petersont

+1 - I've owned and used this exact setup: STSC-4 with a pair of ccm4s, and as OB1 says its very secure... and no reason to think the newest mini lemo amp CMC 1L paired with an MK 4 would be any different. Schoeps promotes it as much, here: https://schoeps.de/en/products/accessories/stereo-accessories/bars-and-clamps/stc.html ORTF as you no doubt know was originally conceived for French Radio to be a very natural sounding and quick / reliable stereo solution with "decent" mono compatibility. But for those times when you have more time & the curiosity to experiment - and since you seem to be starting your Schoeps collection from scratch - you might also consider the MK5 capsule which can be both an omni and cardioid... and voilá you also own a pristine spaced omni pair for about $300 per capsule more vs the MK4. And if you haven't already, check out Gearspace.com Remote Possibilities in Recording & Production for a lot of helpful info on all things classical & acoustic recording, ORTF and AB stereo and recommendations on the MK5 capsule in particular. Have fun -

Staying with Schoeps ( there ARE other excellent miniature cardioid options, some costing far less $...) this offers identical sound with the flexibility to use your investment in many other ways... with zero loss of acoustic quality, choose the CMC 1L amp + MK4 capsule vs the CCM4 one piece.

*don't leave the battery in overnight, there is no off switch...

There is another extensive thread on Gearspace you might enjoy: https://gearspace.com/board/studio-stage-mobile-amp-location-equipment/1294096-sonosax-sx-m2d2-how-practical.html. In short, after some very high praise for its preamp quaity from a few big label pro classical recordists, it seems using with the iPhone is easily done - Sonosax actually sells the proper cables and some use the Apogee app MetRecorder. But I think that if it was me heading off to who knows where with the smallest kit possible, I'd also pack a tiny MixPre3ii in my waist bag just cuz...

For a one man / mixing while booming situation in which the subject is not moving around much I've sometimes used the 'dipstick' from Ambient - enables keeping one hand on the fader while most of the weight of the pole is tucked into my hip / belt / a pocket etc. Also useful in a small crowded situation - can just come down from over the top of flags / bounces / camera etc. https://ambient.de/en/brands/ambient/736/qds-dipstick-angleable-boom-pole-extention

I would suggest picking up a pair of omni mics (small condenser or even lavalier ) and experimenting with AB stereo / spaced pair. Lovely, spacious sound field. And maybe next, a pair of cardioid condenser mics and play around with the various configurations.... ORTF is hard to go wrong with for starters. While you can easily spend more than €1000 for even a single top shelf omni or cardioid mic, you do not need to and certainly not before you have a good reason and a specific purpose in mind... For your budget I can recommend mics from Line Audio - fairly low self noise, high max SPL and very good quality - especially so given their price. And still have plenty of €s left over for proper shock mounts, good wind protection and cabling. http://www.lineaudio.se Something about their omni here: https://www.soundonsound.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=54387 and here:https://gearspace.com/board/remote-possibilities-in-location-recording-amp-production/1337916-recommended-stereo-omni-mics-nature-recording-ideally-ones-i-might-find-cheap-second-hand.html I actually own a pair Line Audio's CM4 cardioids and have made recordings of opera singers as well as nature ambiences with very nice results. I bought mine from PinkNoise, who are great to deal with and not so far away... https://www.pinknoise-systems.co.uk/line-audio-cm4s-w-rode-ws8-windshields-gravity-ms-stb-stereo-bar-bundle.html https://www.pinknoise-systems.co.uk/line-audio-omni1-w-rode-ws8-windshields-stereo-bar-bundle.html As you know, a ton of information on line for nature & ambience recording, from low to high budget, but here is one sight worth checking out for his lovely recordings & discussion, most of which are done around Iceland as I understand it. While he often uses Sennheiser Omnis (€€) in AB spaced pair array he does experiment with other brands. HLJÓÐMYND – SOUNDIMAGE [ https://fieldrecording.net ] Good luck!

I used this combo for years - an SQN-4s modded with direct outs feeding a 744T with an SSD. Beautiful preamps & perfect MS controls on the SQN, both it and the 744T rock solid through many travels in all sorts of environments... but definitely on the heavy side, especially so with all the necessary cabling & powering. I was not alone in wishing for SQN to make the jump into an all in one mixer / recorder... They had already reduced the size, it would have been stellar. But I agree with the above suggestion to check out Sonosax. And along with info found on this forum, there is another - gearspace.com ( formerly gearslutz.com) - where you can find posts by many who specialize in location recording of classical / acoustic music . And a few converts from the Nagra VI to Sonosax's SX-R4+ ... reading your post I think it will provide some fun reading and gear-slutzing... here's but one link to start: https://gearspace.com/board/all-things-technical/1264765-sonosax-mic-preamps-opinions.html Good luck & have fun -:)

Hey - all useful information, thanks... but if you don't mind, curious where & what you are recording that the DPA 4060s are too noisy for? Thx -

then that would be patently perfect...

