind noise).
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Well perhaps I have not yet learned about what all my other options might be.
I have used my shotguns outside with only their long foam screen on them and that was definitely not enough.
So I got this here RODE Blimp and it's clearly better at cutting wind noise.
Then there's the part where I've never really ever SEEN anything but blimps used outside. And I see them on pretty much every serious shoot I've ever been on or watched video of.
I've seen "Softies" on almost every ENG camera rig - but my use is for out on a boom pole.
 
Get the softie. It won't break the bank, easy on the back and will cover you for most shots except in the in Himalayas.
 
Run&Gun said:
+1

I've never owned a "blimp". I have Rycote Softie's on my two Sanken CS3e's and Senn. ME66/K6.
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Well that settles it!

It certainly is a TON less intrusive looking.

There is even a "Super Softie" that used a new material that is not furry.
I found this YouTube comparison of them both and the "new" Softie definitely works even better and renders better sound....but you can't get it wet or you have to wait until it's COMPLETELY dry.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lQoWrcNbHFI
 
like most things in life you need to know what you want to end up with before you can make a decent decision on how to start.

So What are you shooting? How quiet do you need it to be? and how high is the bar?

Narrative films with budgets are going to use a blimp (actually a zeppelin) most of the time because the bar is pretty high, they need to have as close to zero wind noise as possible. All of the environmental sounds are going to be added in post so even if the talents wig is being blown off they don't want to hear the wind in the production tracks. And they are getting paid to make sure the production is as clean as possible so even when it might be over kill you will tend to go with "better safe than sorry" (or unemployed).

Doc's, Run & Gun, micro budget narrative films etc. all have a different balance so for some a softy is going to be more than fine.

If you are working with actors worthy of the title then they are not going to stare at a boom mic, so that is not an issue. On a set with a crew and lights and cameras etc. a zep is not going to be the most "intrusive" thing around. Dealing R&G with the public it might well be.
 
Noiz2 said:
like most things in life you need to know what you want to end up with before you can make a decent decision on how to start.

So What are you shooting? How quiet do you need it to be? and how high is the bar?

Narrative films with budgets are going to use a blimp (actually a zeppelin) most of the time because the bar is pretty high, they need to have as close to zero wind noise as possible. All of the environmental sounds are going to be added in post so even if the talents wig is being blown off they don't want to hear the wind in the production tracks. And they are getting paid to make sure the production is as clean as possible so even when it might be over kill you will tend to go with "better safe than sorry" (or unemployed).

Doc's, Run & Gun, micro budget narrative films etc. all have a different balance so for some a softy is going to be more than fine.

If you are working with actors worthy of the title then they are not going to stare at a boom mic, so that is not an issue. On a set with a crew and lights and cameras etc. a zep is not going to be the most "intrusive" thing around. Dealing R&G with the public it might well be.
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Well I've already got the RODE blimp and it obviously goes "all the way" with wind noise reduction.
But seriously - have you seen this thing in person? It's CRAZY BIG and it's light colored. It doesn't look anything like every single blimp I've ever seen on every single pro set and every single "making of" or BTS of everything for forever. All those smaller dark colored blimps are far more reasonable looking and they must come from somewhere - because this RODE thing ain't it.
Even the Rycote is noticeably smaller. But again it's light and bright in color.
The only one I can even find for sale that's dark is the Sennheiser which seems to be about the same quality as the Rycote for more than twice the price.
I dunno - maybe it IS that Sennheiser that everyone has.

I'm going to give one of these Rycote "Softies" a try, but in "most typical" conditions I will really need it to equal the effectiveness of the RODE blimp I already have.
 
I use both Softies and a Rycote Blimp (Windjammer). The Softie is almost as wind resistant as the blimp. I keep the longer mic, the Sanken CS3e or Senn 416 in the blimp and put my indoor mic (MKH-50) with a Softie on it. Howerver if I am doing more run and gun/event stuff I generatlly go with the softie and use a Rycote pistol grip to minimize handling noise. You have to be careful in choosing the right length if you are using a longer mic like a 416 as you want it to cover the interference slots on the side of the mic. Last time I checked Rycote has a selector guide on their site but it can be difficult to find.

Some may recommend the Rycote ball gag but I find it looks very odd and draws as much attention as a blimp.
 
Andrew Stone said:
I use both Softies and a Rycote Blimp (Windjammer). The Softie is almost as wind resistant as the blimp. I keep the longer mic, the Sanken CS3e or Senn 416 in the blimp and put my indoor mic (MKH-50) with a Softie on it. Howerver if I am doing more run and gun/event stuff I generatlly go with the softie and use a Rycote pistol grip to minimize handling noise. You have to be careful in choosing the right length if you are using a longer mic like a 416 as you want it to cover the interference slots on the side of the mic. Last time I checked Rycote has a selector guide on their site but it can be difficult to find.

