Sennheiser 8060 or ???

[AB]

I am thinking of picking up a couple of 8060s.  Is there anything else out there in short shotguns that competes with it?
Thanks in advance.

[The Immoral Mr Teas]

Weird. To do what?

 

J

[John Blankenship]

16 minutes ago, AB said:

I am thinking of picking up a couple of 8060s.  Is there anything else out there in short shotguns that competes with it?
...

 

Absolutely.

 

[AB]

Nature recording mostly.  I should have included that.  So not focused on voice.  Looking for short shotguns.  I do not know of anything as short as the 8060 that has its audio quality, so I thought I would check in here.

[DanieldH]

Schoeps Mini CMIT

DPA 4017C

Sanken CS-M1 or CS-1e

 

Why so you want to use shorts shotguns for nature?

[chrismedr]

same answer as always: 

rent a few mics that fit your outer requirements (size, price, characteristics) and listen for yourself which one is the right one for you.

might even be fun ; )

 

[Tom Visser]

go with the 8060, you'll love it.  lots of good mics, true, but 8060 sound great, as good as anything else out there, probably has the lowest noise floor of its competitors (could be wrong, but not aware of anything quieter), has a very sensitive output, so not too dependent on lots of preamp gain, which can be an additional source of noise, and is an RF condenser design, so good for humid applications.

[KGraham045]

I own two 8060s they are great Mics. They can have a bit of handling noise. I have MZF8000 Filters on mine.

[AB]

Thanks everyone. Great posts.  

[JonG]

@AB I think what everyone was waiting for was an explanation on why you want to use two shotgun mics for nature recordings as opposed any of the other more usual options. Care to enlighten us?

[AB]

I have used a pair of Senneheiser 8070s in the past with good success.  I like the long reach.  Sometimes I am recording something that is not that close in a nature reserve.  But have two mics in long blimps is not very nimble.   I like to have different options.    I hope this was helpful to you, JonG.

Anyway, the main purpose of my post was to find out if something has emerged that outpaces the 8060.  It does not appear so.

[borjam]

Specs wise the Rode NTG3 might be at least close. I imagine the sound will be different but unless you are recording dialog it probably won't be much of an issue. 

 

I own a NTG8 myself and it works very well outdoors. 

 

I also did a brute force test of RF immunity and I must say both the NTG8 and the MixPre 3 passed with flying colors.

 

[The Immoral Mr Teas]

On 20 July 2019 at 4:42 AM, AB said:

I have used a pair of Senneheiser 8070s in the past with good success.  I like the long reach.  Sometimes I am recording something that is not that close in a nature reserve.  But have two mics in long blimps is not very nimble.   I like to have different options.    I hope this was helpful to you, JonG.

Anyway, the main purpose of my post was to find out if something has emerged that outpaces the 8060.  It does not appear so.

 

Hi AB, I also use from time to time two 805s as a shotgun stereo pair but it is always a strange reason to go for it: a reason but an unusual one! Generally using any two super-directional mics as a stereo pair is an unusual situation coming from an unusual recording purpose. Chris' advice is most probably the best here, rent 2 8060s, alongside the alternatives (specifically DPA and Schoeps as I can see - owning and using mics by all three manufacturers) and try out what you want to achieve.

 

Generally having ONE shotgun (MKH70, 8070 or whatever) in addition to a stereo pair anywhere between omni to cardioid I would consider an ordinary arsenal for nature recording - specifically asking about a PAIR of SHORT shotguns requires understanding what is wanted to be recorded in quite substantial detail.

 

Best, Jez

[Mike Westgate]

But for nature sure 1 shotgun if it's a close single source but

why not a stereo mike, the new Sanken or there are used Sanken CSS-5 up for grabs

Ideal for any type of fx, atmos or even music!

 

mike

[AB]

Thanks Mike - I should consider some stereo ics like you mentioned.  I do not a mic that can handle high humidity.  It is not a single source - hence two mics.  I go to places where there is a lot going on - so two have helped.  And the reach of a shotgun helps.  (Otherwise I have plenty of other non-shotgun mics).   I have used two Senn 8070s and Rodes NG8s and have had good results.  But I wanted shorter shotguns for the agility, shorter blimps, etc.  And I was hoping by some miracle, the reach on the shorter shotguns was getting better.  A stereo mic would be a nice addition.  

 

[IronFilm]

2 hours ago, AB said:

I have used two Senn 8070s and Rodes NG8s and have had good results.  But I wanted shorter shotguns for the agility, shorter blimps, etc.  And I was hoping by some miracle, the reach on the shorter shotguns was getting better.

2x Sanken CS3e? Or go even shorter with Sanken CS-M1 or CS-1e

[Mike Westgate]

I've used my Sanken CSS-5 in many Pacific Islands Africa India Borneo Laos wherever with no problems

 

So?

 

mike

[Mike91]

I own NTG 3. A decent option, works well and close to Sennheiser 8060 to my mind. I satisfied with it when working outdoors. In a whole, I like Rode mics most. 

 

[pillepalle]

I got my MKH8060 today and I'm quite happy with it ☺️ Yes, the nextel coating is really nice (from an optical point of view) but it's also very sensitiv to scratches you can get from your microphone clamps. Just made some quick functional tests and comparisons with my supercardioids. I like the high sensitivity (about 8dB less gain than with my M310) the better off axis rejection (guessing about 1,5 to 2dB more on 90° than my supercardioids) and the on axis sound. It has a slight boost of the highs which makes sense to me, considering that it's mostly used in a zeppelin.

 

In a direct comparison with the M310 the MKH8060 sounds thinner even on axis, missing the nice low end from the M310 and the off axis sound is clearly colored. Maybe in this regard I was expecting too much. So if sound matters (at least to my ears) the M310 wins hands down. But that's a little unfair comparison. Considering the good rejection properties the 8060 it will shine when captureing dialog on location. And that's what it's made for 😊 

 

Greetings 

[IronFilm]

26 minutes ago, pillepalle said:

It has a slight attenuation of the highs which makes sense to me, considering that it's mostly used in a blimp.

Did you mean a slight boost? As that would make more sense in a blimp than attenuation? 

[pillepalle]

Sorry, I meant boost 🤪 

 

Greetings