Hey,

I think I've decided on a Gitzo boom pole, but I was wondering what is the advantage/disadvantages of carbon and aluminuim. Because their poles come in both materials. the one i was looking at is G556. I've also been recomended a K and M boom pole, they come in two styles only a short one and a long one, not sure how the quality of these match up. Any other boom poles you;d recomend for cheap, I've been awaiting a Rode boom pole, but none are coming in so it seems.

also my set up so far will consist of a Rode NTG-2 shot gun, a dead cat wind supressor, and a rode shockmount/acessory shoe, and a shure A96f hooked up to a Panasonic GS400 which has manual audio controls, ability to kill the AGC and control the level of sensetivity. Is there anything else I will need for now, I've heard talk about atenuators? I just want the simplest set up as i can right now, and in the future probably invest in a small mixer or high quality pre amp. Any suggestions?

Luke

Anybody have any recomendations?

The Gitzo isn't a bad pole at all. For just a tad more cash, you can get into a Ktek, which is what I think you'll find many folks here have. Search the forum for Ktek, and you'll find a lot of very positive posts. Quiet, solid, and lots of models to choose from.
You likely won't need to attenuate an NT2 with the Panny. If you're gonna get a mixer, you'll use it for limiting more than anything.

The trade-off between aluminum and carbon fiber is pretty simple. Aluminum is cheaper but heavier. It all depends on what your budget happens to be and how long the takes are that you expect to make. Oh, and I guess whether you are doing the booming or not :-)

Those long awaited RODE aluminum boompoles you spoke of are finally hitting store shelves. We just got in our stock we ordered last June so they should be in the channel by April.

The units are 10' 4" long full extended with 5 sections. The weight is 1lb 13 oz which is comparable to the Gitzo G-557 yet the RODE is capable of nearly 2 feet more reach and is $25-50 less expensive.

The RODE's also include a protective tube and cable wraps.

Heck of a deal if you're on a budget at $75. Nothing can beat it except building your own out of a painter's pole and pvc pipe.

The K-TEK KE-110CC for about $250 is awesome too if you want to have the coiled cable. It is 9' 2". http://mklemme.com/pole/Avalon.html

The K-TEK is my pick if you want to spend a bit more....then it just gets expensive to go carbon fiber and longer/articulated. Like others have said, it depends on who is holding it and for how long vs. how much you want to spend.

I just got my Rode Boompole and it is sweet.
One more thing to add, it has real foam grips.
This boompole is my pick for value for money.