"As you thought, the MM mic can be had with a Senn Evo G2 connector at no extra charge, or with a full size XLR for $79 extra"

Bjorn,

Yes, I've noticed the "Hardwired - 3 pin male XLR" option at the bottom of the drop down list; what I'm not sure about is whether it will then accept the 48V Phantom Power?

Also, do you think it's possible to use it without this XLR option, and devise my own 3.5mm jack to also be able to plug it into the Senny transmitter...

Comments welcome

Piotr

"Yes, I've noticed the "Hardwired - 3 pin male XLR" option at the bottom of the drop down list; what I'm not sure about is whether it will then accept the 48V Phantom Power?"

I'd say it would, 48V is fairly univeral (unless stated otherwise) for phantom power on 3pin XLRs. As the extra cost is $80 I'd say the includes a bit more than just a plug.

The problem with this option is twofold if you then want to use it with the transmitter:

1) Mechanical: You'll need to have an XLR connector for it to plug into. That means whoever is wearing it has got to carry the weight of an XLR plug and a socket that has to be secured to them somehow as well as the transmitter. That's why if you look at the Senny adaptor that goes the other way around you'll see it has a belt clip. Even then it's problematic. A lot of the fairer sex don't wear belts or anywhere to hang anything.

2) Electrical: You now need to supply the mic with 48V. The transmitter units only supply somewhere between 7V and 12V at not much current. You're going to need a diode pump to step that up to some higher voltage I'd suspect. You can get standalone 48V phantom power supply units that hang off the belt and run off a 9V battery. Unfortunately they're not cheap or at least the ones we have weren't and again that's something else you've got to hang off the talent.

To be honest it'd be far smarter to go the other way around. Buy the mic configured to go with the transmitter. When you're using it in the studio you're not constrained by weight or power limitations and you could kludge up anything you need.

If you can wait until the middle of next week I might be able to get you a very good price on the Senny adaptor. As it's so small it would be practical to mail it to you.


To be honest if you don't already have other mics a headset mic is not something I'd be buying. It's a rather specialised mic. You generally wouldn't put one on someone who is going to be in shot. The only time you'd really need one is for shooting exercise video and then you need one that attaches very securely around the head.
I've been using one of my Rode NT3 mics to record temp VOs, just sitting in a desk stand beside the keyboard and despite the noise of many fans and horrid room acoustics it sounds pretty good. You can use it for just about anything, can even be run from a battery or phantom power. There's people even using them as on camera mics.

Bob.

"If you can wait until the middle of next week I might be able to get you a very good price on the Senny adaptor"

Bob, do you mean the one you mentioned earlier in this thread (MAZ900P)? Wow, that would be great! Of course I'll wait :)

I do have a couple of mics for mainly on-camera use, but just because of what you said about the computer fans' noise and the fixed mic distance/position required, I thought I'd be much better using an earset for my VOs (don't get me wrong - these plans are just with my amateurish work in mind; the stuff like my music DVD's - if VO is required for some additional material on them - it will always be done in a proper studio, and using a pro talent's voice, not mine :))

At the same time, I can imagine some usage for this earset with my wireless, as well (I do have the ME 2 lavaliere and the SKM 100 mic with SKP 100 plug-in transmitter - but there certainly are occasions where a headset is more appropriate).

Thanks for the insightful explanation; very helpful. And Bob, please do quote me on the Senny adapter (it might be a used one - the $130 plus shipping to Poland option I just cannot afford at the moment)....

Acoustic foam is considerably different than regular packing foam

You are probably right, John, but I still think my solution is much better than doing it without it, but who knows, I maght change to 'real' foam one day.

/Ulf

Test your foam for flammability.
Fire inspectors probably saved our lives once by making us take down the packing foam in our studio.

> Test your foam for flammability.

Not only that but regular foam degrades over time and sheds these tiny particles that get into everything including the mic via the wind screen (and your lungs). Not a good idea.

There is no excuse for not using good acoustic foam. It use to be that you had to buy a whole case for $100 but SameDayMusic sells Auralex 2 Wedgie 12X12 Tile (Gray, Single) foam in 1 piece packs for $5 USD! Add a Whitmor Cube for $15 and for only $35 USD I built Harlan Hogan's Porta-Booth which he sells for $129!!! ;-)

BTW, SameDayMusic is an awesome place to buy your music equipment. I live in NY and they are in NJ and since the really do ship the same day, I get most orders overnight for free shipping.

~jr

Well I probably should have made this thread before building this thing....but that is the way things are sometimes - you learn by your mistakes :-)

I actually looked at the foam at the shop where i bought the mic, so I go back there again.

THANKS for all the great input in this thread - I value it a lot.

/Ulf

Hi everyone.

Asking "What is the best mic?" for voiceover is like a musician asking "What's the best guitar?". Every microphone sounds different. And there are a number of other factors to consider, like what's your acoustic environment? In some rooms, a non-directional microphone will sound best, in others, a shotgun will provide the best sound.

Also, it's wise to consider the "style" of the material you're recording. My VO studio is set up with two microphones - A Neumann TLM-103 and a AudioTechnica AT897. When the project calls for a "full-bodied" announcer-style read, I use the large diaphragm Neumann. When the project calls for more of a "dialogue" style, I use the shotgun.

The Rode NT1-A is used by a good number of voice-over pros I know. Many of them are quite happy with it.

Choosing a USB mic simplifies your setup for recording, but is not without it's own set of problems. Complaints I've heard include:

(1) Audio quality can depend on the computer's USB connection. RF interference and hum due to inadequate filtering in the USB interface. Also, USB cables are often inadequately shielded.

(2) Most studios use some pre-processing in the audio chain between the microphone and the input, to provide limiting, notch filtering, and equalization. With USB, these need to be provided in post, which can complicate your workflow.

(3) Limited selection of microphones which include USB interfaces.

(4) It's really hard to plug a USB microphone into non-computer devices, like a camera.

I highly recommend getting an inexpensive console with 48V phantom power. Some which have built-in USB interfaces.

Travis
http://www.VOTalent.com

You could simply buy a Reflexions Filter:

http://www.seelectronics.com/rf.html

I bought a couple of them from the importers down here a few years back. Seem to work as advertised and they sure look the part. Only thing is they are heavy so I use mine on a Manfrotto light stand rather than a mic stand.

Bob.

BudWzr,
I have an H2 as well, but I can not figure out how to record directly to my computer via USB, how do you do that?. I have SF7 and Vegas 9.
Thanks, Jeff

Jeff,

When you connect it to USB, with the mic's power off, it will startup in a USB mode menu. Choose from there. If you can't get it going, post back and I'll give you more detail.

Update: Choose "Audio I/F".

I had the power on. I have had the H2 for almost 2 years and never tried that. I just tried recording in SF7 and Vegas 9. Thanks for the info.
Jeff

You could simply buy a Reflexions Filter:

Thanks Bob, ordered this one.

http://www.seelectronics.com/rf.html

Have seen it in the shop where I buy my sound stuff, but suddenly it was out of my mind. Thanks for reminding me.

/Ulf