Horizontal microphone shoe offset for VX2000 (makes it look like a PD150, sorta)
 

I didn't like the way the VX2000 looked when I had my MKE300 mounted on it. So I had a little piece made that offsets the mic 2.5" to the right, so it looks more like a PD150.

I did this more because it looked cool rather than for any real functional use.

There are similar designs like this made for 35mm cameras (specifically, flashes) but none of them really were what I was looking for.

In case you're wondering, there's only a, very slight acoustical advantage to having the mic offset. Most non-audiophiles won't notice the difference. It realistically wouldn't make much of a difference in real-world recording.

Check it out here:

http://www.ultimindstudios.com/micmount.html

Dave, that looks very neat and professional. Could you give us a detailed review of how the MKE300 performs on this camera? How are you connecting it? With just its own mono-plug into the jack or a mono to stereo splitter? If I had an MKE300, I'd turn the big logo on the foam down, so I wouldn't be a walking ad-board.

I've made several mounts like that, except I use wood and cheap wingnuts, instead of those nice thumb-knobs. The wood---Sitka Spruce---actually buffers out many of the vibrations that come from the camera or its handling. I'd probably have two of these mikes on a crossbar and pointed about 15 degrees outward, to enhance the stereo separation. Or they could be pointed in any different directions, towards wherever the wanted sounds were being made.

I once shot a bunch of footage of loudly-calling Tundra Swans, coming low over my head to land in the lake beyond me. I had two super-directional mikes and I turned one backwards. Dozens of separate flocks came continuously for some time. When I played it back, I put one main speaker in the rear of the room and had some great, two-channel surround-sound.

An example of how wood will dampen vibrations was when I mounted a fiberglass fairing on a bicycle. I first
attached the fiberglass directly to metal on the bike. The road vibrations made the fairing roar like a freighttrain. Then, I re-hung it, using all-wood braces and mounts. It was then completely quiet.

I believe the foam on that particular microphone is glued on (It is on the one I have used) and if you remove it once, you either have to glue it back on or have it come off at the most inopportune time.

Actually, i took it off to clean it once, and it goes back on fine, and doesn't slip off. I have to tug on it a bit to get it to come off though.

I only really plan on using this for informal filming or for weddings. If i'm in a controlled environment (like a set) I always have this mic on a boom pole or on a tripod (thanks to the 1/4 20 thread on the bottom)

For $149, you can't beat it, although I'm concidering purchasing a decent XLR shotgun to do short film projects with.

PS - It's quite an ugly plastic mic under that much more professional looking windscreen. I'll post a pic when i get home later.

My foam wind shield is held on with velcro, so can be removed and replaced countless times. But my MKE300 is useless on my VX2k, whereas the MKE300D (D for digital) is far better - no hum whatsoever. Maybe the 300 production line is all D's now, because of the hum pickup that's so commom with this mic.

tom.

Tom, please tell us about the "D" version
you have of the MKE300. I can't find anything about it on Sennheiser's USA website and some others on this group haven't heard about it. I certainly want to explore any advantages it has before I think about buying any of the standard type of that model.

Yes, that's a strange one I've heard before. Here in Europe the D version sells for about 30% more than the original version. Sennheiser GB will modify the 300 to make it into a D, and Sennheiser Stockholm do it for free I hear. Both models are listed in the catalogues I see, and the resident Sennheiser expert over at www.computervideo.net is always talking about it simply because the 300 is such a long lived microphone.

tom.

That's a good looking mic mount for the MKE300.

Here is a mic mount I fabbed up for my ME66:
http://www.chicagodigitalnetwork.com/pictures/mic_mount_vx2000.jpg

And for a Sennheiser wireless:
http://www.chicagodigitalnetwork.com/pictures/wireless_on camera.jpg

The mic mount is made of steel and includes a built-in shock mount. I built it of steel because 1) it's all I had available at the time, 2) I wanted it to be sturdy. I'd like to make another one out of aluminum to cut down the weight (plus, I've switched to a shorter ME64 mic that I like better). I put an accessory shoe on the top of the mic mount for my light and contoured it so I could use the handle. There's also a capacitor in the xlr jack, and I made the 90 degree mini jack. It works great.

I have seen shoe offsets before and i've been trying to find one.

The light wave mini mount has an offset shoe mount available but it's $165 and I already have a healthy assortment of mounts.