ENG hand held mic

[Calvin Bellows]

Hey everyone. I am looking for a hand held mic for show I am going to be working on. It is mainly going to be used in media scrums and for a host to do a live hit in a loud stadium. My only requirement is that it is a long handled one. I did a quick search on B&H but there are way too many and I don't know the differences as well as I should. Cardroid, omni directional. I have no idea Thanks for your help.

[Don Bloom]

Electrovoice RE50 an industry standard and doubles as a hammer when needed, Shure SM63 more elegant looking sturdy and has great sound, Shure VP64, Beyerdynamic M58, EV635...All of these and there are more of course, are considered industry standards and all will produce great sound. All pretty much in the same price range as well.
I use the SM63L but have used the VP64, the RE50 and the EV635 in the past and it's hard to tell them apart at least to my ears.
If all else fails, take a picture of each one, tape them to the wall, step back, put on a blindfold and throw a dart. Where it lands, well, thats your mic! ;-) I don't think you can go wrong with any of them.

[Warren Kawamoto]

Years ago my RE-50 drowned. My replacement was the VP-64A, and it has been working flawlessly for a long time now. It's a dynamic mic, so it's built tough, with minimal handling noise. I've been able to do great interviews on the dance floor, with music at full blast! Just make sure their mouth is close to the mic and all is good, no matter how loud the background is. If you're looking for a long handle, get the VP-64L. This is a cheap, but great mic!
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/cont...rch=yes&Q=&N=0

[Steve House]

Omni picks up equally from all directions, cardioid is directional, picling up best from sources best from sources within a hemisphere in the direction the mic is pointed. Either can be used for a reporter's mic, the cardioid being a bit better to isolate the voice in the presence of high levels of background noise but at the same time requiring more attention to keeping it consistently pointed directly at the speaker's mouth and at a constant distance.

Adding to Don's list, the Sennheiser MD42 omni or MD46 cardioid dynamics are good choices ... I own the MD46 and it's a very solid performer. Audio Technica offers the AT8004 and AT8004L (long body) omni dynamics that are good sounding and very inexpensive - I have the predecessor AT804 that I picked up on the way to a gig when I needed something in a hurry and I was pleasantly surprised at its quality. AT also has the AT8010 omni and AT8031/AT8033 condensor mics if you need the higher output a condensor offers. Dynamics typically have a much lower output level than do condensors and some devices have mic inputs lacking enough gain to use them effectively.

[Seth Bloombaum]

All great suggestions.

I'll only add that omni-directional are used more often for interviews, because it's too easy to get caught off-mic with a cardoid. With an omni, there will still be signal there if the interviewee is talking but the mic is at the reporter's mouth.

This makes it simpler to direct the talent - "just get the mic close to whoever is talking."

A cardoid makes a good reporter's mic, but not so good for interviews.

[Allan Black]

+1 and I'll add .. professional on camera reporters have been given an omni mic to use since the year dot, because they are 'reporters' and most (especially the newbies) are only interested in their spoken report.

And they usually don't wear headphones to hear when a cardioid mic wanders 'off mic' and loses presence. Omnis are necessary for handheld question/answer interview work.

But news crews carry both, an omni and a cardioid to cover all situations .. so if you do a lot of handheld reporting/interview work, you need both types in the kit.

Cheers.

[Brian P. Reynolds]

The company I used to work for used Shure SM 63 for reporters, they worked well but they had one problem... bored reporters while waiting for a live cross would often twist the mic, which unscrews and breaks the fine wires inside mic. We had to "Locktite" the thread or put heat shrink on the handle.
We used the short version as they would easily fit into the pocket of the cammo.
I personally have a few Shure VP-64A mics and love them.

[Allan Black]

Or when the news dept. keeps requesting more mics ..?

I saw it all, I was head of the first audio staff at NBN CH3 Newcastle NSW in 1962. Yeah yeah 50yrs next year I was a kid.

Cheers.

[Calvin Bellows]

Any idea why B&H can't ship the Sennheiser MD46 or 42 to Canada?

[Laurence Kingston]

Another vote here for an omni mic. You also need to make sure that it is free from handling noise. There are just a couple of mics that do this. I believe I have an EV RE50. If you get a cheap handheld omni, the handling noise will absolutely destroy the recordings. If you get a directional mic, the off axis sound quality and level changes will drive you nuts. A good omni handheld interview mic will give you very good audio regardless of which way it is pointing, how much the interviewer and interviewee overlap and how much the person holding it is fiddling with the handle, bang their wedding ring against it, pointing it off into space, etc.

[Anthony Ching]

My vote to Shure SM63LB. VP64AL is good as well. But SM63 looks better to me. EV RE50, 635A are good choice as well. There are almost no handling noise, no proximity effect, no wind noise... all those problem with directional mics.

[Calvin Bellows]

I am torn between the Shure SM63LB and the Shure VP64AL $50 difference between the two.

[Don Bloom]

Well since I use the SM63BL my vote is for that. I love the elegant look, it works like a champ, the ABC station here in Chicago has used them for years and the price isn't a killer. 2 votes for the SM63BL! (here in Chicago we get to vote early and often hence 2 votes)

O|O
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[John Willett]

Originally Posted by Calvin Bellows

Any idea why B&H can't ship the Sennheiser MD46 or 42 to Canada?

Because B&H are in the USA and are, no doubt, under contract not to ship out of the country.

B&H would buy from Sennheiser USA and Canadian dealers buy from Sennheiser Canada.