Interviewing at Concerts

[Kristin Moore]

I'm going to be shooting at a concert where I will be interviewing band members backstage while other bands are playing on the other surrounding stages. They are also parking all of the buses backstage so it will be very loud. I'll be using an XL2 and XL1s. I'm going to have to order a mic because it is going to be so loud in the background. Any experience with interviewing in these very loud circumstances? What are my best options here on what type of mic to order? Thanks.

[Wayne Brissette]

I'd recommend getting a handheld mic and using that. The last couple of years I've done this exact thing at SXSW. I still boom, but we almost never use those because of the noise. We end up using the handheld mics. Here are some samples from this past year's SXSW:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WjNU24ltvR4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L7foEI61Q58

I use the Electro-voice RE/50, and I highly recommend it, but you can go with other hand-held mics.

Wayne

[Dave Blackhurst]

Handheld definitely, something they can hold relatively close to their face. I've used a low end wireless with included stick mic sucessfully for wedding receptions just this way. Be aware there's probably a LOT of wireless signal in your intended location... you may need to go wired, but look out for the crowd dragging your cam and mic....

Recommend you add a decent set of headphones to your set so you can monitor audio as well. I use open ones, but you'd really be better to have "cans", to isolate - you could always flip one over like the DJ's do so you haer mic feed in one ear, ambient in the other.

[Guy Cochran]

I like the Sennheiser MD46 with the wireless SKP 100 plug on transmitter. Here's a sound sample of Jerry Hoffman speaking http://www.dvcreators.net/sennheiser...ew-microphone/

Be careful at those concerts though, I just got into a tustle with a raging lead singer. After he threw a cymbal with riser into the crowd, he tried to throw my camera!

[Bill Pryor]

Wow. I hope you decked the guy.

I agree on hand-held mic, with the wireless transmitter. Sennheiser sells one of those XLR plug-in transmitters fairly inexpensively.

If you're shooting something where you really don't want the mic to show, then a wireless lav might work, but it wouldn't be as good as the hand held.

If you have a soundman along with a fishpole and short shotgun and you shoot tight, you can get the mic in just a couple of inches over the subject's head, so it's maybe a foot from his mouth, and you can probably get acceptable sound that way too, but still the handheld right up at the mouth is best.

[Shaun Roemich]

I'm going to have to say avoid wireless like the plague at a concert. The musicians will likely already be using wireless for mics and guitars. As well, a lot of opportunity for RFI here; LOTS of dimmer packs for the stage lights have the opportunity to make BAD interference.

I'd go hardwired with a cardioid handheld (think Shure SM58 or similar; Sennheiser makes a GREAT handheld we used at CBC for LOUD interviews). Most lav's are Unidirectional unless you special order a cardioid so I'd avoid a lav. As well, musicians are sweaty after gigs (I know - I am one) and sweat and microphones don't go so well together.

[Greg Bellotte]

The Shure SM58 is excellent for noise rejection. i used to use them exclusively for NASCAR pitside interviews with cars screaming away and air wrenches going constantly. Also at NHRA drag races to speak with crew members while top fuelers were burning out at the starting area, much louder than NASCAR pits. You could always hear the interviews clearly as long as the mic was close to the face speaking.

[Jon Fairhurst]

Here's another vote for the '58.

Personally, I like the look of a handheld mic for live interviews. It gives the feel of really, truly being live, rather than staged. When you see the interviewer have to react with the mic to the interviewee, it conveys improvisation and risk.

We recently shot an outdoor, person on the street interview with a shotgun mic recording dialog and a handheld mic as a prop. We had the advantage of no changing proximity effect, but still went for the look of the handheld. The funny thing is that it didn't have a cord or a wireless plug. It did have a station flag though - stuffed with tissue paper. One of the people interviewed got flustered and said, "hey, that mic isn't even real. It's stuffed with tissue paper!" Being a comedy interview, that was a keeper. We might do it with a toilet paper roll or a comb next time.

Anyway, a '58 at a concert isn't just a prop. It's a great tool for the job. Just make sure that the interviewer positions it well...

[James Mulligan]

Whats the best way to wire up a 58 to a VX2100? Doesnt it need phantom power? Would you be forced to use a beachtek or something?

[Mark Willey]

I'm posting here to, since this is a similar question to the one James asked on another post. Plus, I need to get my post count up. :) I would recommend the EV 635 for handheld, wired interview work. It's been around for years in the broadcast industry and is more closely suited for this type of application than the sm58, though that mic will also do a fine job. The profile is a little smaller and IMO, easier to hold because the body isn't tapered like the SM58. Plus, it's cheaper.

There are a couple of versions. The latest has some small upgrades and can be had in a slick looking black for on camera use. This is a very versatile mic that takes up little space in your kit. You'll go to it again and again.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produc...amic_Omni.html

[Niall Chadwick]

Originally Posted by Guy Cochran

I like the Sennheiser MD46 with the wireless SKP 100 plug on transmitter. Here's a sound sample of Jerry Hoffman speaking http://www.dvcreators.net/sennheiser...ew-microphone/

Be careful at those concerts though, I just got into a tustle with a raging lead singer. After he threw a cymbal with riser into the crowd, he tried to throw my camera!

Thats a mad picture Guy. What on earth possessed the guy to do such a thing? Had you knocked him out, would have dented the ego somewhat.

Your face said it all.."Oi, gerrof my kit"

[Martin Pauly]

Originally Posted by Jon Fairhurst

Here's another vote for the '58. [...] Anyway, a '58 at a concert isn't just a prop. It's a great tool for the job. Just make sure that the interviewer positions it well...

Jon,

How would the SM58 compare to an SM57? I have the latter, and wonder if I should add a 58 to my collection, too.

Thanks in advance for your comments!

- Martin

[Seth Bloombaum]

Originally Posted by Mark Willey

...I would recommend the EV 635 for handheld, wired interview work. It's been around for years in the broadcast industry and is more closely suited for this type of application than the sm58, though that mic will also do a fine job. The profile is a little smaller and IMO, easier to hold because the body isn't tapered like the SM58. Plus, it's cheaper...

I'll agree that the 635 has helped define the sound we expect in broadcast interviews. Note that the EV RE50 is the same mic with added pop filters & shock mounts - there have probably been more RE50 sold as a broadcast hand mic than any other mic since its debut during the Viet Nam war.

Street price on an SM58 is just $100... but that apart, it is a cardoid mic, which can be helpful in the noisy backstage environment. The 635/RE50 are omni, depending only on close proximity to isolate unwanted bg sound.

Originally Posted by Martin Pauly

How would the SM58 compare to an SM57? I have the latter, and wonder if I should add a 58 to my collection, too.

58 has more pre-contour for voice and internal pop filtering. On stage, the 57 is generally an instrument mic and flatter. However, the 57 can be used for voice, frequently with the Shure windscreen - this is what we've seen on the presidential podium for 30 or more years.

An awesome and little known dynamic mic is the beta57. It's a supercardoid, quite different from the 58 and 57, one of the flattest dynamic mics around.

[Robert Huber]

I can only speak from my own experiences, but I have used the Sennheiser MD46 for interviews in ridiculously loud environments, and it has worked very well.

[Shaun Roemich]

Originally Posted by James Mulligan

Whats the best way to wire up a 58 to a VX2100? Doesnt it need phantom power? Would you be forced to use a beachtek or something?

The SM58 is a dynamic cardioid. No phantom needed. Plug it in and it works. How often does THAT happen in this day and age?