Patrick - A question about your MS setup, please. 1) cabling: it looks like you might be using the Schoeps K5LU lemo to XLR cable (15') for the CCM8 and have just coiled it up because of its length. Is this right? For indoors / when not using a larger blimp setup ( or maybe with the Leo - which I like the look of a lot), I'd like to find a short, simple Y cable with a lemo + xlr to 5pin XLR out but no luck. I'm not sure if it exists but have you come across anything like that? I do still have a pair of lemo /xlr tails & connbox from an older, pre-Cyclone Rycote rig, but I'd prefer something less clunky. 2) which Cinela shock mount are you using? Thank you -

+1 - and looking at the DPA rewire above ( assuming that is in fact Kishor...) is black the only available cable color, ie no white or tan? Thanks

Thank you, this is a really helpful discussion for me as well. And if you don't mind I'd appreciate a bit of detail on the situations where you were disappointed with the A10s performance... If outdoors, what sort of distances / ranges are we talking about? If indoors, was this a problem with walls, floors, etc? Anyway, any information you care to share very much appreciated - thx

Is there a new A10 line coming out? I was not able to find any information about this - Thx

Thanks and understood, but to make myself a bit clearer, the recommended occasional 'tickle' of red on the TX can appear like a car wreck on the 401 display - which can be somewhat unnerving... so even while I'm not hearing distortion, I'll often back off the red tickle altogether just to avoid this visual smashup, sort of like fingernails on the chalkboard but to my eyes. Anyway, not all of my receivers display exactly the same way.

lol -:) However, as you say, "Remember, you can't overload the receiver ..." - I have a couple of older 401s on which ( with LMAs occasionally tickling the red ) the display certainly appears like its showing distortion. This is because the AF signal strength triangle on the display can & does turns full square, banging the wall visually if not accoustically... So one can be excused from interpreting this mashup as trouble, as I certainly have done in the past - although listening as carefully as I could I never heard any. IMG_1199.HEIC IMG_1200.HEIC

-:) mine too Strong bit of kit for sure, fantastic they put in 6 preamps so no need to carry along another preamp for all sorts of scenarios, especially music & ambience w/two stereo pairs, DMS, Ambisonics, 5.1... scanned the manual and at least so far don't think there's more than a 2 channel linking option for stereo/MS but hopefully a software upgrade can ( and will..!) remedy that soon enough. And new to me certainly - SD now moving to Smart batteries... but strangely still building around the Sonys. I'd happily switch over completely but no love in lugging 2 different battery systems / chargers around the world.

Stingray Jr user here - had a larger Orca before but sold on the Jr - just right for a few Lectros and a bds, msc. And not least, it fits flat in my Think Tank International roller carry on.

Love it! Thx for sharing that pic - a wonderful film and wonderful sound(s...) - great job!

+1 but please don't ask Santa for a "633 mk2" or you will get a Scorpio with just 3 preamps / 3 faders... where SD got this 3 thing from I don't know. 4 XLR mic ins is the magic number here - so much more useful.

+1 for the Hawkwoods, in my case the DV-SQN4S. Many years of bag use and no issues... before that I used their system for Np-1s and likewise always worked as it should.

You can see my question about the SPS200 on their FB page - under the announcement for the new Soundfield web site with recording samples. I was answered in a personal message, assumed it would also appear on web site. I despise FB and wander into its messy warren only rarely...

fyi, a nice new Soundfield website + on Rode's FB page this morning: "...The SPS200 is going to continue on as a SoundField product, where as the NT-SF1 is going to be a cheaper, more affordable ambisonic mic officially as a RODE Microphones product. The SoundField products will continue to be largely hand made and featuring the best components available, where as the NT-SF1 will benefit from RODE's more automated, advanced manufacturing techniques that will reduce the cost. I'm sure a lot of people will be comparing both when they are available.

Agree with the posts about adding a small figure 8 to your current shotgun. In a pinch something like the Schoeps CCM8 will fit inside a std WS4 Rycote. Paired with a CMIT it sounds fantastic for all manner of ambience & even music. But even smaller is the Ambient Emesser and over $1300 less. For doc dialogue situations and general ambience & spaciousness it sounds just fine. Used both. Plus as mentioned above you can easily decide whether to go mono or no with a flick of the switch...

Great to know, gracias otra vez!