Just wanted to share my new audio purchase, a Schoeps CMIT 5U shotgun microphone arriving soon.
It’s for my film productions and being a crazy audiophile like everyone else here, I wanted the best sound possible for a shotgun mic (for dialog).
There are many mic shootouts on YouTube (with high quality downloads) comparing various mics and I feel the skills I developed evaluating audio gear really helped when listening to different mics.
Case in point. Schoeps has a version of the mic I ordered called the mini Cmit. It’s the same capsule, however the electronics are more compact and missing switches for roll off and boost filters. The manufacturer and general consensus in the pro Audio world is that the mics sound virtually the same.
However on closer listen to some direct comparison videos, I could hear the full sized version had better dynamics. Looking at the specs, the mini version operates on a lower current, and I attribute that to part of the difference.
I have never seen people talk about the difference in sound between the two mics in this manner on pro audio forums, and I believe the ear training we go through evaluating small differences in playback gear has allowed be to identify something I’ve never read discussed.
I wasn’t even listening on my big audio system, as that could account for hearing things others don’t, but rather I evaluated on my computer post production workstation which uses small Genelec 8020’s and their 7050 sub with an RME ufx a/d d/a.
I plan to use this legendary mic on a new feature film I’m producing and directing, and I will post here soon when the crowdfunding portal page is up and running, as these new crowdfunding platforms are actually true investments with return, as opposed to most crowdfunding, which is a donation or product pre-purchase. I’m thinking maybe audio and HT enthusiasts might be interested in helping make this true crime film a reality and taking this journey with me.
Many years away from sound recording (sadly) but - my favourites were
AKG C414
Beyer MC700.
For dynamic mics I could bear to put in front of drums, guitar amps etc. -
Beyer M201 (I think that’s right). and
the good old Sennheiser MD 421.
ALso a shout out to Tandy for the old
Tandy PZM - 25 quid apiece and just as good as the Crown PZM costing hundreds (though the Tandy needed some sort of mod on the preamp or some such IIRC to make it more robust).
Probably none of these suitable for film recording though
I used to record pipe organ here in the UK, and was given a AKG 522 ENG stereo mic, it was OK, then tried a pair of 414’s I was loaned, better than an early Soundfield. I still listen to the DAT tapes I made (just listened to one) The humble Tandy PZM is a mic my late best mate used to record 1000’ of organ concerts (which I now have all the DATS of)
I also like dynamic mics and using Electro-Voice RE20.
What I liked about this mic is perfectly smooth and natural audio that will suit different types of streams, podcasts, voice-overs, and even music production.
Probably the vast majority of recordings made these days are not intended for release. If he’s recording rehearsals of the orchestra he’s in, as I once did for a Chicago area regional group my neighbor played in, it was so everyone could take CD-R’s home and hear how they sound from the perspective of the audience. Usually they only hear themselves in the context of the section they’re sitting in…then the sections around them…etc. So afterwards, the conductor can say stuff like - "2nd violins, do you see what I’ve been trying to tell you?!?"
But Elk can certainly respond to that if he likes. Or not. He strikes me as a very private person., who doesn’t like to toot his own horn.
Tomorrow is a live concert. So its a one shot, no retakes.
Once my editing/mastering is done I send the orchestra the CDs and put them on DropBox for them. I do not know what they ultimately will do with the recording.
