Good inexpensive mic for "talking head" type video?
 

I need to buy a mic to be used in an instructional DVD (subject doesn't move from his chair) We've been using a lavalier microphone but it's not so good when it rubs on the shirt and makes those kind of noises. The video is being shot from a distance of about 6 feet. Any suggestions?

A hypercardioid such as a Rode NT3, Audio Technica 4053a, etc, on a boom-stand positioned just out of frame often works well. But a simpler and far cheaper solution would be to take more care in the positioning of the lav so it doesn't rub. Remember to put a strain absorbing loop in the cable at the mic clip, while you can use such tricks as double sided tape or a loop of surgical tape, moleskin, Rycote Stickies and Undercovers, etc to secure fabrics so they don't rub over each other or over the mic.

You totally lost me when you said:

"Remember to put a strain absorbing loop in the cable at the mic clip, while you can use such tricks as double sided tape or a loop of surgical tape, moleskin, Rycote Stickies and Undercovers, etc to secure fabrics so they don't rub over each other or over the mic."

When I said the subject doesn't move, I didn't mean it literally. He talks, moves hands, etc and that causes the lavalier mic to lose its position sometimes... Can you explain what youmeant about "strain absorbing loop" and all that other stuff? :)

The correct way to mount a lav, lets say on someone wearing a regular button front shirt without a tie, would be using the little tieclip kind of thingy on the shirt right over the sternum, midchest just above the nipple line. Okay, so the mic is clipped there pointing up toward the mouth. Take the mic cable and loop it back up through the clip at the opposite end from where the mic is fastened, the end of the clip that would be at the edge of the fabric. It should slide freely up and down in the metal loop formed at that end of the clip. Now loop it around again and down so it goes under the shirt, held in place clamped between the jaw of the clip and the fabric on the same end of the clip where the mic body is located but on the opposite side of the fabric. The cable then threads down inside the shirt and out at the waist or all the way down a pant leg and out the cuff. The end result will be that just after it leaves the mic body, the cable will make a complete 360 circle about 2 inches in diameter which is then clamped in place against the fabric by the tieclip mount. This will absorb noise caused by tugs and movement on the cable and the wire sliding against fabric and helps stabilize the tiebar itself from twisting and turning as the talent moves about.

Rycote Stickies and Undercovers are adhesive pads and covers designed to mount lavs to fabric or skin.

http://www.rycote.com/products/mics/stickies/index.asp

This is also referred to as a "Broadcast loop" and there are several images of this on the web if you Google that term (assuming you're not quite visualizing Steve's excellent description).

This is what we're using (see attahed image)

There's an illustration of a such a loop near the bottom of this Tech Tip page. Also pix on anchoring a mic between layers of fabric using triangles of gaffer's or surgical tape.

http://www.locationsound.com/cgi-bin...chtips8_4.html