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  • Hey all, just changed over the backend after 15 years I figured time to give it a bit of an update, its probably gonna be a bit weird for most of you and i am sure there is a few bugs to work out but it should kinda work the same as before... hopefully :)

Shotgun Mic

I love my Sennheiser MKH-416 - Short Shotgun Interference Tube Mic ... is exactly 1k at a few stores. I use it for indoor voice over and stands, only rarely on a boom. Depends a bit on how much background noise you are looking to cut (i don't do any outside work). Requires 48v btw (not sure what your running ... phantom power is sometimes a hassle).
 
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its going to be a boom mic. I got Sennheiser me-66 a few years back and the sound is very metal sounding like tin, no bass at all. Im going to parring it with sanken cos-11d. (I just bought a bunch of sound dampening material to hopefully reduce of the ambient noise/echo)
 
Schoeps CMIT 5U. Not going to be $1,000.00 but it'll be the last shotgun you ever need to buy.
 
hahaha I cant get the CMIT 5U. What about the MKH 8060 vs 416? I just want a mic that doesn't pic up the ambient noise of everything, I just want the voice with bass, not the tin and hollow and for $1,200, is this doable?

I thank you all for chiming in, its really helpful.
 
The Schoeps CMT-5U is tops.

I really like what Neuman has and I've worked with them a bit recently. I own and use the Rode NTG3 and NTG2 myself. The NTG2 seems to have a little broader pickup range, but it is a very quiet mic by design and a lot of people struggle with it. The NTG3 is better for general use and a great all-around shotgun. I would agree with Trevor above that it is the best sub-$1K shotgun out there. I know I'm in the minority when I say this, but I'm not particularly fond of the Sennheiser ME-66. I prefer the 416, but it still falls on my list below Shoeps, Rode and Neumann.
 
Barry Bishop said:
hahaha I cant get the CMIT 5U. What about the MKH 8060 vs 416? I just want a mic that doesn't pic up the ambient noise of everything, I just want the voice with bass, not the tin and hollow and for $1,200, is this doable?
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Sound quality depends heavily on the acoustics of the room and the placement of the microphone. I think a great microphone in a bad room might sound worse than a mediocre microphone in a great room (though it's hard to predict). Shotguns don't often work well in small rooms, because of the way the interference tube picks up reflections; a hypercardioid is generally better.

It's very hard to beat a Sennheiser 416. They're widely available on the used market, so you might be able to pick up one plus an inexpensive boom pole and a shockmount for a grand. Be sure to get the P48 (phantom-powered) version.

Quite a few mixers on Jeff Wexler's forum have been a little non-plussed about the newer Sennheiser 8060 (the very small version of the MKH-60, which was intended to replace the 416). Probably the best advice is to rent or borrow a microphone first before buying one, to make sure you like how it sounds and how it works with your particular situation.
 
What ever you buy don't put it on the camera......

Gold standard are Sennheiser MKH60 and Schoeps CMIT.
 
I'm going to be redundant with the post above. I think the Sennheiser MKH60 is pretty great all around single solution mic. The Schoeps CMIT sounds great, but I do believe are a lot more. Also you should know Sennheiser just came out recently with a new mic competing with the MKH60 - a modular system mic, so you should definitely check that one out as well.

The 416 is okay - I prefer the MKH60. The Rode NTG 3... I think is under both of them.
 
I asked my friend whos does audio work in the SF and he mentioned he's going to get the MKH-60. I will provide a sample of how bad the audio is in this room. You will all be horrified, I guarentee it.

So my choices are:

MKH-60-$1,499
MKH-8060-$1,249
MKH-416-$1,000
Rode NTG-3 $699

Though this is corporate money I cant get the Schoeps CMIT. Sorry.
Should I get the 8060 or the 416 or get rid of some other stuff on my order and get the 60?

And of course this is going to be mounted to the camera :) /s
 
Mounted on the camera? I think that's a terrible compromise. Getting the microphone closer to the subject can make more difference than what kind of mike you're using.

Having said that: many news crews routinely use the MKH416 as a camera-mounted mike, at least for B-roll audio. I wouldn't rely on it for interviews, and it's the last thing you'd want for dramatic productions. Hire a good boom op, or even better, an experienced sound mixer who knows what he or she is doing.

Note that in very difficult environments, sometimes a wireless lav can arguably be a better choice than any boom, especially in multiple camera situations.
 
Barry Bishop said:
I asked my friend whos does audio work in the SF and he mentioned he's going to get the MKH-60. I will provide a sample of how bad the audio is in this room. You will all be horrified, I guarentee it.

So my choices are:

MKH-60-$1,499
MKH-8060-$1,249
MKH-416-$1,000
Rode NTG-3 $699

Though this is corporate money I cant get the Schoeps CMIT. Sorry.
Should I get the 8060 or the 416 or get rid of some other stuff on my order and get the 60?

And of course this is going to be mounted to the camera :) /s
Click to expand...

Hmmm, might see a problem here. I usually don't use a shotgun indoors because of the reflections. When you said the words "in this room" it made me realize you were shooting indoors. If you are working indoors, then I would suggest another route. First, don't mount the mic on the camera. Ever. Too much camera noise, waayyy too far away from the subject, pointed at who knows where, and a million other reasons not to put it there. If you want good sound, then you have to do the things that will give you good sound. The mic has to be close to the subject, aimed properly.

Next, I would suggest listening to Ty Ford and his recommendations. http://www.tyford.com. Talking with him on several occasions gave me valuable insights to operating the sound equipment to it's fullest. I've had good results with sound recording, not due to my abilities, but rather to simply listening to folks like Ty and heeding their instructions. Another was Mike Clark, a friend and neighbor for many years until he passed a couple years ago. Mike owned Southern Tracks recording studio and was known for his massive collection of some of the rarest and best microphones ever made. The studio is being parted out now, and I recently heard John McBride has purchased a good many of Mike's prized microphones.

One final thought, the R1 captures wonderful audio, but only as good as it is being fed. A personal favorite is the Schoeps CMC641 hypercardioid. I use it more than the shotgun by a wide margin.
 
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