stereo mics???

[where02190]

One of the most popular stero mics, and my personal favorite is the Shure VP-88. Not only is it great for field recordings, but it is an amazing piano and drum overhead mic. Originally deisgned for video production (thus the VP) I was fortunate to get one of these early in their production from Shure to "experiement with" in a live concert situation. Herbie Hancock heard a show I was mixing (with John Scofield) and was so floored by the piano sound, he immediately started using the same VP-88 mic live for his acousitc grand, and still does to this day, as does Chick Corea and many others.

I've tried recently the Rode stero mic, and was very unimpressed. It was very thin and nasaly sounding, with painful highs.

Hope this is helpful.

[bluedemon]

The VP88 is the best stereo mic for the money. (around $800). That is what I use for field recording MS stereo. It's nice because it has a built in matrix. Neumann makes a good stereo mic, but it is kinda pricey.

I am curious, what are you recording your FX onto?

[bstroner]

How about any suggestions on a good stereo mic. I’m looking to do some field recording for a film and to Braden my SFX library.

Does anyone have, or know of any success stores with particular stereo mics?

Bri

[Digiquick]

The Royer SF-12 is really nice - but it needs a high output mic pre. that might be too much to lug around for field recordings.

[charles maynes]

I have a Sanken CSS-5 which is my main mic I use for stereo recordings. It is very nice, has 3 patterns - mono shotgun, 90 deg stereo and 110 deg stereo. takes abuse well and has a great deal of output. I also own a VP-88, which is a nice mic as well, but it is not ideal for low amplitude sounds. I fully agree with it's useful in music recording as well.
It is hard to beat for the money.

[bstroner]

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I am curious, what are you recording your FX onto?
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As of right now... Im recording straight to a mix plus system using the pres on my Hui [img]images/icons/frown.gif[/img]

However... im shoping for a DAT or some other portable digital recorder.

speaking of which... Any sugestions on a digital portable stereo recorder...

Bri

[CLee]

VP88 is a good mic. If you get only 1 stereo mic (like most real peope), get an MS mic insted of an XY setup. You get full mono compatability and with MS the MID mic is pointed directly forward at your source, not on an angle as it would be with an XY setup. That's not as important if you'r recording ambiences, but for a single stereo mic I think your better off.
Also if you record the unmatrixed signal you can adjust stereo width in post.

[MattiMattMatt]

The Soundfield stereo microphone is second to none. It uses 4 mic capsules to capture the sound via M/S Matrix, with width and pattern dialed up through remote control. There are new versions of the remote box that allow 5.1 recording, but the cheaper version (they all use the same mic, with cost based on the remote you choose) -- I think it is the SPS 422 -- is strictly stereo.

It is particularly good with film due to the mono compatibility of M/S, and its complex innards, developed over the course of 20 years by Michael Gerzon in a partnership involving the Brittish Government (this is James Bond stuff here), is belied by its simple-as-pie interface. This is stereo for dummies, and the best stereo with one mic you can get. It's 3-dimensional stereo out-of-the-box.

I remember that there was an excellent review of it in MIX -- I forget exactly who wrote it -- but I remember thinking, as a fellow user, that I agreed with every single word in the article.

In fact, if I were to write something about this mic, I would pretty much say exactly what that guy said, word for word.........

[img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img]

-MattiMattMatt

[Barnabas]

I bought the Sony ECM999 stereo mic ($400) and don't like the sound. You get what you pay for! For a little more money, the Shure VP88 ($700) is a much better mic.

[rojo]

try an AT-825, it's x-y like the shure. $350. very detailed, on board battery. you can get the very nice very cheap shock mount, there's an LF rolloff but no pad. very handy. often overlooked, sounds like its big brothers.