At 2:20 AM +0000 3/3/08, Chris Davidson wrote:
>Hi Rob,
>I use the AT3032's in my headrig. I recorded this file,
>Frogs&GreatHornedOwl.mp3 http://cdavidsoniv.googlepages.com/home
>with the mic set to "roll off" (too much aviation noise) then into the
>722. Am I "growling"? I would appreciate you having a listen, thanks
>very much. Chris
Hi Chris--
Owls in the plural! Would be interesting to see how you have the
3032's body-mounted.
The owls and coyotes are going strong here in SW Wisconsin. The
robins have been kicking off the dawn chorus for about 10 days. The
frogs will start later this month. I heard a very anxious goose
flying North last night and possibly some ducks tonight.
Are you asking should one use the low Hz cut filter in the field when
there are loud, low frequency sounds? My short answer is, "No, unless
the bass content is very, very loud, continuous and constituting
almost all of the amplitude."
For example, I might use a low-cut filter when the low frequencies
are so dominant they are forcing me to lower my mic pre gain way-down
AND, after the low cut filter is on, I can hear higher frequency
sounds with more clarity, AND I can get more, needed headroom. This
can happen close to heavy equipment, helicopters-- mostly unnatural
sources. A natural situation might be loud steady, rolling thunder
in order to get less rumble vs "air." I used the low cut filter one
time when I was interviewing a bee tender and bees were covering the
mics.
I feel the key factor is the lowest frequencies have to be creating a
very significant percentage of the whole bandwidth in order for
filtering in the field to do anything we can't do in post. The lowest
octaves form the fundamental tones and without them, some recordings
can quickly turn shrill and fatiguing. In post, I use parametric
filtering to improve tonal balance and only "High Pass" or "Roll-Off"
filtering on natural subjects under 30Hz. For "space," field
recordings rely on spectrum balance more so than any other type of
recording I know. I also reason that since most animals hear and
respond to the full frequency spectrum, the recordings I take home
should include them.
I'm sure there are some exceptions I've not encountered. What
advantage(s) have you experienced through attenuating frequencies in
the field? Rob D.
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