Jump to content

Show me your bag


Mark Vesterskov

Recommended Posts

Finally decided to go with the 607 like a few others for an immediate 633 solution. Everything fits, but just barely! NP-1 under SRbs, distro box velcro'd at bottom of front pouch to avoid any exposed wires.

As I'm obsessed over having the most bang in the smallest rig, this will do for a while, methinks.

 

 

post-742-0-85432200-1388088258_thumb.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'll add my bag here for the record. Nothing too fancy, but a nice sounding analogue bag. 

 

On one hand I yearn for a smaller bag, but if I've managed to fill up a 617 I don't see how I could squeeze it all in anything smaller without losing half the kit/functionality. 

 

I'd like to see if I could get all of this (but with 633) into one of the small petrol bags. Doubt it though.

 

 

Chris,

 

It looks like you have some inline couplers for your power?  are these Hirose 4 pins?  I've never seen a female barrel type and would interested in a link or supplier if you have one.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Chris,

 

It looks like you have some inline couplers for your power?  are these Hirose 4 pins?  I've never seen a female barrel type and would interested in a link or supplier if you have one.

Yes you are correct, I've 4 couplers which work very well for me. There are 3 Hawk Woods LA-18 and one custom one with a USB charger. They'll make whatever you want, within reason ;)

 

 link below

 

http://www.hawkwoods.com/products/cables_and_plugs/cables_by_output_plug/hirose_output.php?mainMenuItemToSlide=10

Link to comment
Share on other sites

here's my maxx in the new ktek stingray bag. i had it crammed in the petrol 607 but it wasn't ideal. usually i go with the built in transmitter in the my maxx but the shoot i worked on day prior to this pic required using my lectro camera link setup. at the moment i have my sennheiser g3 transmitter in the right side inside pocket for IFB and have moved the srb into the left inside pocket and have my 2 411a's in the main wireless section. i've contemplated having a seamstress sew in some elastic bands, like the production bag will have but honestly i kinda like the wireless wraps, at least for the job i'm about to embark on. 

 

1461167_10151845292587098_986881724_n_zp

 

you can see more pics of my bag layout in my flickr set, http://www.flickr.com/photos/manglerbmx/sets/72157638619481975/

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi Michael, I can't see your flickr, any shots of somebody wearing the bag? It looks really good so far, I'm just uncertain about those wrap things, but I guess they don't have to be used. Still hoping to see a better solution for fitting in a wireless hop tx somewhere that's not clipped ungracefully to the front when the production models ship!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yes you are correct, I've 4 couplers which work very well for me. There are 3 Hawk Woods LA-18 and one custom one with a USB charger. They'll make whatever you want, within reason ;)

 

 link below

 

http://www.hawkwoods.com/products/cables_and_plugs/cables_by_output_plug/hirose_output.php?mainMenuItemToSlide=10

awesome, thanks!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

post-3071-0-42977100-1392654119_thumb.jp

 

 

I started freelance location sound mixing ten years ago and my kit has changed over the years becoming more capable with new products from several manufacturers in particular this past decade. As I've been a bag and not cart mixer since the start, saving weight and being mobile but still being able to say 'sure I can do that' when a producer or director wants something in particular (with little to no time given for set up) is often necessary.

 

At the heart of any kit is the mixer and I've followed Sound Devices products over the years fitting a 302 then 442 and eventually 552 into Petrol bags with each new product release. Likewise, when Lectrosonics came out with their SR receivers and SM transmitters, the 400 series sets went up for sale as smaller and lighter but still capable is the over-all goal for the kit.

 

After the 552, Sound Devices came out with the 664. What a flagship! But what a beast for a bag mixer to cary over the shoulder. Finally a mixer and multitrack recorder in the same box meeting production needs that the 788t wasn't designed to. But then in late 2013 they released the 633 - a 644 cut in half (I cringed watching the SD video of a band saw slicing a 644 in half.) The 644 is still the flagship with additional capabilities of the 633 and I'll probably keep mine for a wile yet, but for 90% of the work I do the 633 is the ultimate tool in my current kit, which ten years in the making, I think is nearly perfect.

 

 

The Perfect Kit?

(For the sound work I most often do anyway!)

 

Sound Devices 633 - Compact and lightweight yet capable with ten tracks and timecode. It's rare that I need more than five lavs with the sixth channel for the boom so just the right number of tracks in a compact package for bag work. It's the little details and having a 3.5 TRS to feed the Comtek and two TA3's for sound to the SR's for wireless hop to camera then two XLR's to keep a break-a-way cable hooked up as well is just right. No more swapping wireless and wired when getting up from the sit down to go grab some b-roll set up shots of the person just interviewed like with the 302.

