View Full Version : A Good Mic for ADR Work?


Ken Tanaka
June 1st, 2003, 12:46 AM
Can anyone recommend a mic that might be particularly good for ADR (additional dialog recording) work? I have a Senn ME-66 and ME-67, as well as an Audio-Technica AT822 (stereo). My inclination, in the absence of better recommendations, is to use the ME-66 on a boom with a shock mount. But reviewing the forest of available mics suggests that a studio-style mic with a "low proximity effect"(?) might produce better results. I'm not terribly sensitive to price but, as this may be an infrequently used device, I'd like to keep the budget at or under $1,000US. I envision feeding the mic into my HHb PortaDisc.

Do we have any veterans of ADR who can make a recommendation?

Thanks very much.

Jacques Mersereau
June 1st, 2003, 07:55 AM
The Neumann TLM-103 is a great mic for under a grand.
No bells or whistles such as the ability to change patterns,
but it is clean and sounds great.

The issue is that the TLM-103's sonic quality is much better than
either of the two mics you have to mix it with. It will be cleaner,
phatter, and have much less hiss.

(I always heard that ADR stood for audio dialog replacement.
Additional Dialog Recording is much nicer :)

Ken Tanaka
June 1st, 2003, 10:44 AM
Thank you, Jacques. I'll look at that Neumann.

Isn't it funny how many meanings for ADR people have? I had always thought that it meant "additional dialog replacement". Others thought it meant "automatic dialog replacement". I think "audio dialog replacement" sounds best...but, come to think of it, what other kind of "dialog" would one have? <g>

K. Forman
June 1st, 2003, 11:21 AM
Not necessarily dialogue, but perhaps sound effects and foley work?

Robert Knecht Schmidt
June 1st, 2003, 05:15 PM
To my knowledge, ADR (or "looping") stands for automatic dialogue replacement, automatic in the sense that (in the old days of ADR) the same bit of film and reel of nagra tape would loop in synchronicity for the talent to view on a screen and listen to in cans until he/she could mimic his or her own inflection perfectly without having to laboriously play and rewind, play and rewind the footage and audio repeatedly.

These days it's done digitally and more automatic than ever.

See the IMDB glossary (http://www.imdb.com/Glossary/A), which dutifully points out the great example-on-film of looping in Postcards from the Edge. Another film that demonstrates looping is Roman Coppola's CQ.