Lav mic for Sennheiser 2000ENG

[Paul Cronin]

I am moving up from G3 system to the 2000ENG system.

What mic are people using recording outdoors with lots of background noise? Running boats?

The G3 worked well at times but I thought I would go to the 2000 with one of our systems to see the difference.

[John Willett]

The Sennheiser MKE 2-4 or MKE 1-4 should do fine.

Both these are protected against moisture.

The closer the mic. is to the sound source the better the rejection of external noise will be and omnis do not suffer from proximity effect.

Personally I would attach on the head - hairline is probably best, or over the ear - this way the sound will be consistent and won't change as the person moves the head.

[Paul Cronin]

Thanks John,

I will look into the two Sennheiser options.

Good point on the location, I had problems a couple of times with the mic hidden under the shirt.

[Paul Cronin]

After checking out the two options I like the MKE 1-4.

Any other options in the price that are worth looking into?

[Greg Bellotte]

also check out the ME 104. it's a cardioid capsule and can be helpful in eliminating background noise. cables are available for the sennheiser wireless systems.

[Scott Cantrell]

I would highly recommend taking a look at Countryman B2D Directional Lavalier microphones which can be configured with the Sennheiser connector.

B2D Directional Lavalier - Countryman Associates, Inc.

TapWorks Texas Inc sells the Countryman B2D directional lav mic for around $445.00

TapeWorks also offers the Sennheiser MKE1-4 Omni lavalier, 3.3 mm capsule, reduced sensitivity 5 mV/Pa, ultra thin cable (1.1 mm), does not include accessories, black with a Sale Price of $455.00

However, for your application, it would be better to get a directional Hypercardiod mic like the countryman B2D

Contact TapeWorks Texas Inc toll free 866-827-3489 if you are interested or if I can assist further.

Best Regards,
Scott Cantrell
TapeWorks Texas Inc -DVinfo Sponser
tapeworksscott@sbcglobal.net

[Scott Cantrell]

Tapeworks also has good pricing on the 2000ENG system, contact me if you are intersted in a quotation!

[John Willett]

Originally Posted by Greg Bellotte

also check out the ME 104. it's a cardioid capsule and can be helpful in eliminating background noise. cables are available for the sennheiser wireless systems.

No, I wouldn't.

Cardioid tie mics tend to be a bit noisier and do very little in the way of eliminating background noise.

And the 104 is obviously noisier than the omni.

The least sensitive part of a cardioid tends to be pointing towards the body and ends up not being too much different from an omni.

You also have to keep a cardioid further away on the body to minimise drop-outs caused by head movements.

Also the ratio is only 1.7 - IE: a cardioid at 17cm has the same sound as an omni at 10cm - so you can just move an omni closer.

An omni is definitely the better choice.

The only occasion where I would use a cardioid is as a headmic. where the capsule is on a short boom by the mouth - then the directivith of the cardioid works well.

[Paul Cronin]

Thanks for all the great input. I agree with John on the omni being better having tried a few other options this past year.

Scott appreciate the input but I am on the road this week and will not buy until next week. I already have the 2000 system.

John have you tired the B2D?

I really like the specs on the MKE 1-4, and putting the mic on a hat brim or over the ear.

[John Willett]

Originally Posted by Paul Cronin

John have you tired the B2D?

No, Countryman are OK mics, but I would never use a directional tie mic. as they tend to be noisier than omnis and, in most situations, have less feedback rejection and more drop-outs than an omni.

The omni has better feedback rejection as you can get it much closer than a directional.

Halve the distance ant you get x4 better feedback rejection (inverse square law).

[Paul Cronin]

Thanks John,

Got it with the omni vs directional omni. Appreciate your input, I am going for the MKE 1-4.

[Robert Turchick]

I'll throw my fav two mics out there. Upgraded the kit mics on my g3 and they are much better now.
Sanken COS11
Voice Technologies VT500
Both are omni and have slightly different characteristics.
The VT500 is a bit more mid-rangy which makes it awesome for females. The COS is pretty transparent and sounds great on everyone but is larger and doesn't come with all the accessories the VT does.
Highly recommend both!

Oh, as for noisy situations, I just used the VT500 while shooting a promo for the largest indoor Kart racing facility in the country and it was great!

[Paul Cronin]

Thanks for the input Robert.