Sennheiser ME66/K6
 

Hi all - am shooting a film later this year and we're looking to use a mic on a boom.

As funds are scarce it will work out cheaper to hire a ME66/K6 for a week.

Question - I'm confused - does ME66/K6 require phantom power?

What sort of XLR adaptor will I need for my Canon XM2 (GL2) - the MA300, or Beachtek DX4 or DX8?

Paul.

That mic can run on either phantom power or an internal AA battery.
I would choose either the BeachTek DXA-6 (passive controls with phantom power) or the DXA-8 (gain controls with limiter and phantom).
Tell us more about the type of things you'll be shooting. The K6/ME66 has one good characteristic, high output when you only have battery-power available. Sometimes that's exactly what you need, but other times there are other mics available at the same or lower cost with a different set of benefits to better suit your situation.

We will be shooting mainly interior scenes (bedrooms and a school classroom) and dialogue therein. We also have a football scene ... but I envisage dialogue will be shot in close-up. Hope this helps!

I would strongly advise against using the ME66 inside, especially in a space with hard surfaces, such as a classroom. I did and I regretted it from that moment on. A highly directional mic like that does terrible, unfixable, things to the reflected audio of the walls/ceiling/floor.

Of course its not a bad choice outside or in a very large space with a lot of ambient noise.

I also have the ME64 cardoid capsule and that sounds a lot better inside. The ME64 would be a good compromise choice for your variety of locations if you can only get one mic and if it is available to you. It would sound pretty good inside and would be OK outside if you get it nice and close to the source.

Also those mics send a very hot signal to the GL2/XM2, they overload the inputs very easily.

I use mine now with a -10db pad inline _before_ the mic input on my GL-2 then a Shure XLR to miniplug adapter and use the mic level controls on the camera with the mic. att. switch off. This works pretty well.

The Beachtek DX8 with both volume controls (instead of the -10db pad) and limiters (to help with the inevitable mic overloads from the MEXX mics) will do the job also.

And as a side note, the K6P version runs on phantom only. Be sure you know which one you're getting if you haven't planned on using phantom power.
Bill is correct, the ME66 can be prone to off-axis coloration in situations where strong sounds reflect from hard surfaces.
In the bedroom scene it may work perfectly for very low-key dialogue or whispers, but as the volume increases so does the chance of off-axis coloration.
If you're trying to cover a group, the directional nature of the ME66 can be too narrow.
Also as mentioned, the hot output of this mic can overload normal mic inputs. You can use the MicATT switch on your camera, or an external inline pad, the BeachTek controls to dampen down this mic. In some really loud situations, like a rowdy crowd and players for your football scene, the mic itself can distort at close range and there's nothing you can do to fix that.
If you don't go with phantom power and you're actively booming, then the ME64 is one of very few alternatives that still has a hot output.
The AT897 is less prone to off-axis coloration and is a very clean mic, but it might not have enough output depending on the bedroom dialogue level. Otherwise it would be a good choice too.
If you can get phantom power, then other mic choices are opened up.