Rich Peet wrote:
> Doug? I thought you were the guy that recommended step ladders for
> better sound?
>
> Don't put your mic on the ground. At least carry a cable tie and tie
> it to the twig of a bush at 5'. The end result of putting the mic on
> the ground for bird song frequencies is to cut the range of your mic
> to about 30% of the distance compared to 5'.
I definitely agree. In the 70's when I worked as a environmental
consultant I did some informal tests with our calibrated sound
measurement system because we had a job that involved sound measurement
in the woods.
This was in fairly open woods in the Pacific NW. Underbrush was about 4'
high, above that height you could see quite a ways through the tree trunks.
The difference between 4' and 1' off the ground varied depending on
sound source direction and cover. But it was rarely less than 5dBA lower
at 1', and sometimes the drop was as much as 15dBA. Laying the mic on
the ground gave even greater drop.
I'd say get your mic at least as high as the underbrush if possible.
Above 4' I found less variation, even when the brush was higher than that.
BTW, I'm one of the ones experimenting with tall stands. My tall stand
will get a mic up to about 17'. The sound is different, I'll not say
better because that depends on what you want. Reverberation seems to be
less, the sound more open, clearer.
Often when recording with the Telinga I'll hold it at arm's length above
my head for a slight improvement in range over head height.
Walt
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