Microphone recomendations please

[thurnau]

I am looking for microphones for two reasons. I need one mic to connect to the computer for adding a voice over in Imovie. Supafresh recomended an audio-technica. I need another mic to record on the set with a speaking role. I think supafresh recomended a boom mike with a fuzzy thing on it. I am connecting it to my Panasonic AG-HMC150. I don't know what gives the best quality sound for the cost.

I do not have a budget, but am not looking to spend serious money on mics.

[Cornucopia]

What are your requirements on the "set"?
What do you mean by "serious money"?

Hidden mike? Roving capability? Wind Resistance? Sturdiness?

This will determine whether you need a Lavalier/lapel mike vs. Shotgun vs. Handheld/Stand mike, etc.

ALMOST anything will be better than using the built-in mike. Personally, I abhor the AudioTechnica brand. There are plenty of options: Just like in anything else, you get what you paid for...

Scott

[thurnau]

I don't want to spend more than a few hundred dollars. 1,000 is out of the question. I am shooting some instructional how to videos for my company's website. I am painting cars outside in the shade on a driveway.

[Soopafresh]

The PC connected one is pretty straightforward.

Alesis http://www.wired.com/reviews/product/alesis_usb_mic_podcasting_kit $100

or Audiotechnica http://www.wired.com/reviews/product/audio_technica_at2020_usb $100

For the one connected to your camera, it all depends on how you expect to film. Wireless lavalier mic works ok, as long as you don't shoot in windy conditions.

Azden WMS Pro Wireless Mic $160

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uYlhDGrw_eA&feature=channel_page

[thurnau]

or Audiotechnica http://www.wired.com/reviews/product/audio_technica_at2020_usb $100
How do I hear a sample recording of this Mic?
http://www.macworld.com/article/134114/2008/07/usbmics.html this article tested a few mics and I like the sound of samson gtrack, but it would be nice to hear it compered to the audio technica.

[thurnau]

My friend has a few microphone he can loan me, which his father left in a box for him years ago. akg ck9 shotgun which looks weird were you plug it in, and a akg c1000s. However he does not have the cables or furry mic cover, or stand for the mics. Would any of these help me out?

[Soopafresh]

or Audiotechnica http://www.wired.com/reviews/product/audio_technica_at2020_usb $100
How do I hear a sample recording of this Mic?
http://www.macworld.com/article/134114/2008/07/usbmics.html this article tested a few mics and I like the sound of samson gtrack, but it would be nice to hear it compered to the audio technica.

At the $100 price mark, there isn't much difference between one mic and the next. Just make sure it comes with a stand otherwise you'll have to shell out another $30 for one. The Gtrack has a nice feature that you can monitor your recording in real time. With cheaper mics there can be a few milliseconds of delay when you monitor through your sound card (this is called latency). The gtrack avoids this. If you have the $, get it. It's a nice feature to have.

My friend has a few microphone he can loan me, which his father left in a box for him years ago. akg ck9 shotgun which looks weird were you plug it in, and a akg c1000s. However he does not have the cables or furry mic cover, or stand for the mics. Would any of these help me out?

Unless you're comfortable with mics, the answer is no. You're going to run into compatibility issues that will take you too much time to solve. The akg c1000 needs a windscreen and phantom power, same with the ck9.

[Cornucopia]

Yeah, but Soopafresh, this is OUTSIDE. Even with a patio, there's gonna be wind and other extraneous noises.
PLUS, you don't want any PAINT getting ANYWHERE near a mike capsule or it'll be NO GOOD real quick.
Thus, you're gonna have to go with some kind of boom/shotgun, so that you can stand a little further back and still have some isolation from other sounds. Wireless wouldn't help here either, as you would still get the capsule ruined even if you didn't ruin the receiver.

C1000 is a very good mike, but yes, you would need the correct mounting gear, windscreen gear and some kind of phantom powering.

