Novice question about lav mic
 

I'm going to buy a Countryman B3 lac mic. Which color would be most useful? - tan, light beige, cocoa, or black are the choices. The B3 has 3 protective caps, Which would you recommend for general interview: +0dB (flat), +4 dB (bright) or +8 dB (very bright)? Thanks so much!

Most audio pros buy black, just because black looks the most professional, it is what 98% of all audio gear is. Generally the tan, light beige, cocoa are to try to match skin tones when using the mic in live theater or if you are shooting interviews at the beach with the talent in swimsuits and want the cable and mic to appear less noticeable.

As far as the caps, those are highly dependent on the situation but generally the caps that boost the highs are used when the mic is located underneath wardrobe and the highs are lost because of the clothing blocking them. I generally use mine with the flat cap for just ordinary interviews, but on occasion have used the caps when the talent has a super bassy profundo voice and some highs are needed for clarity.

Good luck, you will dig the mic, it is a very nic lav.

Dan

Thanks Dan! One last question: for a little extra, I can have Countryman put a 3.5 mini-break in the line in case I want to use it later for a Senn G2 wireless system instead of plugging directly into my camera with an XLR. Any problem with that? Thanks.

You are risking reliability when using it with the xlr. In my experience I have found that these kinds of options end up being a compromise I don't like to make. If I mostly use it as a wireless and the xlr is back up then I might do it but not the other way around

Black is your color, not as good resale value in the other colors but top dollar in black (when you decide to resell it). I would get the mic in XLR and a adapter from Sennhieser to convert the wireless to a xlr plug.

Thanks! Great help - these forums are wonderful.