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Hi to you all, first post here. I'm a sound mixer based in barcelona, spain. I'm looking for an interior boom mic, i have read a lot of discussions here about hyper and super cardioids mics, i know that a lot of people loves their CMC641 and MKH50 (mkh 8040 and 8050 also), but unfortunately they are out of my budget. People allways recommend on a low budget this two mics the audix and the akg. Here in barcelona it's impossible to rent them and make a side by side comparison, so i would like to know if any of you have used boths and know your reviews as well. I like that the akg have a +6, 0, -10 db pad, and also a bass cut filter: 12 db/octave at 70hz and 150hz. Thanks to you all, regards from barcelona, spain. Nico

I'm in the market for a small pencil microphone for my rig. I have the long shotguns for outdoor use but I need a hypercardiod that will work well on a boom. I'm torn between the Oktava MK012 and the Avantone Pro CK-1? Thoughts? Anyone use either or both of these and make a case for them? There is like zero reviews for these mics online. Also on the cheapest end i'm looking at the BadAax TK120.

Brian McCarty, an audio professional presently living in Australia, seeks to conduct a series of tests to evaluate subtleties of microphone performance. His theory is that the shift away from interference tube microphones to cardioid and hypercardioid designs yielded an improvement in the intelligibility of dialog recording. Even if background noise increased slightly with the less directional designs, the dialog itself was more understandable and this more than compensated for the additional noise. He will be in Los Angeles later this month and would like to conduct some controlled tests to produce data to prove this theorem. He expects to be here from about the 17th to about the 22nd. Some tests will be done in a workshop under controlled conditions. He would also very much like to make some tests on an active set. The idea is to rig two microphones, one with an interference tube and one without, to a single boom and make matching recordings of dialog in a real-world environment. The resulting recordings would then be carefully evaluated for any differences in intelligibility. He is working in close association with Dr. Peter Mapp, a UK expert in audiology who has computer software that can help quantify any perceived differences. To make real world comparisons, he needs cooperation from someone working on a project who might be able to extend an invitation to visit the set and briefly encumber the boom operator with a second microphone. He would particularly like to conduct this test in an exterior scene but any working project would provide an opportunity to make meaningful tests. Probably the whole business could be accomplished in an hour or so. An independent production would probably be best as it is difficult to persuade the studios to allow anyone to make recordings, even briefly, and take away copies. Brian used to live in Los Angeles and was a member of both Local 695 and Local 700. He is presently the head of Coral Sea Studios in Australia (http://www.coralseastudios.com/index.html) and is also chair of the AES Technical Committee on Sound for Digital Cinema and Television. If you can help, please post here or send me a PM. Thanks very much. David

Hello, A few months ago I started a thread here asking for information about gear, mostly about a new hyper mic. I received many and v helpful answers and advice which, together with some research mainly here, greatly helped me in buying the equipment i needed, even though some of them weren't on my list in the beginning. The microphone i chose was the Audix SCX1-HC, on which i found few comments and no sound samples, but since i always appreciated the brand i went for it. I have to admit that i am very satisfied with it. After completing 3 projects (feature length doc and 2 corporate videos) i can safely say that, imho, the mic has a very natural sound, with good detail, low sibilance, suitable both for male and female voices (amazing on acoustic guitar recordings too ). I am planning to make some test samples, when time permits it and share it here, so you can have a 'taste'. After many comments i decided to blow away my budget and went for an SD302.. and what a great buy was that! Sound quality aside (surely not much to comment here) i am truly amazed on how thoughtfully this device has been designed, allowing a fluid workflow and accounting for everything one would need at work. The booming pole also proved to be a great purchase, talking about the Ambient QX580, a very lightweight carbon fibre pole (bought on a great deal) with a stellar locking system. So, reason for writing this is to thank everybody that participated in my thread and also all that comment on equipment and general queries here, your help to new professionals on the field and me in specific is greatly appreciated. All the best

In a previous thread I mentioned how I was looking for an indoor mic. Now, my search has narrowed down to a few choices, and it's here I'm asking for some of your hands-on experience... I've rented only one of these, the others aren't available for rent in Toronto. There are many reviews on the MKH-50, Schoeps CMC641, and there are even some on the 8040 and 8050. What I can't find is anything on the OktavaMods and the Gefell. I'm particularly interested in the OktavaMods because of the price and because I'll get three capsules, but I'm willing to go all the way and buy a Schoeps CMC641 too (but only one capsule), if the OktavaMods don't prove to be the greatest decision. Choices in Toronto: OktavaMods MK-012-03 N/A for rent and can't find location sound-reviews either [*]MKH 50 Have rented it and I liked it [*]MKH 8040 N/A for rent [*]MKH8050 N/A for rent [*]Schoeps CMC641 N/A for rent [*]Gefell M210 N/A for rent Note: While I will have occasional access to an NTG-3, this will be my first location mic.