Lavs and chest hair
 

Man, what's the solution to this? Shaving? Seems awfully drastic. Tape won't stick. Chest hair rustle is deafening.

Also, are there some brands of tape that are better to use than others? I put some medical tape on an actor last weekend, and he got a horrible rash from it. This is supposedly genuine hospital grade stuff.

Try moleskin. You can pick it up at the local drug store. I also use Transpore by 3M. Both seem to work pretty good.

Wayne

Actually, I think that's stuff I was using. You should see this rash. Really awful. Also, as far as the hair goes, you just put the tape on top of it? I'm talking about really hairy here. Tape won't stick to the skin at all. It's lifted like an inch off of the chest.

Can you sandwich the mic between tape and stick to the shirt. Put the mic between tape and between overshirt and undershirt shirt and use double stick tape to hold the shirts together..

Use a tiny mic and put it on top of the clothes (Countryman B6?).

When all else fails, get the Pin Mic:
http://www.coffeysound.com/pin-mic/

(The workings of this mic are very similar to the TRAM, but it seems no will be more specific than that. It does sound fine.)

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Hope you don't mind a slight tangent.

When I first saw the title of this thread, I couldn't help but giggle like a little child. Where I come from, "lav" means "toilet" so the whole concept of chest hairs and toilets seemed, well, you know.

It probably also explains why in other parts of the world lav mikes are called lapel mikes. Seems a lav mike would have to be some type of hydrophone.

The proper term is "lavalier" or also spelled commonly, "lavaliere", the French old school term for a pendant necklace.

I spent the weekend looking at new faucets for my kids bathroom. Guess what kitchen sinks are referred to in the industry? Lavys.

We need more words in the English language, we are obviously running out of them.

Dan

Good suggestion on the double shirts Jack. I'll give that a try! I've seen the pin mic. I don't know. This is a feature and I think it will look a little fishy if both leads always have pins on their chests.

There are all kinds of covers for the Pin Mic, including a button. However, it may not be right.

What kind of a mic are you using. This Tram mount can be useful in some situations:
http://www.trammicrophones.com/sales...?partno=TR-MC1
http://www.trammicrophones.com/sales...?partno=TR-MC2

Mic in hair, mic on glasses or hat, mic under folded over shirt collar, tiny mic on exterior of dark wardrobe, mic built into wardrobe, skin tone colored mic on neck, etc.etc.etc.

You are fighting a losing battle, why not change the battleground? I will be writing an article exactly about how to deal with situations like this as an adjunct to my lavalier review article. Most pro sound mixers have 20 to 25 ways and locations to rig lavs to talent. Most non sound mixers only know if one, plunked center on the chest. Gotta test and experiment, there are many ways to skin this cat.

Good luck,

Dan

Thank you! That's better than a double scoop of Cherry Garcia!

I normally put the surgical tape down first and then Moleskin the lav to the surgical tape. And on some people...you really have to use extra tape. Make sure you provide cable slackage in all the right places.

Having the right mic is critical. Not all mics work well buried under clothing. Some work better with the fang clips.

Some actors do shave their chest. I can understand why ...if they are wearing the mic everyday.

Just to add an extra touch of whimsey to Dan's post - I once ran across the actual origin of the term.

Madam Lavallier (Louise de La Vallière) was the famous mistress of King Louis XIV of France. In presumed appreciation for services which can only be speculated about - he gave her a honking jewel pendent on a chain necklace.

In fashion circles, the style became associated with her name with the pronounciation originally following her name (la val' yea!) I think it was "americanized to lav-i-leer during the early days of black and white TV when guys like Dave Garaway on the TODAY show wore those vienna sausage size mics on a neck chain.

So using the term lavallier always brings a smile to my face - knowing that immortality and fame are such capricious beasts that while they often follow exceptional performances - sometimes those preformances are not strictly related to more traditional "arts"

; )

FWIW.

For more info check out the wikipedia entry under her name - it's an interesting read.

ask for a take that you can get the boom in...

I think Dan's approach to the problem is a good solution.
Bear in mind, that there are people with many allergic reactions.Be especially careful of latex as hospitals now have a latex free operating enviroment.