Theatre Audio

miffy wrote on 8/8/2002, 8:14 AM

I regularly record productions in a local theatre. The audio quality is excellent, i use Sennheiser MK300 microphones. However, I do find that there is a slight 'echo' quality on the souondtrack. Which effect in Vegas Video 3 should I apply to reduce the echo and make the sound more crisp?
Miffy.

Comments

Spot|DSE wrote on 8/8/2002, 10:29 PM

Try the Acoustic Mirror, and use an ambience from the theatre itself.

Chienworks wrote on 8/9/2002, 10:54 AM

Unfortunately, this topic is very closely related to the "how do i remove vocals from a song" topic. Once echo or reverb is added to recording there's almost nothing that can be done about it.

For sections that are purely speech, you can try a noise gate. This will cut off quiet sounds in between louder sounds. The result can sound very unnatural though. It is also quite ineffective if the echos are only slightly quieter than the original words.

The best thing to do is to cut down on the echos while recording. How close are your mics to the performers? The closer you can get the mics to them, the quieter the echos and other room noise will be in comparison to their voices.

miffy wrote on 8/9/2002, 1:57 PM

Thanks for your info. I would say that the mikes are about 30m away from the stage. Unfortunately, it isn't possible to get any closer (we have to film from the front row of the balcony). Perhaps 'echo' is not quite the right word, more of a hollow sound would describe it better. The main actors are miked up, and the sound is coming out of the speakers, rattling round the theatre, and by the time I pick it up it is sort of hollow - does that make any sense? You can hear the dialogue, and the musical parts are ok too, but I just feel it would make all the difference if I could tweek the sound to maie it a bit more natural. In case you're wondering, it's not possible to use the 'line out' from the sound system as only the main characters are miked up. The one liners have to 'project'
miffy.

Chienworks wrote on 8/9/2002, 2:21 PM

Ouch. Sounds like you're fighting a big battle there. You definately have my sympathies!

I've recorded many shows and have had to deal with lots of adverse situations. I've gotten to the point where i pretty much demand having microphones placed on the stage if they want my recording expertise. The biggest objections seem to be visual; the directors/producers don't want anything ugly that will distract the audiance. I've found that using PZM mics works very well. These mics are very low profile, mounted on a flat plate, that can sit on the stage. Usually they're no higher than 3/4" (2cm). Shure makes a series called "boundry microphones" available in a variety of pickup patterns, and the original inventors, Crown, also have a version they call PCC which are directional. These mics are tiny and black and practially unnoticeable. I can usually get away with putting several on the front lip of the stage. They are pretty resistant to thumps and footsteps, but it doesn't hurt to put a thin pad under them. Tape them down with some black gaffers' tape and often the actors don't even realize that they're there.

I've gotten some very clean and natural sounding recordings this way. Probably the biggest problem to watch out for is that as an actor turns or moves, the voice seems to "snap" from one mic to the next. With only two mics this can sound very disturbing. To avoid this i'll usually place a mic every 8 feet (2.5m) or so. At the mixer i'll pan the stage left mic hard right, the stage right mic hard left, and the mics inbetween proportionally set between left and right. That way i get a much smoother pan while still getting a nice stereo separation. Surprisingly enough phasing doesn't seem to be much problem at all.