Some may recommend the Rycote ball gag but I find it looks very odd and draws as much attention as a blimp.
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Hahaha! The "ball gag"!
Yeah - I THOUGHT there was something funy looking about that thing!

Thanks for the insight Andrew.
I think I'll just stick with my RODE Hindenerg until I can maybe score a used Sennheiser...
I ordered up a Softie just now and I'm guessing it will work in 'most' instances based on what folks here have said.
 
Well actually there are bigger ones that offer more wind protection, but...

I will also point out that you have to take anything you see and hear in a BTS video with a little to a big heaping shovel full of salt. Probably not an issue here but 90% of BTS videos are essentially done by the marketing dept. and a LOT of times what you see and hear is either misleading or actually wrong. It's like interviews with people "about the making of", there is a lot of creative rewriting of history that goes on.

There are reasons why dead cats are not often black. For one thing electronics hates heat. You stick your nice mic in a black fuzzy and use it outside in a nice southern CA summer for 12 hours and you will be able to cook eggs on it (but may not be able to record with it). It's also very conspicuous if it's in the shot at all and it doesn't bounce light (that could be good or bad depending). THe fur is yor basic neutral grey so it won't cast odd light reflections, and it won't turn into an oven in the sun.

Also the effectiveness of a zeppelin in part is a factor of the amount of dead air it can surround a mic with. So you probably can't get a small softy that is going to be as effective as your Rode, but you may not need that much wind protection? And yes I have seen one and you are right they are large. IF you are only going to use it with the one mic you could probably shrink it down. That would take some work and may not be practical for you to do and it would certainly void any warrantee but it might be the most cost effective choice.

If you really want it black you could use fabric dye and dye it black. Doesn't change the size though.

DPStewart said:
Well I've already got the RODE blimp and it obviously goes "all the way" with wind noise reduction.
But seriously - have you seen this thing in person? It's CRAZY BIG and it's light colored. It doesn't look anything like every single blimp I've ever seen on every single pro set and every single "making of" or BTS of everything for forever. All those smaller dark colored blimps are far more reasonable looking and they must come from somewhere - because this RODE thing ain't it.
Even the Rycote is noticeably smaller. But again it's light and bright in color.
The only one I can even find for sale that's dark is the Sennheiser which seems to be about the same quality as the Rycote for more than twice the price.
I dunno - maybe it IS that Sennheiser that everyone has.

I'm going to give one of these Rycote "Softies" a try, but in "most typical" conditions I will really need it to equal the effectiveness of the RODE blimp I already have.
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DPStewart said:
[...]It's so big that it's almost always a problem. It's distracting to talent, crew, and passersby.
Everyone ALWAYS either says something or looks at it and tilts their head back as if to say: "damn, what the hell is that thing?"

Especially with its dead-cat on it.[...]
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Always interesting to hear other people's experiences and perspective. Everyone has their own, and that's entirely valid. But then again, other people may have a completely different take. For example, in my experience the blimp is not at all an issue. I have this:

Rycote S-Series 450 Windshield Kit, 355 x 410mm Length

which has been discontinued, but that thing accommodates 16" mics, whereas the Rode Blimp only does up to 12.75" - talk about big! Now, here's where my experiences differ - but caveat, I'm talking about narrative, not R&G, ENG Docu whatnot - not once have I had anyone give it the stinkeye (that I noticed), or comment negatively... not actor, not crew (usually there are no passerbys to comment when I shoot). Actors - and crew - seem to understand that equipment is, you know, equipment. It's not meant to be a dainty decoration, it is there to do a job. In fact, I'd say the opposite - if anything, it seems to inspire confidence in the actors, as it seems more pro - for whatever reason, they seem to think that a small camera or DSLR and other equipment denotes amateur hour... that is wrong, of course, but I tell you, when you pull out the big (by size) guns - whatever it may be, camera, sound equipment, lights, light modifiers, everyone seems to act more "pro" and take it more seriously. That's actors, and the crew of course is used to equipment, so it would be odd for anyone to suddenly go "eww, so big". Of course, that's one person's experience and your milage may vary, so by no means would I want to deny your experience, just giving another POV.

