Shotgun Mike for Z1U : SOny ECM670 or At897?

[Garius Hill]

Hi Everyone,

My company just picked up (2) Z1U's. We needed two shotgun mikes. They were out of stock of the Sony ECM 670, (the mike that B & H links as an accessory for the Z1U) So we purchased instead (2) Audio Technica 897. When we unpacked the AT 897, we discovered that they are too thin to be held with the Z1U's mike holder. We would have to put something around the interior of the mike holder in order to get a snug fit with this mike.

Now we are thinking of exchanging these mikes for the sony ECM670's. Has anyone compared these two mikes? Any preferrences? Also, anyone that uses the AT897 with the Z1U, What do you use to make the mike fit snugly?

Thanks,
Garius

[Kurth Bousman]

Garius - sound wise , you're probably splitting hairs w/ the AT slightly ahead . Cut a piece of hose or tubing about 1" long , split it length wise , then use half. Kurth

[Meryem Ersoz]

i recently had my house painted and was given several paint samples and picked up some of those spongy black foam rubber paint appliers. i ripped one off its wooden handle and rubber-banded it to my AT897. since the foam rubber is black, it is not very noticeable. fits perfectly in an MA-300 for my GL2, and i imagine it is probably similar for the sony. cost: 50 cents.

there are so few cheap fixes in this biz, it is a joy to find one.

[Jerry Waters]

I have a little piece of foam around my AT 897, works perfectly and the mic is excellent. Try it a while and you'll love it.

[Carlos E. Martinez]

Originally Posted by Garius Hill

My company just picked up (2) Z1U's. We needed two shotgun mikes. They were out of stock of the Sony ECM 670, (the mike that B & H links as an accessory for the Z1U) So we purchased instead (2) Audio Technica 897. When we unpacked the AT 897, we discovered that they are too thin to be held with the Z1U's mike holder. We would have to put something around the interior of the mike holder in order to get a snug fit with this mike.

Now we are thinking of exchanging these mikes for the sony ECM670's. Has anyone compared these two mikes? Any preferrences? Also, anyone that uses the AT897 with the Z1U, What do you use to make the mike fit snugly?

Luck or the Force was with your company when you got the ATs instead of the Sony mics.

Sony is great for video stuff: cameras, recorders, monitors. But is not so good for audio. Most of their stuff is just average, and if it's a bit good will probably be overpriced, like their lapel mics.

AT mics are much better than Sony and you can take your pick from several types.

About the mic holder, you can simply use some foam to hold other mics onto it. But if I were you I would look for a way to place your mics a bit away from the camera.

Remember that the position of the camera mic, as it is, is the worst for audio. Will only be reasonable in close-ups, with the camera at less than 1 meter from subject. For other situations its sound can only be used as ambience audio, not for important dialogue.

A mic being directional or hyperdirectional doesn't mean it can be away from subject: it should be close to it, from above or from below. 50 centimeters from head, if possible. The mic directionality will just make the sound cleaner, but the closer it is the cleaner it will be. For all mics.

There's also another thing called sound plane, which has to do with the relationship of the type shot (wide shot, medium shot, close-up) and the audio. The problem is that when you go too far from subject with your mic you get too many reverberances that impair intelligibility. So there's a limit to how far you can go away from subject.

This more or less explains why the on-camera mic position is a poor one.


Carlos

[Garius Hill]

Thanks for all your very informative responses. We decided to keep the AT 897. If bought at B&H they include a 1.5 foot XLR cable and also a cool shockmount that attaches to the shoe. So, this allows me to use eith the Sony mike holder with some foam or hose as some of you suggested or the shockmount. Anyway, I think I will be happy with the AT897