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Long Shotguns - Still in use?


Ty Ford

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I had a listen to a 8060 the other day, windy exterior with a lot of tree noise.

Once I swung that down into position for the interview, I was struck at the off axis rejection. Rather than hearing the coloured off axis I'm used to in a shotgun, the wind in trees just got quieter. Therefore it seemed to be a much clearer sound and did a great job in attenuating the off axis.

Although it wasn't a side by side comparison with a long shotgun, I think it did a great job in a situation a long shotgun could be a consideration.

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a couple times a year

i find myself in an ENG situation where the 4071 is the right tool for the job.. BUT.. I find that those are jobs where the information contained in the soundbite is more important than the quality and timbre of the voice recording..

 

In other words... I don't like the idea of using it for dialog... I am willing to use it for news..

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" Does it all smear into a sound field that our ears "buy" as crowd noise? Is there a better way to capture details from the sidelines and crowd walla from the rim? "

that is difficult to say... there is a lot of subjectivity

 

" some of today's interference tube mic's use acoustical magic to put a longer (acoustically) tube into a shorter (linear) mic... "

CS3e is an example of this ...

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I've had Boom Ops  who just refused to swing a 816 with fluffy on a long pole, then I've had Boom Ops who suggested that we use it instead of radio micing. I used to use it a lot when I started out, but I found in the last couple of years I haven't got that kind of energy myself anymore working solo. I recently got a new mic case and there wasn't any room for the 816 anymore. Can't remember the last time I used it and it's not in the Sound Van anymore either.

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I've had Boom Ops  who just refused to swing a 816 with fluffy on a long pole, then I've had Boom Ops who suggested that we use it instead of radio micing. I used to use it a lot when I started out, but I found in the last couple of years I haven't got that kind of energy myself anymore working solo.

 

that sounds like you have gone over to the "just wire everyone" dark side...

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  • 2 weeks later...

I often suggest using a long mic when booming exterior dialogue, especially when radio mics are problematic. On "August: Osage County" I used an 816 quite a bit. One scene in particular that it saved was between a canoodling couple when scratchy wires couldn't pull out the whispered dialogue. On my current project I used an 8070 almost daily for a month while on location and loved the sound of it. As always, we have different tools for different situations. I just prefer the sound of well placed shotgun mics instead of wires.

Having said that, only a few mixers I work with still carry these mics on the truck. :)

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I have both an 816 and an MKH70, and I have to admit, we use the 70 far more than the 816. The 816 feels much heavier and bigger to me, and I think the off axis "phasiness" is more of a problem. But I can't bear the thought of getting rid of it for some reason -- partly because I invested in the Rycote mount and suspension for it. (This was a case where I got a new mic for about $400 on eBay, and then the suspension cost more than that.)

 

In the right circumstances, it can be a fantastic mic. But I think the 70 is a lot more practical. I used the 70 on a one-man-band interview thing I did last year for Discovery, and the director was amazed that we were able to get such terrific sound without lavs from about 15-20 feet away. 

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What's the comparison between 8070 and MKH-70? I have used the 70 and was impressed. I have used both the 8050 and the MKH-50 but I like the MKH-50 substantially more than 8050. I worry I might find the same with 8070 however I love the size and weight savings. Also side by side does any long mic sound better than the Schoeps CMIT? I know I have worked scenes with the CMIT from as far as 10' above their heads and in a quiet environment my mixer played the boom,

Between the Schoeps and quality radio mics are long mics even necessary anymore?

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For me yes. Long shotguns are important. Radio mics doesn't replace the shotguns. Shotguns doesn't replace the radio mics. I have different approach about relationship "boom track - radio track". It's two different things for me.

 

I'm talking about movie job, not reality.

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It is a plus to have as many tools as possible when doing any job. A long mic for production sound recording is a must IMO. AN 816, MKH70, Cmit, etc, they are all worth having if you know how and when to use them. Seems like it would be a short list of working Pro's who'd advise against having at least one "Shotgun" mic...

CrewC

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Have a 70 in the kit and pretty much abandoned using it since in every instance (even and especially when the long mic was out for atmos to mix with wires in the city) it got phasey, regardless of placement. Now use the short shotgun for air and for those rare urban occasions when it's quiet enough to boom an EXT.

 

In the market for a used 816 tho mostly because a boom op I respect has done some amazing work with it and I want to play.

 

Anybody wanna offload their 816?

 

:)

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On the job I am booming at the moment (Period piece) the vast majority of the exteriors are on the KMR82i. Not going to lie, there are times I grumble about it, especially in strong winds. But hey it is often the best mic in our arsenal that will achieve the preferred results for the situation of the shot.

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haven't broken out the 70 in a while, rented it out this summer for a few days and now that i think about it, i don't think i've used it once in 2013. it is a great mic but with a cs3e as my main shotgun, i don't have the need for it as much. there's been maybe 1 gig where having the 70 would have been nice for a shot, but the cs3e did fine for what was needed.

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Have a 70 in the kit and pretty much abandoned using it since in every instance (even and especially when the long mic was out for atmos to mix with wires in the city) it got phasey, regardless of placement. Now use the short shotgun for air and for those rare urban occasions when it's quiet enough to boom an EXT.

 

In the market for a used 816 tho mostly because a boom op I respect has done some amazing work with it and I want to play.

 

Anybody wanna offload their 816?

 

:)

 

I have two 816 and a 815 and I'd like to sell them because they are years that do not use them.

 

Sergio

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