In the end, it is a practical question for me. I want the best sound I can get. Sure, maybe I can get away with just a softie or some foam or even go naked - no question. But I will still use the zeppelin, just on principle - because I find that unexpected stuff happens all the time... that windless day is windless, except for that short odd burst of wind that lasts maybe only a few seconds and ruins the take, which hopefully the sound person notices - you know what, I'd rather have the zeppelin have my back at that moment, I tell you. It's like why we record with a safety track - sure, 99% of the time you're fine with just one track, and it takes more space and often more expensive equipment to be able to always record a safety track, but that one time someone or something gets loud, and guess what, you're super happy to have that covered. Shooting anything is just one long collection of "one offs" and "accidents" and "not supposed to happens" and we use better equipment precisely so we don't have to count on luck and everything going just right - because it rarely does for any stretch of time. So, while I've never seen anyone being put off by the size of the zeppelin, if someone did give me that vibe on a set, I'd make a quick note to myself never to work with that amateur again. It certainly would not drive me to compromise my sound capture quality because of someone's totally unprofessional attitude. In fact, I'm almost at the other end of the zeppelin question - I would not hesitate to use it even indoors, as sometimes certain mics can be super sensitive to air noise even indoors (f.ex. when you swing the mic on a boom), like Octavas famously can be. As a matter of fact, it can be more efficient to use it indoors if, f.ex., you are recording an exterior and transition to interior - what, are you now going to stop everything and change the zeppelin to a foam? And I have seen repeatedly, in R&G and docu situations, where the sound person doesn't bother to change the zeppelin out when transitioning indoor and continue recording with it - there is virtually no loss of quality as compared to a softie so why not? It certainly is more efficient and faster, than fiddling with putting stuff on and taking off - just leave it be. Regarding color - I actually disagree... I prefer to the lighter color. When you are shooting exteriors what do you think shows up more distractingly against the sky (or most ceilings/walls in interiors) - a fuzzy light gray or black blob? Well, the fuzzy light gray matches the sky (and most walls/ceilings) way, way, way better. Now, obviously you don't want to get it into the frame regardless of color, but I just don't see the advantage of black in the conspicuousness department - to me a big black blob is way more noticeable and distracting.

So on all counts, I would affirm - my #1 priority being sound quality, I want a BIG zeppelin, so that I can have the security of being covered should any air issues come up, I want it to be light in color, and once on, I want to use it as much as possible without constant swapping out.

This is not meant to change your mind by any means - just providing another way of looking at things :)
 
The Rode blimp isn't abnormally large. You need a good amount of dead air around the mic. That's why zeppelins are the way they are, and there are larger ones out there. If it's distracting to talent and/or crew, then those people aren't professional. Full on zeppelins get used all the time on all kinds of projects without being a distraction to professionals. If you are doing exteriors in moderate to high wind, then you definitely need a full zeppelin. A slip on furry windscreen will do ok in low to no wind situations.
 
Apart from sports sound effects I haven't used a blimp for many years as having a softie or a radio mic makes it far easier to argue with production that we need to find a better location.

Current kit includes a rode PG2 and a WS6 softie for my AT875r mics.
 
davefisk said:
The Rode blimp isn't abnormally large. You need a good amount of dead air around the mic. That's why zeppelins are the way they are, and there are larger ones out there. If it's distracting to talent and/or crew, then those people aren't professional. Full on zeppelins get used all the time on all kinds of projects without being a distraction to professionals. If you are doing exteriors in moderate to high wind, then you definitely need a full zeppelin. A slip on furry windscreen will do ok in low to no wind situations.
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Actually the RODE has a significantly larger diameter than both the Rycote and the Sennheiser.

I did some more asking around and I found out that IT IS the Sennheiser that I see so often. Not surprising I suppose when we consider how often one or two models of something in film audio can really dominate everywhere.

Now, of course I'm not saying that the RODE is so big that people can't work around it. I just am willing to spend a small amount of money to get a blimp like the Sennheiser that is less visually distracting...because there are already enough visual distractions on any kind of setting.

I think a "Softie" will be great for many instances. I really wasn't very aware of them before. I thought they were only a fur cover - but there's more happening inside there than just that.

I also found a cheap-o Chinese blimp that is closer to the Sennheiser in size and color, but the internal mic-mount sucks...but it's so cheap I might just get one and mod the blimp to fit on the Rycote mic mount that the RODE came with.
...or one of you guys could donate a Sennheiser blimp if you're in the mood. I totally wouldn't stand in your way if that's what you want to do. :cheesy:
 
As a suggestion is get a Rycote 'softie', they are slightly better than the Rode 'softie', It won't cost you a fortune give it a try it may suits your needs rather than commit to a full blimp.
 
I had a cheap blimp from china and it was very poor quality with cheap plastic mounts etc, get a decent softie such as the Rycote as I think it may be a better investment.
 
DPStewart said:
Actually the RODE has a significantly larger diameter than both the Rycote and the Sennheiser.
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It is larger, but not so much so that it would make it unusable or distracting to any production professional. As was stated earlier, the more dead air around the mic the better off you are. I don't think significantly is the correct word. I have all three of the zeppelins you mention.

All manufacturers have their reasons for why they do what they do, and believe it or not, cost of making something a certain size definitely plays into things. As was also said, there are larger setups out there.

Avoid using cheap knock off products from China that don't go through the rigorous quality control standards that our usual manufacturers provide. In the production audio world, you really do get what you pay for, and it's when you cheap out on gear that you learn to appreciate what real professional manufacturers do and why things cost what they do.

If you can't afford to buy the proper zeppelin, you can always rent one for when you really need it (it isn't always needed) or you can hire an audio professional that already has the proper equipment. I've been at this long enough to know that no matter what, you'll be paying for it in the end in one way or another. It's just a matter of where you want your money to go.
 
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