The Countryman B6 has always amazed me with the quality of audio it can provide for such a small microphone. It has become a life saver as an example. My go to lav microphone is usually a Countryman EMW because I usually fond it the easiest to hide and the best sounding. When I need to avoid noisy clothing or have a women wearing something very sheer I will use a Sanken Cos-11 since it is is a top element lav I can just peak it out the top of wardrobe. But for impossible wardrobe and noisy mens dress shirts I use the countryman B6 I just peak it out a button hole and bam you can hide it in plain site. It also has a variety of different color caps so you can match the cap to the shirt color. So everyone should have atleast 1.
Tag: Location SOund Mixer Hilton Head South Carolina
Sound Devices Wave Agent A great program
As someone who does only Location Sound for a living. I normally don’t deal with files much except for when I need to FTP a transcript or a last minute voice over to a client. I have a small protools system which is more for me to just play around with and do my own personal work with. Occasionally I will do some simple editing on a low budget film or something but thats it. The other day I recorded some polyphonic wave files for a client, which I then burned to DVD for them for post. Well I get a call that they are having issues opening them (Trying to import them into a older version of AVID) and all they really wanted was the best channel of audio. I told them that even though the talent was wired the boom sounded good for the whole shoot. So I used Wave agent to quickly batch and exact track 1 of all my poly wave files. It worked quickly and allowed me to upload the files to my client within minutes. For a free download it is a great Mac and PC based program so check it out it may help you one day soon.
Recording voice overs in the field
So much of what I do is down and dirty never the way I really want to do it. An example of this is having to record voice overs in the field. When usually asked about this I say “It would be better to use a local recording studio”. When they tell me that is cost or time prohibitive I say “I have a small Protools system installed on my laptop lets set aside some time and record this right”. Then I am usually told we need to record it in about 10 min and then we need to keep shooting can we do it. I always remember what a good friend of mine told me “Never say no just ask how much”. So this is where my Tascam HD-P2 hard disk recorder comes in handy I can quickly record voiceover to a Compact Flash card which I can then quickly send via any FTP program so that post production can have then the same day. I usually use YOUSENDIT a easy to use program that emails a weblink to anyone who needs to download it. I have found this systems really impresses clients and allows me to make a few extra dollars in gear rental.
A Review of Lav Microphones
Sorry for the lack of posting I have been working like a dog the past few weeks and with barely enough time to sleep I haven’t had a chance to blog at all. Today I wanted to revisit something I have talked about before “Lav Microphone Choice”. I own the following Lav’s now:
Countryman B6, Countryman EMW, Sanken Cos-11, TRAM, Mk2, And the free Lectro M-150. Never did I think I would need such a selection of Lav’s in my kit but everyone has its own purpose and I will tell you what I prefer .
Countryman EMW I own six of these for reality tv I feel there is no better lav for most all around situations. They are cheap $180.00 or so each wired for Lectro they are water and sweat proof. They are also very rugged some of mine have been dragged stepped on and keep on going. I find them very easy to hide most of the time if the talent is wearing non noisy fabric. With a piece of moleskin I can lav someone in under 30 seconds for the day. The only time the EMW doesn’t work well is noisy cloths and people wearing not enough cloths.
Countryman B6: I own 3 of these they are great for people wearing very little clothing and people wearing noisy cloths because they are easily hidden in close to plain sight. I don’t like how fragile they are and that they aren’t waterproof without the protective cap on then and at $310.00 each are more expensive but I love having them.
Sanken Cos-11. I own two of these I think they are the best sounding lav and work great hidden using a hush lav sleve and some transpore tape. They also are very wind resistant when using the metal windscreen. They are expensive though at $340.00 each and I don’t like them in Reality tv situations because I find the best way to hide them is to tape them to the talents body using the method above and I think that is distracting to the talent on a reality tv show and that it is ok for a film since they are actors. I will use one on a reality shoot though if I feel it is the only way to get good audio.
TRAM: I own 3 of these 1 which is hardwired (1) Black one and (1) White one. At $240.00 they are at a decent price point. I bought the Hardwired one used for very cheap and it is mostly for a few times a year I have a client insist on a hardwired lav. I think they are the best at dealing with very high wind in a news situation (Hurricane, Live shot etc) So I usually only use it in those situations. I have the white one for sitdown interviews which the talent is wearing white I don’t use it much but it is nice to have.
M-150 and Mk2- Both of these types came for free with my Lectro and G2 lav purchases. I keep them for spares and dangerous situations for equipment but that is about it.
So if you can only buy one lav to start with I’d go with Countryman EMW then I’d add a Countryman B6. After that it is all a personal choice
Taking a hard look at my approach to things
I have been working alot recently on a new reality show that has yet to air and it has been a rough bit of shooting. 4 or 5 wireless going all the time, lots of quick location changes and alot of people to mic up quickly and since we don’t have a 2nd crew I need to move fast so that camera is not waiting on me. Everyday I have been trying to figure out ways to move fast and do a better job at the same time, which is easier said then done. My first challenge was lighten by 25lb sound bag up a bit by using thinner cables and cable the exact length I need this saved me about 1lb . I also am now using a wireless plug on tx on my boompole at all times now this saves me time when setting up for our sit down interviews and allows me to have more freedom of motion when booming and not having to worry about plugging the boompole in. I have also started leaving more spare items in the production van instead of on me this has saved me 3lbs so my bag is now about 21lbs which is much better than 25. So I invite all of you to really take a hard look at how you do things and maybe you can save some weight too.
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