Noisy sennheiser G3 lav mic

[Eric Olson]

It’s been a while since I ordered the kit but, yes, I was probably thinking the cardioid pattern would help with off-axis noise but in the past I’ve only every used omnis.

Eric

[Eric Olson]

I’m actually shooting something for the history channel today (not typical) and I think I’ll park the G3 and go with my Sony ECM-44B lav(which can be kind of bassy) with an overhead Audio Technica AT875R shotgun for clarity.

What do you think of that combo?

Eric

[Ty Ford]

Eric,

Shotguns are not indicated for commercial or industrial interiors. For that you need a super or hyper cardioid.

Try it, but I think you’ll not like the ambient sound.

Regards,

Ty Ford

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[Eric Olson]

Hi Ty,

Our studio is covered in acoustical foam though so I think it should be OK.

EO

[Ty Ford]

Eric,

Gotcha. That will help a lot.

BTW, completely covered or just too much foam can be a bad thing. Years ago when dinosaurs walked the earth and spectrum analyzers were invented, the BBC found those heavy drapes they had used all through the years were sucking up a disproportionate amount of high frequencies.

If the volume gets too loud in an overly foamed space I can hear the sound of energized foam. It sounds sort of spongy.

You need a balance of absorption (foam and other stuff) and diffusion to achieve a tight, but not dead space.

Regards,

Ty Ford

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[Rodney Morris]

In my experience, Sennheiser makes a good sounding lav mic but they seem to be more prone to breath pops than other cardioid and omni lav mics on the market. The cardioid version has a huge windscreen but still is highly susceptible to breath pops. I use one on Dick Vitale when I do live hits at his home in Florida and I have found that the breath comes out of his mouth and nose in such a way that he frequently pops the mic. Because it is a cardioid you are really limited to mic placement (vertical movements along the lapel). Even the MKE2 (which I like) is pretty prone to plosives. I’ve noticed (more so in Europe than here) that when folks use the MKE2 exposed that they often mount it upside down to keep the breath from entering the capsule (you can do this since it is an omni-directional mic). So although I like the sound of the Sennheiser mics, I don’t prefer to use them because of this issue.

My $.02 worth. Hope you find something in there helpful.

Rodney Morris
Freelance Sound Technician/Mixer

[Eric Toline]

For house of worship use and for more gain before feedback I recomend the Countryman E6 omni ear set. It will give 6-8db more gain before feedback and it’s close proximity to the mouth virtually eliminates the big resonent room sound. It’s a bit pricy but well worth the investment.

Eric