Interesting. Rob, and I think a fair test for spacialization,=20
although I wonder if the Rode's would have performed better were they=20
coincident. You can hear the outer positions seem more washy on the=20
Rode, and I think that's mainly because of the separation between the=20
mics. MS is really a coincident micing technique, and I guess I'd=20
have to argue you can't trust what you're hearing if the mics are two=20
feet apart, you're not comparing two MS rigs, you're comparing one=20
true MS rig, and a pseudo MS rig. Especially at 20 feet to the=20
source, 2 feet is a fairly large space. Also, for me, one of the=20
great things about MS is that it's mono compatible, but not if the=20
mics are two feet apart.
Again, just nitpicking, it's a great experiment.
But the Rode's sound pretty good for 1/5th the price or so of the=20
Senn's.
I did take my newly arrived NT1A's outside yesterday and recorded a=20
test between them, my Schoeps MK2 Omni's, and the Earthworks QTC1=20
omnis (on loan). I put the NT1A's about 3 feet apart pointing out=20
about 90 degrees, just as a guess.
They sounded OK, but the Schoeps sounded the best I thought=20
(although, omni to cardiord, not a fair test). The NT1A's were=20
certainly more 'directional' in the stereo image (as would be expected).
Wondering how most people using NT1A's are arranging them, are you=20
doing XY, or spaced ORTF, something like that?
The Earthworks sounded just plain bad. Very hissy compared to the=20
others, and the image was boring and uninspiring. I think the=20
Earthworks are nice drum mics, maybe orchestral, but too noisy for=20
nature sound.
I guess I'm still a Schoeps guy at heart.
Tim
On Jul 8, 2005, at 9:29 PM, Rob Danielson wrote:
> Rode and Full Compass were kind enough to send me a NT2-A to test for
> M-S stereo imaging and noise performance along side my MKH 40/30
> pair. The NT2-A is a variable pattern mic including Figure 8. I
> used the fig 8 with a wide cardioid Rode NT1-A for my Rode M-S pair.
> This pair runs ~$600 new.
>
> I didn't have time to get out to the country so I did the test in my
> backyard at 1 am. It was calm and pretty quiet for the city. The only
> close, ambient sound is a window air conditioner about 90 yards away
> located 3/4 left.
>
> The QuickTime movie is 5.1mb:
> http://www.uwm.edu/~type/Mic%20Preamps/Rode&SennMSCompareIMA.mov
>
>
> The first test looks at the stereo imaging or localization abilities
> of the two rigs. The mic pairs were not placed on top of each like
> they should b ideally,..but rather side by side about 2 feet apart.
> The sound source positions are 20 feet away. The main thing I'm
> interested in here is whether you can accurately tell where the sound
> is coming from. Differences in voice levels can be attributed,
> partially, to the horizontal spread between the mics. I experimented
> with the M-S matrix variables for some time before choosing settings
> for both pairs that maximized the localization performance. This was
> tricky. For example, I found that I had to run the Mid level higher
> with the Rode pair to create sufficient Left/Right separation
> (through phase cancellation).
>
> The next two tests are combination acoustic space, motion and noise
> tests. Note that the preamp gain is set to maximum-- so the "reach"
> into space and the tax on noise performance are at the maximum. I
> recorded the two pairs at the same time with my 744T recorder.
>
> I repeated my announced position in the first test, once for each
> mic. But the second and third tests are the exact same events through
> the different mics. The Rodes were run through an MP-2 external
> preamp (which I tested before and found to be a very close match to
> the 744's internal pre). No EQ. Playback levels matched in post.
>
> I have some observations of course, but I'll let your ears be the
> judge for now. Rob D.
>
>
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>
>
>
> "Microphones are not ears,
> Loudspeakers are not birds,
> A listening room is not nature."
> Klas Strandberg
>
>
> YAHOO! GROUPS LINKS
>
> Visit your group "naturerecordists" on the web.
>
> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
>
>
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>
>
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
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