So, here’s a divisive question.

[Ty Ford]

Hello Scott and welcome to the Cow Audio Forum.

I doubt that you’ll find many folks all that divisive here when it comes to gear.

For the HVAC duct, start with wrapping it with sound blankets to see if that reduces the noise. Maybe you’ll get lucky. There’s a video studio at one of the local colleges with a HUGE HVAC return (4 feet x 4 feet) just outside the studio. When the system is on you can actually hear the wind whistle through the cracks around door.

Nice that you have the Neumann shotgun. 81, 82 or rsm191?

Field Mixer: How many inputs do you expect to use? I have a Sound Devices 442. 4 in and three sets of balanced outs (for feeding three cameras simultaneously) Go to the Sound Device site to read all of the features. I know of no better 4 input mixer.

Lavs: Sanken COS11 do very well. I have Countryman B6, E6 and EMW, all of which I like.

Wireless: Audio Ltd. makes the best sounding longest range wireless I’ve heard so far. I have samples up in my online archive. Their 2040 system is stunning. Lectrosonics makes great gear. Zaxcom is very ground breaking – digital, transmitters that are enabled with recording chips in case you do have a drop out.

Field Recorder: Back to Sound Devices for the 788T. 10 tracks, new solid state hard drive, (no spinning discs), excellent sound. Add on mixer interface. 744T, a four track, is in my kit.

BoomRecorder software runs on a Mac and with the right audio interfaces works really well.

Both Sound Devices and BoomRecorder record polywave files, so you end up with one icon representing all of the tracks of a take and they are synced together. Very cool.

DT100: nice phones. Impedance doesn’t always have bearing on sensitivity. The Sony MDR 7506 are about the most sensitive headphones out there and because of their sound, they are standard issue for film production. They are peaked a bit at the top and bottom. The new Audio Technica ATH M50 headphones are more natural sounding, slightly bigger and cost a bit more.

Cheers,

Ty Ford

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[Sam Mallery]

Agreed. Sound Devices mixer. I have the 302. Love it. You should spring for the AC adapter, because these are battery powered mixers, and if you’re shooting in the studio for the most part it would make sense to use the AC adapter. Sanken COS-11 lavs with a Lectrosonics wireless. I’ve never used Audio Limited or Zaxcom but I know that plenty of big time production people swear by them.

When I bought lavs I got Tram TR50s. They’re good, but I regret not spending the extra cash for Sanken COS11’s. They’re more natural sounding.

Neumann make great mics, but you may want to consider a Sanken shotgun as well. They are considered the best shotgun mics for noisy situations. Tell your boss that you want to give the Sanken CS-3E a try, to see if it improves at reducing the sound of the HVAC system. B&H has a two week return policy that would allow you to try it out. The CS-3E has the best rear rejection of noise, so if it’s up on a pole near the AC duct, it will ignore the noise better than any other shotgun:

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/406096-REG/Sanken_CS_3E_CS_3E_Short_Shotgun_Microphone.html

You should also pick up a small diaphragm mic to use for booming in interiors. Small diaphragms microphones sound more natural than shotgun mics. In many situations you can get away with booming with a small diaphragm as opposed to a shotgun. Especially in interior shots. Most pros use the Schoeps CMC6/MK41:

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/377424-REG/Schoeps_CMC641_SET_Colette_Series_Microphone_Set.html

It’s a sweet mic, but it’s really expensive. I recently picked up an Audio Technica 4053a. It’s not a Schoeps, but at a fraction of the cost it comes incredibly close:

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/68315-REG/Audio_Technica_AT4053_AT4053a_Condenser_Microphone.html

The 4053a was just discontinued like two weeks ago, which is a shame, but I’m really glad I picked one up. In the future I’m going to get a Schoeps, and I’ll keep my 4053a in my bag as a back up. If you have to work in humid environments your mics start to fart out, so you need back ups.

[David C jones]

Hi Scott-

I will eco what Ty recommended; Sound Devices 442 (seems to be the industry standard 4-channel mixer) & Sound Devices 7-Series recorders. I use the Sankin COS11x lavs which actually sound like boom mics; they match very well with booms and have also become industry stand for filmmaking. And I’ve heard great things about the Countryman B6 lavs, though I haven’t used them. I use Lectrosonics 411A wireless systems which sound great. But also check out Audio Ltd. and Zaxcom.

Regards,

Dave J

[Ty Ford]

Thanks for filling in the good content, Sam.

Some thoughts. The CS-3e is not really a shotgun mic, though it looks like one. The capsule is pretty much at the tip of the tube. It can be used inside and out.

The Schoeps cmc641 (which will go up in price AGAIN sometime this year, probably to $2400) is the mic you want for interior boom work. And yes, you can use it outside as well.

I think they’ll be renumbering the 4053a. The discontinuation was due to the ROHS compliancy that lots of mics are going through now. Unfortunately the AT web site does a poor job of explaining this and sometimes lists a mic as discontinued without providing a link to the new version.

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