Boom Pole or Fishpole

[Imran Zaidi]

Scenario: Low budget DV with a Canon GL2, and an AZDEN SGM-2X shotgun (which comes with a shockmount), connected up with a Beachtek XLR adapter and some nice cables.

I would say I'm an amateur, and this Canon GL2 is my first 3-chip cam. Very happy with it thus far (only a month or so).

I am struggling with trying to figure out the best solutions for audio. Got a Beachtek XLR adapter, good cables, and the AZDEN mic I mentioned above.

Question I have is, what are the best practices here? Specifically:

1. What the heck is the difference between a boom pole and a fishpole? My mic already has a shockmount with the screw-holes, so can I get away with just a fishpole? (they're cheaper it seems)

2. What are some best practices for gain/volume control? I read somewhere that you should turn the Beachtek all the way up, and then adjust the cam's volume until you get the loudest audio possible without clipping. Is this right?

Any info like this and directions to point me, an aspiring filmmaker, would be wonderful.

[Aaron Koolen]

<<<-- Originally posted by Imran Zaidi :

Question I have is, what are the best practices here? Specifically:

1. What the heck is the difference between a boom pole and a fishpole? My mic already has a shockmount with the screw-holes, so can I get away with just a fishpole? (they're cheaper it seems)

2. What are some best practices for gain/volume control? I read somewhere that you should turn the Beachtek all the way up, and then adjust the cam's volume until you get the loudest audio possible without clipping. Is this right?
-->>>

Answer 1:
Wherever I've read, everyone seems to use fishpole and boom pole interchangeably. They are the same thing. If you're on a budget, make your own from a painters pole. Get a nice 4 metre long one and drill a hole in the end and connect a bolt of the right thread size for your shockmount.

Answer 2:
Advice given to me is to try and keep MIC ATT off (If you can, if you can't hear anything turn it on) to lower some noise, have your GL2 volume controls around 40-50% and then use the control on the adapter to control the volume. IF you're using it in mono mode (i.e. one mic and the other input free) turn the volume on that one way up. This maybe slightly different for the Beachtek than my adapter (studio1)

Cheers
Aaron

[Ken Tanaka]

I'll second everything Aaron said. I'll just add that weight should be a consideration when selecting or making a boom for your mic. The longer they are the harder they can be to hold steady. That's why you see some of the high-end poles, such as Gitzo's, made of lightweight carbon fiber. Being of telescoping design also helps in this regard, since the outermost sections have the lowest mass.

Have fun!