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Re: Another neophyte flailing around on this subject...

Subject: Re: Another neophyte flailing around on this subject...
From: "James Shatto" wwwshadow7
Date: Fri Aug 13, 2010 4:29 am ((PDT))
Well in theory the upper harmonics do re-enforce the lower ones, which are =
in the capabilities of a lot of ears.=C2=A0 So it does make a difference.=
=C2=A0 If only to the drive the dog and cat batty wondering where that crit=
ter sound is coming from in proximity of those speakers...

And my speakers are good enough that mom's always wanting me to answer the =
phone when one rings on tv.=C2=A0 Or a car horn honks on tv.=C2=A0 Sometime=
s I'm not sure myself if it was the TV or just outside the door.

Per the originator.=C2=A0 There are some rather small mics that look like l=
avaliers and costs a pretty penny too.=C2=A0 DPA, schoeps.=C2=A0 And then t=
here's some pencil mics with lavalier type tips.=C2=A0 Earthworks, Avenson.=
=C2=A0 And then there's just lavalier mics.=C2=A0 It really depends on what=
 you want for quality.=C2=A0 And how you intend to use your mics in practic=
e.=C2=A0 Hard rigged to the video device.=C2=A0 Near the source of the acti=
on and some distance from the video device.=C2=A0 On a boom, 15' up on a st=
and, and many methods.=C2=A0

A dish is fine for zeroing in on a distant source.=C2=A0 But by doing that =
you've by default attenuated more local sounds and to some extent colored t=
he sound before it ever hits the microphone.=C2=A0 If you want a recording =
that sounds exactly like the subject, that might not be the way to go.=C2=
=A0 But it's certainly an option to get better than you otherwise could fro=
m that vantage point recordings.

And then there's video.=C2=A0 I'm tending to favor a spider brace shoulder =
rig and/or a monopod.=C2=A0 Most of the time my camcorder sits on the monop=
od and the spider brace ace bandaged to the monopod.=C2=A0 But my camcorder=
 has hideous stabilization.=C2=A0 And I'm too cheap to pop for a $500 fluid=
 head and $1,000 tripod.=C2=A0 Plus that's a little burdensome to take out =
into the wild.=C2=A0 While the aforementioned rig is rather bulky, it's con=
siderably light.=C2=A0 Lighter than 2x 15' XLR cables anyway.=C2=A0 Which a=
re way lighter than the 2x 25' XLR cables I was previously using.

As far as mics, the good ones generally cost a pretty penny.=C2=A0 The chea=
ps ones aren't bad, but if you are hyper critical of the sound, or anyone w=
ho wants to pay you is, it does matter.=C2=A0 At a minimum, the low noise f=
loor and high environmental specs don't normally happen with the cheap mics=
.=C2=A0 And many mics were never meant to leave a studio environment.=C2=A0=
 Which futher limits the gene pool.

- James


--- On Fri, 8/13/10, Marinos Koutsomichalis <> wrote:

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