These are videos for a company, and if you're gonna do more than a few, it makes sense to spend $250-$500 for a real good shotgun w/ it's own Phantom powersupply, and get windscreen material. You could borrow the C1000 (and rent accompanying gear) for a few times 'til you got enough spare $$$ to get your own. For mid-to-midhigh level quality for shotguns, I'm partial to Sennheisers. You may actually want to go with an AT in this instance (particularly because of the price point), but be aware they have a very uneven EQ sensitivity and they have higher self-noise and self-distortion than you'll really like (in the long run).

Are you alone on this or can you have a dedicated sound guy? If alone, a VERY heavy-duty stand would be good (with an overhead boom extension would be even better). If sound guy is there, a pistol grip or fishpole would give you better control.

Scott

[thurnau]

My first video is going to be a voice over, so I will be indoors. I prefer a USB mic. The mics I heard on the macworld article made the gtrack sound the best because it was the loudest with clarity. The rode podcaster was probably more clear, but muted compared to the Gtrack. It would be nice if more online comparisons were done to hear the audio technica too. If it was your voice over video what would you get for a USB mic?

For the shotgun mic it would be nice to get some of the background noise in without sounding bad. Any good advice on one? They look a lot more expensive then usb mics, they seem to be more complex. I can get a mic stand with a boom just out of the shot. Or I can hang it from something over the car.

[Soopafresh]

I really wouldn't use a shotgun mic outside while you're spray painting. The best position is to boom it right above the head of the subject. If you're not up close, it'll sound pretty bad. Look at the video example below.



Just clip a wireless Lavalier mic to your collar instead.

Demo of mics outside

http://www.vimeo.com/1356951

[Cornucopia]

I really wouldn't use a shotgun mic outside while you're spray painting. The best position is to boom it right above the head of the subject. If you're not up close, it'll sound pretty bad. Look at the video example below.
...
Just clip a wireless Lavalier mic to your collar instead.

Demo of mics outside

http://www.vimeo.com/1356951

OK, so using the comparison as demonstrated by someone who clearly doesn't know
A. The better quality microphones (when it comes to shotguns, a RODE isn't even in the same ballpark as a Sennheiser or AKG)
B. The best place to position microphones
C. The best use for putting certain microphones in certain positions
D. The reasons why certain microphones behave the way they do
E. How to do a scientific A/B comparison that rules out other variables (a true A/B test would have been if BOTH the lavs and the shotgun were left at the camera as the guy drew away--then the difference in quality would be very apparent)

You would probably come to the conclusion thus drawn.
But hopefully NOT.

Again,
WHY would you want to RUIN a microphone, just so you can get it close?
If you're NOT going to get it close, then by nature of its characteristics, a shotgun would be the best choice.
Also, there is no such rule that directly overhead is the best choice. The best choice is:
A. As close as reasonably possible without incurring the unidirectionally-enhanced low frequency proximity effect (unless that is essential to naturalness of sound due to inefficiencies of the microphone size and materials)
B. As ON-AXIS to the desirec source as possible (to most isolate from surrounding/environmental audio)
C. NOT IN THE PICTURE (unlsess that's ok with you).

That leaves one with lots of leeway AFA positioning.
These rules affect ALL types of microphones.

I stand by what I said. Don't want to diss you Soopafresh, but what reasoning led you to choose a lav even after I mentioned the perils of putting a mic in such close proximity to a spray painting setup?

....

OTOH, since the original poster was going to do VO anyway, why not just live with camera audio as a guide, and overdub in the studio with a good studio condenser mike and it'll sound better than ALL the previous options?

(BTW, as convenient as a USB mike might be, with few exceptions, they don't come close to a standard
Mike->Pre->A/D->Digital Recorder setup)

Scott

[thurnau]

I don't think overspray would penetrate the foam, or even get on the foam. I would be wearing a dress shirt to spray paint the cars. overspray never gets on my glasses or watch either. Light wind could be my biggest problem with noise on the mic as it is outside.

My camera audio was bad. It sounds better indoors, I think it grabbed some wind. I could not quiet the area enough. I need more experience.

