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Cup holder car rig


thenannymoh

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Hello all - for some time, I've been trying to get a quick setup car rig working and sounding right, for those times when I want to use my MKH50 or 8040 for car dialogue (either standalone or to supplement lavs in the visors).

 

The lavs in visors work fine enough, although I'm not fussy on the sound reflecting back from the glass. And we all know that the challenge of putting a mic lower in the car is battling more road noise and bumps. Clamps or suction cups, for me anyways, are always a bit hit or miss...they may be in the way of a camera in the passenger seat, or they transmit road vibrations too much for my liking. 

 

So I've build a dual shockmount system that fits into most cup holders. I found that a single shockmount for the mic wasn't enough to eliminate road rumble, so I build something out of spare mounting parts I've accumulated over the years (a rycote mount) to hold the mini post. A SmallRig ball rig allows for 360 adjustment for mic direction. 

 

In the pics you are looking at a Sennheiser 8040 (with filter module) rycote baseball, and a self built mic shockmount using various strength lyres.  The PVC piping is 2", and is got a $5 neoprene bottle holder to make the fit snug into cupholders but soft enough to not add rattle

 

My rig is for those car scenes shot without the car being towed (ie engine on, talent actually driving).  This happens on lower budget shoots and docs all the time. 

 

Still a work in progress, so thoughts and suggestions are welcome! 

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Very clever. 

 

I’ve seen cupholder mounts before but never one that incorporated a double shockmount. This looks like a very promising device. I think it may be a bit big but reducing size and bulk is a refinement you can work out in subsequent iterations. 

 

You might also consider incorporating a mini-Noga arm in the design for greater flexibility in mike placement. (Deviating from the objective of reducing size, I know.)

 

David

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2 hours ago, soundchris said:

That is a really good idea!

I would try to incorporate the first shockabsorber into the tube to make the whole thing as small as possible.

You have got the hollow tube anyway, so what if you use the black tube as a shock absorber like an Ambient "Floater" upside down?

flipped_floater.jpg

 

You are right... Inside the tube would be more compact. When I first thought of a cup holder rig, I did envision something inside the tube... When I tried to implement that, I needed a much larger piece of pvc pipe (3"), and that created some problems with usability in different car setups. However, I've never heard of that Floater! Too bad it is discontinued... 

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5 hours ago, thenannymoh said:

I did envision something inside the tube... When I tried to implement that, I needed a much larger piece of pvc pipe (3"),


You might try exploring the catalog of Lord Mounts to see if there is a suitable shock mount that might be fit inside your tube. 

https://www.lord.com/products-and-solutions/vibration-and-motion-control/industrial/isolators/plateform-mounts

 

The Lord Company makes a dizzying assortment of shock mounts so this may be a rabbit-hole assignment. They made the small mounts that Chinhda used to shock mount equipment shelves on some of his carts. They also made the engine mounts for the B-17 bomber and I believe that the Brooklyn Bridge floats on Lord Mounts. A surprisingly big company.

 

David

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11 minutes ago, David Waelder said:


You might try exploring the catalog of Lord Mounts to see if there is a suitable shock mount that might be fit inside your tube. 

https://www.lord.com/products-and-solutions/vibration-and-motion-control/industrial/isolators/plateform-mounts

 

The Lord Company makes a dizzying assortment of shock mounts so this may be a rabbit-hole assignment. They made the small mounts that Chinhda used to shock mount equipment shelves on some of his carts. They also made the engine mounts for the B-17 bomber and I believe that the Brooklyn Bridge floats on Lord Mounts. A surprisingly big company.

 

David

 

Total rabbit-hole...my accountant is going to curse you

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