microphones for SFX / post work

[mr.armadillo]

For some reason, I woke up today and felt like spending some money on microphones.
Purpose is mainly field SFX-recording or foley (not location sound),
so I wanted to ask if you guys know of some cool / fun tool
that might be missing from my list.

Here's what I have so far:
BG:
2 x DPA 4006
2 x Sennheiser 8020
DPA 5100

SFX:
Schoeps CCM4 / CCM8 MS-Kit
2 x SM57
2 x Crown PZM
2 x Rode NT5
2 x Sanken COS-11
Sennheiser MKH60

Thanks!

[Jackdanny]

Hi there,

I saw this post today and thought you might be keen to check it out too!

http://designingsound.org/2011/08/ti...one-addiction/

regards

[Frank Kruse]

Originally Posted by mr.armadillo

For some reason, I woke up today and felt like spending some money on microphones.
Purpose is mainly field SFX-recording or foley (not location sound),
so I wanted to ask if you guys know of some cool / fun tool
that might be missing from my list.

Here's what I have so far:
BG:
2 x DPA 4006
2 x Sennheiser 8020
DPA 5100

SFX:
Schoeps CCM4 / CCM8 MS-Kit
2 x SM57
2 x Crown PZM
2 x Rode NT5
2 x Sanken COS-11
Sennheiser MKH60

Thanks!

I think you´re pretty much covered. How about a nice contact mic?
Or add another two 4006 for wide quad ambiences.

[mr.armadillo]

Thanks! Nice article! A contact mic could be a nice addition for sound design stuff.

[mgoorevich]

Originally Posted by mr.armadillo

Here's what I have so far:
BG:
DPA 5100

I just thought that I can ask you about your experience with this mic.
I am about to purchase it for the same kind of work.
Just like you I have other BG and SFX mics I work with: MS rig (MKH8040/MKH30), Stereo pair: MKH8040, DPA SMK4061 (pair)
MKH60, Sanken CS3E, Schoeps and MD441 mic.

However I am very curious how DPA5100 perform for quite ambiences (noise floor).
Is it over sensitive to wind? How about the handling noise? Compared to (your MKH8020)
Do you feel like it delivers the full resolution hi end sound or it's a compromise in some way? (Although I realize it's a DPA...)
Thanks in advance.

[Frank Kruse]

my 2 euro cents on the 5100.

handling: one of the least sensitive mics to handling noise I ever used. I have a regular straight handle on mine. I have recorded with it riding bicycles over bumby roads mic in one hand, other hand steering the bike, 788 around my neck. no handling whatsoever. doesn't compare at all to an 8020 or any other regular condensor.

wind: the mic comes with an extra rain/wind protector that does a great job. since the capsules used are omis they are quite imune to wind alone because of the omni characteristic. there's also a furry protector for extrra windy situations. I've found the regular protector to hold up quite well till a certain point which is a lot more windy that one wiuld expect. But can't give you beaufort figures at the moment.

imaging and sound: imaging is extremely precise. downmixing works like a charm. but: in tems of width it will not compare to a large surround rig simple beause of it's size and the rather short delays you get from the small size.
noise level is around of what you can get from the other small mics from dpa like the 4061. so more noisey than a small condensor of course but definitely very usable even for quiet stuff.
the .1 out I do not record. the overall sound is very natural. doesn't compare to any of the cheap portable recorders.

to sum it up: for me this was the best compromise between cost, handling convenience and sound quality if you want a portable surround mic. If I have the time I will use a wide omni setup for ambiences to get that super wide cinematic sound. but sometimes it's simply not possible to show up with a huge rig when you need to travel light or you don't want to intimidate people too much.
In terms of size and sound quality the only alternative I found is double MS but with double MS you don't get any spaced mic runtime a all and double MS is a much more expencive setup. all in all double to almost three times the price of the 5100 when you use 3 schoeps mics plus rycote plus an ambient floater to be able to handle it.

[mgoorevich]

Thank you very much Frank, for your review!
It's what I was looking for.
And yes I agree with your point that BG/sfx recording is about the compromise of size and quality.
Also the work never can be done in 5 minutes. So it should be easy to carry and carry and carry on without getting tiered and sweat too fast.

[bad jitter]

I have 5100 and I agree mostly with Frank. But 5100 is not my first choice for quiet atmospheres, noise floor is much higher than MKH50 for example (I'm sure this is not a surprise for anyone). Second thing is that the surround channel mics are much more sensitive to the wind than LCR channels. The standard wind protector is quite poor, but DPA realized that and they are offering a furry protector now. It is much better, you really need it specially for surround channels if there is any real wind when you are recording.

[mr.armadillo]

What Frank and Jitter said. Price, ease of use and sound is really great! It's about the most compact surround solution I know, easy to set up, light, forgiving. Most people wouldn't even recognize it as a mic which helps when recording crowd stuff. Handling noise: pretty much non existant. Downmix works extremely well. I also own the windjammer, but the regular protector will work in most situations, even rain. I not only use it on ambiences, but I record lots of SFX stuff as well with it - here, the mic really shines. I did some train an car stuff which sounds amazing. It's also great as a main mic for classical recordings. For really quiet ambiences I wouldn't use it though, since it's noise floor is quite high (as Jitter already pointed out) - I use the MKH8020 on those, which are about the quietest mics I know, although the sound isn't nearly as full, round and nice as that of the DPA. Also, as Frank said, you simply can't get those super wide sounding cinematic ambiences since the capsules are that close together. Delaying the rears (as suggested in the manual as well) helps opening up the sound though and works very well, esp. on music.

[mgoorevich]

Originally Posted by mr.armadillo

...I use the MKH8020 on those, which are about the quietest mics I know, although the sound isn't nearly as full, round and nice as that of the DPA.

Wow! This surprised me.
I agree that they are super low noise mics and are very suitable for roomtones and quite BG's. But I never found the second part of your statement to be right.
I use it all the time (OK MKH8040) and the fullness and definition of these mics blows me to the wall each time I edit them in the studio.

With my stereo pair of DPA4061 (I use the regular grill cover) I use gentle EQ at approx 10KHz to remove some excessive airness...and noise added with it.
And I never tend to EQ my other BG's at this stage. But most recordings I made with 4061 sound just more balanced with hi shelf EQ at - 3 -5 dB.

Do you ever EQ a 5100? Maybe rears only?
I know I can always do it when mixing, but this gives me some sense of what it sounds like.

Also will it be an impudence to ask if someone can email me quite 5.0 recordings you made with 5100?
I have no chance to test it in my country before I buy it....

Many thanks!