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Your first sound setup or kit ever


TommygunZA

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My first setup for this type of work was a package deal I scored on eBay. (I had setups geared toward remote music recording before that). It was a Wendt X4 mixer and Portabrace case, BDS system, a Sennheiser 416, 2 Lectrosonics UCR195D receivers and transmitters and Sonotrim lavs, a big case to put it all in, a KTek boom pole, and cables. I was all set!

-Mike

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On April 13, 2017 at 9:43 PM, Gerard-NYNY said:

in any event, for those who have never seen one of these masterpieces, jw sound presents:

 

Wow...I remember those from when I was a kid. Didn't he/they get in some legal trouble? 

As far as my first gear. It was a pair of Oktava MC-012 microphones that were on consignment when I was working at Coffey Sound along with a pair of PSC universal shock mounts, a mic stand (which I'm still using right now), a stereo bar, and raw cable and connectors to make my own XLR cable. I used them for sound effects and Foley recording. Shortly after that I purchased a Pro Tools LE rig and freelanced post work from my apartment. When I was freelance most of my work was post/video game sound, so I didn't have a need to purchase production equipment, and the production gigs I did get were so varied, I needed a different list of gear each time. Sometimes I'd need a Deva V. Other times just a 744t. I just ended up renting what I needed.

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On 4/18/2017 at 5:02 PM, dfisk said:

Wow...I remember those from when I was a kid. Didn't he/they get in some legal trouble? 

 

if i remember correctly the antar brothers, owners, took the company public and made an ipo, but misrepresented the financials and subsequently, after the stock tanked, they were investigated by the sec, then fled the country, were extradited back, prosecuted and jailed.

 

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1 hour ago, dfisk said:

If I had all the money in the world I'd resurrect "Crazy Eddie's" and do the commercials just like the old days. It'd make a splash. 

jerry carroll, the pitchman, is still at large. lots of nyc local tv commercials were hilariously funky. i really miss it. they proved that new yorkers had a lot of taste, but no class, just about everyone found them cheesy, somewhat repulsive in production value and concept, but universally loved.

https://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/13/nyregion/the-public-face-of-crazy-eddie-recalls-the-real-one.html

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The first freelance gig that required a gear purchase was to record stereo nat sound for a documentary...it was low budget but high quality was paramount (seems nothing has changed!)

Fostex M22RP: Rented- The editor(and former sound guy) recommended that I utilize a Fostex M22RP (a mid-side printed ribbon mic), so I rented that. It was big and heavy and really needed a stand to prevent handling noise.  I had to slap together a wind noise solution for exteriors, ...I think I draped a Rycote Windjammer over it.

FP32A: Borrowed-from a production company that I was formerly a staffer of.  32A was great because it had M-S decode in the monitor matrix.

Sony MZ-R55 Mini-disc recorder circa 1998: Bought- Nobody else that I knew of had tried using Mini-disc for production recording(pre-internet forums!). I thought that Mini-disc was the ideal solution for low budget recording.  DAT was too expensive for me and too finicky.  I bought a Sony MZ-R55 stereo Mini-disc recorder (Sony was still at it's peak of engineering prowess, and it shows in this unit because it does so many things right... and still functions 17 years later).  That Mini-disc recorder was a perfect budget solution for 2 tracks of digital recording.  The caveat was that it needed to go through A-D conversion to get files out of the Mini-Disc and onto a CD to hand off to the editor, but it worked.

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Zoom H4N, AT 897, Rode Boom Pole, Rode Blimp, secondhand Portabrace and harness, secondhand PSC DV Promix3, secondhand Sony MDR 7506, rented wireless

Upgrade to Tascam DR-680, second hand SD 302 and MixPre, Petrol audio bag and harness, a few Senn G3, Rode NTG3

Using SD 633 now, Orca bag and harness

Sent from my SM-N9208 using Tapatalk

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Just noticed this thread, and Christian's latest post - brings back memories...

First shoot  (not my own gear) Nagra III with pilottone cable , a very heavy Electrovoice 642 with a handle, and a set of really uncomfortable ear-clamp Beyer headphones.(roundish with grey hard foam rubber earpads, IfIRC)

Next shoot advanced to Sennheiser 804 with fibreglass blimp, same recorder.

What a treat when we moved on to crystal sync!

My first owned recorder was a Stellavox Sp7, first owned mic a 416T. First owned headphones those round folding Sonys - don't remember the model.

Worked mostly 16mm in those days, and transferred my audio to Mag on magna sync dubbers, synched on PIcSync or moviolas or Steenbecks...

Early NIFCO, MUN film unit, and CBC St. John's.

 

All for now,

Jim Rillie

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2 hours ago, Jim Rillie said:

and a set of really uncomfortable ear-clamp Beyer headphones.(roundish with grey hard foam rubber earpads, IfIRC)

Presumably the ubiquitous DT48 Jim? Splendid things!

2 hours ago, Jim Rillie said:

My first owned recorder was a Stellavox Sp7, 

Gorgeous! Whilst I'm the proud owner-user of two stereo Nagras I've always loved the size and style of their neighbour-rival.

Jez

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11 hours ago, The Immoral Mr Teas said:

Presumably the ubiquitous DT48 Jim? Splendid things!

Jez

I think they must have been pre-DT48 if there was such a thing. I experienced DT48s a year or two later. The cartilage in my ears is still trying to recover from all those Beyers, LOL.

