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Which blimp to get?


IronFilm

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Would the Rode Blimp be the best Blimp to go for on a budget? Or is it worth spending a little more? (I'll be using it with a NTG2)

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1056426-REG/rode_blimp_windsheild_rycote_lyre_suspension.html

Is the K-TEC better than the RODE Blimp perhaps?

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/458958-REG/K_Tek_K_ZEPP_M_Zeppelin_with_Suspension.html

Or the Rycote?

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1044548-REG/rycote_010321_super_shield_kit_medium.html

Which to pick!! So many options!!

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The updated Rode blimp is much lighter than the old version but heavier than some of the very high end blimps. Still, it is a great blimp on a budget, and it even has Rycote Lyre suspension system built in now which is a huge plus. I still cannot justify paying two or three times as much for a blimp considering the very few times I need it vs. just a plain old softie. And so even having many thousands of dollars in gear, I'm using a very effective $200 blimp (bought it used). Go figure. 

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About the weight; according to their websites, the rode blimp system is actually lighter than the Rycote system 4 ( I guess that is the equivalent one length wise). 550 vs 700 grams. I guess this is both with the pistol grip, so you can shave some off if you use the low profile joint on both on them.

 

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In the studio world the saying is "buy once, buy for life" meaning spend the money on the best product instead of making baby steps with your purchases. This however sometimes difficult to do. 

I purchased a Rode blimp years ago and was never sayisfied with it, both in performance and weight. Today I use a Rycote. They work and they work well. 

I recommend doing some research on your part first (for everything!), then coming to a decision on your own before spending any money. 

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1 hour ago, JonG said:

In the studio world the saying is "buy once, buy for life" meaning spend the money on the best product instead of making baby steps with your purchases. This however sometimes difficult to do. 

I purchased a Rode blimp years ago and was never sayisfied with it, both in performance and weight. Today I use a Rycote. They work and they work well. 

I recommend doing some research on your part first (for everything!), then coming to a decision on your own before spending any money. 

I guess you are talking about the old blimp, you used years ago. The new blimp is made in collaboration with Rycote actually. I don't own one but recently I was at a rental company and had both the old and new blimps in my hand. 2 different animals. Especially weight wise. Suspension is now the same lyres as Rycote.

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Yes I only know the old Rode blimp. I can't comment on the newer one. Dave Fisk graciously showed me the K-Tek blimp when it was in development back at their shop a few years ago. I thought that some of the design elements were well thought out, but hélas I have no practical experience with them. 

I do have a Reinhardt SoftZep II that I inherited from a mixer that passed away. Aside from handling noise issues, it works amazingly well in ultra high wind scenarios, and is incredibly light. I modded the mount to help with the handling noise, but it is still not perfect. Must only be used by very experienced Boom Ops imho. Either way, worth checking out. 

That said, my day to day blimp is Rycote. 

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I had decided I'd go for Rycote, as it is only a little ish bit more than a RODE on B&H when comparing the prices listed on B&H.

But then I saw the RODE being sold on eBay for significantly less than at B&H, and that just made the RODE/Rycote price gap too big to ignore, so I ended up going with the RODE blimp:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/RODE-BLIMP-WINDSHIELD-AND-SHOCK-MOUNT-/290944829370

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The Rode blimp arrived last week, and I used it on this weekend's job. It was entirely indoors, so I just used the shock mount without the blimp shield, instead with only a softie over the NTG2. 

I was massively impressed with the Rycote Lyre suspension, *HUGELY* better than the shock mount I was using before. Before I had to be fairly careful indeed with my boom to avoid handling noise, but now with the Rycote Lyre suspension it is much much harder to create bad handling noise. 

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