Martin,
I assumed you were recording in mono when you were asking about
parabolas as stereo doesn't really work with a dish. (Waiting for
arguments on this. :-) )
With a pair of ME 66's, you've got good gear. I'd experiment with a
narrower angle like 45 deg which might pick up less random noise and
stil give good stereo.
I always advise recording low and bringing up the level afterwards,
but what you are aiming for is wanted over unwanted sounds. The long
gun mics improve this ratio but the reason I was sugesting the used
815/816's is that good long gunmics usually cost an arm and a leg. I'm
making a windshield for mine with an angle of 15 deg, but it is rather
large.
My permanent outdoor rig is two 416's in a tent and I need tu place
them in "noise shadows" for distant sounds. For a start they are on
the ground, and when placing them, I listen out for backgrounds to
avoid almost more than for the wildife. At present they are in a
hollow looking up to minimse a grain mill, a road, a light railway and
a farm, all around a mile away. It's the ratio which matters.
With shore sounds, the sea can be quite noisy, which our ears filter
out. Listen out on headphones from which directions the backgroud
sounds are coming from and look for things like rocks or mounds to put
the mics behind where they can still hear the birds.
Always use a maximum bass roll-off - you can put the bass back later
if necessary.
With a quiet location, mic and input hiss can become prominent. You
can improve this a little bit (I use Audacity), but with quality mics
like yours input noise may be coming from the preamp stage. There's a
lot of talk on this list about "excess noise" figures, but ears are
the best judge.
I'd like to hear a sample of your ME66 pair to see what you're
getting.
David
David Brinicombe
North Devon, UK
Cogito cogito ergo cogito sum - Ambrose Bierce
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