Picking a USB mic was confusing alone. There isn't exactly a friendly mic store. The demos I heard sounded pretty good online for a voice over for website videos.

What would you recommend for a mike>pre>a/d>digital recorder setup?

Any wireless Lavalier mic models I should research?

[Cornucopia]

OK, so you're pretty sure it won't get into the capsule, and you are planning on overdubbing (and throwing the original out?)...

If you're gonna overdub, who cares if the camera audio was bad, it's gonna get replaced, right?

If so, was it so bad you couldn't understand what was going on and sync up to it with a VO?

If not being replaced, next question--are you going to be moving around ALOT? And would that include camera work that showed your whole body to your feet?

If so, you will want hidden wireless lav (or shotgun).
If not, you will get MUCH better quality for the same buck by getting a WIRED lav.

In that respect, I'm parial to Sony ECM-77B. But they're on the expensive side. BTW, you can use this with a wireless with the right adapter, or get a Sony wireless setup that uses the same capsule type (but they're VERY expensive).

If you don't already have a Mic->Pre->A/D->Recorder setup, and you were wanting something below $1000, forget it. A good Roland Edirol or M-Audio recorder is gonna put you back $400-500 minimum alone. Since you've already got the Video recorder, you should just rely on that as your recorder for now (let's hope it doesn't save audio in compressed format only, though you can find a few in this category that are $200).

....You know what, never mind. Thing is, it's all part of a whole way of working. If you were going to do a VO to replace, do you have:

A studio? or a living room?
Sound isolation material and good acoustics in a booth? or sitting in a coat closet?
A boomed/hung high-quality condenser or ribbon mike with pop-filter? or a SM-57 propped up on a table?
Separate Focusrite or Manley Mic Pres, and ADC or (old) Alesis A/D converters with HD recorder? or an All-in-one mike/pre/adc/usb on a chip?
A separate ProTools workstation for audio-specific editing? or the built-in audio functions of your video editor?
High quality Sony or AKG monitoring headphones, and Genelec or even Mackie speakers, in a acoustically treated room? or computer speakers and earbuds in you office?

See what I'm getting at? Are you gonna take the high road or the low road? There are quality consequences to taking the low road in each of these instances, but you really ought to know what you're getting into so you can know when it MIGHT be ok to cut corners, and when it would be drastic.
As you said, this is for a company (website?). Does the head of the company really want to put out stuff with their name on it that might be not stellar (let alone substandard)?

Work it the other way around...
Map out your project, your budget, your crew, your resources available within that budget, the quality requirements of the project's script. Then reconcile the gap between what you WANT and what you can DO (before you do it). Maybe get extra funding, maybe lower your scope/expectations.

As I've said before, in this industry it's: FAST, CHEAP, GOOD (pick 1 or at most 2). And in your case, the speed isn't even much of a variable (unless you're willing to wait a real long time to find and acquire blowout deals, and willing to spend time learning all the tricks of the trade).

Not trying to be mean or anything like that, but somebody is gonna have to burst your bubble, and I guess today is my day to be the heavy.

Scott

[thurnau]

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/503926-REG/Rode__Podcaster_Studio_B_H_Kit.html

This kit is a lot cheaper if you call it in with a quote.

I ended up getting the RODE podcaster for voice overs. After reading countless reviews this mic seems to be really good. While the Gtrack sounded really good on a macworld review I read that it was more noisy and had some other problems. It wasn't rated that good. B&H highly recommended the podcaster, and when I shopped locally the microphone specialist liked this mic the most if I am limiting myself to usb. Guitar world does not accept returns on any mic while B&H will. It also has a built in pop filter which is interesting.

I appreciate your advice Supafresh and Cornucopia. I almost like the built in Imac mic; it didn't make my voice sound retarded but it did pick up a bit of noise when I upped the volume in imovie. I can't wait for it to come in.

[thurnau]

I also got windscreen for the onboard mic to cut down wind noise on the background sounds.

[powrslave]

get a preamp from ebay used and that akg c1000s
good to go