Apparently context isn't enough. I was describing the sound recording technique, and concluded it with "I'll let the sound guy decide."
Anyway, yes the Sweetwater folks have been in my experience quite honest, and though they occasionally recommend stuff that I didn't plan on, it's stuff that's in the same price range. (e.g. boom mics).
I may not be a sound specialist, but I do like knowing how to get good sound, since we're not always able to get dedicated sound people to work with us. I do prefer it when we have them though, because it makes my life a lot easier since it means I don't need to worry about the sound side of things... as long as we don't have 7 planes flying overhead every six minutes, as it sometimes feels like happens as soon as the director calls "action."