SP7 long gone - eventually motherboard and contacts deteriorated over a few years after being thoroughly doused by a rogue wave whilst shooting on an oil supply vessel. Completely rinsed interior with fresh water, removed potted modules, and dumped batteries immediately, but the salt got in there anyhow. Top deck parts were all fine, but inside...

Still also have a 4stc on the shelf, don't use it much anymore, except to play old tapes.

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My first ever kit for recording sound effects was a second-hand Uher 4000S and an AKG D707. A pair of DT48s, cheap from the local hi-fi emporium who had got them in for a customer who hated them and gave them back, lasted me for years, with a complete refurb from Beyer UK after about twenty years. Shortly after, they were stolen from a committee room at The Houses Of Parliament.

Went from mono Uher to stereo Uher, Sony TCD5 Pro cassette machine, Sony TCD D10 DAT, Metric Halo 2882 & laptop, then SD 788T. More mics, including assorted Soundfields and Rycotes galore.

Happy now.

John

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On 24 April 2017 at 2:08 PM, Jim Rillie said:

I think they must have been pre-DT48 if there was such a thing. I experienced DT48s a year or two later. The cartilage in my ears is still trying to recover from all those Beyers, LOL.

I think DT48s prefigure sound monitoring - it wouldn't have been too many years to go before they celebrated their 100th birthday if they'd kept them going (I think they were recently discontinued?)

I never owned a pair but always (and still) crave them for their style. Meanwhile I've used DT 100s and 150s for years, and actually find them quite 'comfortable' for the shorter periods I use them. My open DT 550s however are super comfortable and sound great - happy to edit wearing them for hours.

A pair of DT48s, cheap from the local hi-fi emporium who had got them in for a customer who hated them and gave them back, lasted me for years, with a complete refurb from Beyer UK after about twenty years. Shortly after, they were stolen from a committee room at The Houses Of Parliament.

On 25 April 2017 at 0:31 PM, soundmanjohn said:

A little power and a few pints of Camerons and it is amazing the depths people will stoop to.

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Well this was my kit by 1982 (a good illustration)

Nagra 4.2 plus a 6 channel mixer I designed and built myself

Senn 816 / 416 x 2 plus a 406 and the inevitable DT48 headphones

By this time I had 3 x Audio Ltd radio mikes and wow? Tram TR-50 personal

mikes that I bought in Sydney and they were my saving grace.

Nagisa Oshima the director commented after our first sync screening after 6 weeks

shooting in the tropical Cook Islands

"the sound is very clear, very strong!"

mike

 

Mike_and_Bowie.jpg

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4 hours ago, mikewest said:

Well this was my kit by 1982 (a good illustration)

Nagra 4.2 plus a 6 channel mixer I designed and built myself

Senn 816 / 416 x 2 plus a 406 and the inevitable DT48 headphones

By this time I had 3 x Audio Ltd radio mikes and wow? Tram TR-50 personal

mikes that I bought in Sydney and they were my saving grace.

Nagisa Oshima the director commented after our first sync screening after 6 weeks

shooting in the tropical Cook Islands

"the sound is very clear, very strong!"

mike

 

Mike_and_Bowie.jpg

great picture, thanks for sharing.

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

First kit bought from trading post ( a Melbourne institution ) 1986ish

a nagra ISlt , a beautiful crystal synch smaller and lighter  nagra. 

Some not terribly good nacamichi shotguns

some very large Sony lavs

cables and bag and heavy metal cases

learning on lots of no budget short film with friends. First proper job,  borrowed a 416t and my father bought me a pair of HD 25

off to vanawatu and a fits and bursts career 

when everything went stereo a bit later I was lucky to find a stellvox AMI 48 at a gov sale (I don't think they knew what it was) best $100 ever spent , jobs with this bought me a Cooper 105 mixer and radios.

(I still like to look at the AMI 48)

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First portable recorder was the M-audio Microtrack...the clock in it was so bad that I used it to record plays and the audio would always be WAY out of sync with the video after 40 minutes.  So then got the Microtrack II, it was much better, but needed something more robust.  So got the SD 302 mixer and a Zaxcom ZFR100 with stereo adapter...302 was front end, zfr100 was the recorder for it.  First mic was the Senn ME66, Blue Bluebird, AKG 414XLS, Senn G1 wireless x 2 (they eventually just stopped working, not abused just sitting in a drawer, pulled it out and turned on but wouldn't transmit audio), so upgraded to G3.  Bought Loon Boom 16' with coiled internal cable.  Schoeps 641 mic, Rode NTG3, then last year got Zaxcom Maxx, DPA 4060 stereo set, DPA 88 headsets x 2, DPA 4017b, and Rode Filmaker Kit and Newsshooter kit for wireless.  For most interviews use wired DPA 4060's to the Maxx out to camera.  I know most folks here talk about the 4062's, but I just put the 4060's in a piano and other loud sources and haven't ever clipped them...  So I appreciate the higher sensitivity for nature recording too.

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1 hour ago, wbrock001 said:

...

I know most folks here talk about the 4062's, but I just put the 4060's...

...

No, not the 4062, it's seldom a good choice for our work.  The 4062 is a super low sensitivity version and is only suitable for dialog if you're wiring a screamer.

You're probably thinking of the 4061 and 4063 (they're the same sensitivity; the 4063 is a low voltage version) and are suitable for dialog, as are the 4060 that you use.

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