Jason Nightall

For those that use them, how are you guys sourcing your multichannel ambiences, atmospheres and room tones? Do you build them from stereo recordings or do you use original multichannel recordings that match the target format?

I have a not-very-old MKH50 and noticed RF interference in certain locations that I think was originating from security or CCTV systems in the building. I sent it off the Sennheiser to be looked at and the engineer said it needed a new board which would be £250 to fix. Was a bit annoyed that I had to pay to fix their design fault that they appeared to know about but not own up to, but that lead nowhere. Seems any second hand MKH50 could have this issue. I still wouldn’t get rid of mine though, its one of the best mics I own.

Thanks Roland, thats a very interesting document, very detailed.

Would there be any issue with using a small microphone in a larger windshield. For example putting an MKH50 in a Rycote WS4 windshield which is designed for shotguns? Obviously the microphone will be further from the front of the windshield than the sides so would this have any negative effect from an acoustics point of view?

If you have a separate physical Cedar unit it seems it would be easier to charge extra kit cost for that as opposed to a plugin you already have in your recorder you can just turn on whenever you want (although you paid $xxxx for the license but explaining that to a client would be a harder conversation... "but we are already paying you for the sound recorder and that has noise reduction built in now right?") I'd be inclined to get iZotope RX and to try and have them commission me for some post production work, though it depends on the job I guess. My 2cents anyway. It is impressive Sound Devices units have the power for this now though.

Indeed. Good for when you want less reverberation picked up too, despite being omnidirectional. I also like the cable strength on the cos11 - talent are not always gentle with my lav mics.

Its an open hall so its all taking place in a large room. The only thing blocking line of sight will be other actors as they move around. Camera hops not required.

Hi all I’m recording a film next week which is about an improv group. Its partially scripted but a lot of the time they will be performing real improv sessions and all eight actors need wireless lavs so they can move and speak freely. There will be 2 cameras moving at random so I will also need to be mobile to stay out of their gaze so this means 8 wireless receivers in one bag. I have 4 Lectro SMDB’s in the 606 band with SRB receivers. I also have 4 standard Sennheiser G2 transmitters and receivers in the Band E range (around 830-865 mhz) so theres my eight channels. All transmitters and receivers will be using whip antennas. I have also used the FreqFinder app to pick frequencies that avoid intermods. Theres no budget for sharkfins or any of that fancy stuff. Is there anything else I can do to stack the deck in my favour and get good reception on all 8 channels?

Hi. I am making some TA3 cables for my 633 an the Sound devices manual states: “Pin-1 = ground, pin-2 = hot (+), and pin-3 = cold (-)” but doesn’t show exactly which pin is hot and cold on their device. I notice the TA3 plug has different pin assignments compared to standard XLR and just want to check I should follow the pin numbering on the plug I have? So pin 2 on the TA3 is hot even though the pin in that location on a standard XLR plug would be cold? Please see the photo Theres a very good chance I am over thinking this but I don’t want to get this wrong.

Very interesting. Reminds me of this:

Thanks for the replies, some great points to think about.

Wondering how the Audio Ltd A10 does on range compared to other systems, mainly for use on talent. Are there any A10 users here have had any range issues or could give a comparison?

Here in the UK we are limited to 50mw power output on our transmitters whereas in the US and other countries the limit is 100mw or 250mw So my question simply is how much real world difference will it make to go over 50mw assuming I’m using a bag receiver with whip antennas?

Would you say having certain brand names in your kit list increase the chances of you getting hired? Or to ask the question a different way, are there certain sound kit brand names that non-technical production people recognise over others? For eample: lets say theres someone who works in a production company whose job it is to hire sound crew. They may have heard the name Lectrosonics and associate it with competent sound crew but they may not have come across the names of other wireless brands so often. Would you say the chances of getting hired be less if you had non-Lectro kit? Same with other brands like sound devices etc.

My music producing friends speak very highly of the Avantone Active MixCubes. I used to own the original NS10's and dislike them very much, very over rated in my opinion and didn't take long to give me ear fatigue. I personally use some cheap logitec speakers to reference a mix to give an idea of how it will sound to an end user. Also just listening to it off your phone on common earbud earphones will work too.

This! Especially in Europe.

John Purcell's book is great. I ordered it thinking it was another book I'd been recommended but wasn't disappointed after reading it. One thing I notice is a lot of well-known books don’t cover stuff like izotope RX and other software solutions that are relatively new(ish) and how to work it into traditional workflows. It can be hard to know when to apply noise reduction, at what point and by how much to begin with. It depends on the type of production and source material to large degree. I think this touches on OP’s original question.

I've done something similar to this in the past and had issues with the shirt rubbing the cable from behind so I like the idea of using the double sided rycote sticky to keep the two sides of the shirt in place. Thanks

Why not just put a plugin on your master bus that will combine both chanels to mono so you can check mono compatibility of the mix. Alternatively use a meter plugin that has a stereo correlation meter included such as the free version of Voxengo SPAN. The closer to +1 you can keep the meter the better mono comparability you will have.

Thanks Jeff. I've been in a couple of these meetings now and I would highly recommend them.