 

Petrol PS614 Bag - At first I was thinking it was a bit wide having been designed for the 552 originally, however, it fits three SR's in a row very well and the extra inch on either side of the 633 allows for an extra safety margin for plugs sticking out on either side with the inputs and outputs. The main advantage to this particular bag is a huge front compartment which accommodates six SM's and a Countryman pouch to hold a bunch of lavs. Then, there's  the very front pocket for lav accessories like Rycote's Undercovers and Remote Audio's elastic straps. An IDX NP1 (NP-LS7) with Remote Audio BDS v4 fits well in the back pouch and flipping the on/off switch on the BDS is simple with access through the left side zipper. An addition to the bag to get everything to be more solid was to pick up a right angle aluminum piece from the depot for home stuff and cut it in two sections both the width of the bag. One piece got a notch the width of the 633 for it to fit snugly then the other in the top section of the bag with slots cut for the SR's to drop in and have a platform to rest on. I covered both aluminum right angles with Velcro for appearance. Doing this provided structure for the bag allowing all of the gear to fit together as a unit. (Using Velcro to attach gear together in a bag has been a regular part of every kit over the years.)

 

Lectrosonics SRb & SMQv - They just work day in and day out. They are reliable and do one job - to send and receive clean audio in a lightweight compact box. I haven't had any concerns with a lack of front end tracking that the 411's can boast of and have a couple shark fins with SMA to BNC cables if extra range is needed. Most often though, like the number of lavs, I'm not that significant a distance from talent or camera and if need be, I'll split the difference going half way between talent and camera. I purchased four SMQV's and four SMV's. The main four wireless lavs are put to use first with their longer time between battery changes; then, channels five and six have less battery time using a couple SM's but are lighter for kids or places where the smaller transmitter is a better fit. Also using a couple SMV's for the wireless hop to camera helps with a smaller transmitter for weight and a Lectro battery eliminator is one AA tube anyway. A couple HM cube transmitters for handhelds or the occasional boom op shoots are on the same frequency block as the SMV's. With eight plus wireless sets on at times, I didn't want to have to think much about inter-modulation so I skipped a block (or two) every two sets starting at block 19 up to block 26.

 

Break-a-way Cables - Peter Engh. I like the seven-pin Neutrik connectors he uses as well as Mogami cables. Also, looking inside the the connectors, every solder joint is always perfect shiny silver with heat shrink on each lead. He just makes good cables. For feeding multiple cameras with returns, as often is the case for news magazine sit downs for example, Engh makes a box he calls the Splitmon 3 which works well with the 633 to feed and get a return from three cameras - correspondent, guest, and lock down wide shot.

 

Comtek PR216 for Interruptible Foldback - I had eight Lectro R1a's but went back to Comteks for several reasons. The Lectros were heavy and ate 9v batteries. I also got tired of a producer / director saying 'I can't hear anything' because they had mashed down the blue volume knob sending it into scan mode. In this case it's not the Lectros but the Comteks that 'just work'. They have a much better battery life and a simple on/off switch with volume knob. The Comteks are simple and effective; lightweight and cost less to replace; the 216Mhz is a plus too with a fairly clear band so range is always great even with less transmit power.

 

SONY MDR7506 Headphones - There's a reason they're often used for location sound. They fold up compactly and sound great and are fairly durable. Only thing is how the tissue paper thin vinyl coating on the outside rim of the earphones wears away so quickly but a terry cloth cover takes are of that issue.

 

K-Tek Klassic Six Section Traveler Pole - K87CC is a lightweight carbon fiber pole at 1.36 lbs and goes from 1'10" to 7'3". That allows it to fit in a Pelican case or hooked to the side of the bag with a Cable Clamp (Home Depot for orange or Lowe's for blue or order off CableClamp's website for other colors) and not get in the way in and out of cars or when putting the bag down but then extend to a good length for most ENG or EFP scenes. I've carried a K-Tek Traveler pole in many different countries and onboard many domestic and international flights. It's a great pole for all around use. The K-Tek K-SM shock mount is great being smaller and lighter than other options. If there were a quick release out there that would be nice, but I haven't found one to help when changing between the MKH60 and MKH50.

 

Boom Mics - Sennheiser MKH60 with Rycote Softie for outdoors or a MKH50 with foam for indoors. They sound great and are durable. Temperature doesn't adversely affect them as often I'm in A/C then out in humidity and they work inside and outside day in day out.

 

Lav Mics - Sanken COS-11's most often although sometimes a Countryman B6 is useful or a Countryman EMW if a situation is hazardous to a lav's health. I used to keep a few TRAM TR50's around but got tired of replacing them when inevitably they would short at the base of the capsule. COS-11's sound super and are durable lasting years (and outlasting TRAM's for years).

 

Support Case - I've been using a Pelican 1520 case with mesh bags inside for the support gear for the past decade. I find that often I'm hopping in a DP's van or a production rented Town & Country, and after the amount of gear it seems to take to make pretty pictures, most of the space in the van is taken up, and there's just enough room for me, a 1520, and my kit. The 1520 stays in the van sometimes or goes to the gear room or interview room, but for batteries or XLR cable or other support gear on a run-n-gun shoot a smaller back pack has served well with the kit.

 

post-3071-0-96600500-1392664131_thumb.jp

 

 

All this relates to the kind of sound work I do most often of course and over the years I've tailored the gear to be the most efficient but capable set up possible. Location sound is often challenging work with producer expectations (and curve balls), less than ideal environments, and the myriad of technical details it takes to get it right the first take and every take thereafter (or as with ENG where there's one chance to get it recorded well). We rely on our gear for our reputation and I appreciate companies like Sound Devices and Lectrosonics; K-Tek and Comtek; Sennheiser and Sanken that make some great products.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...