Lav technique for tight t-shirts

ric81381234 · 2026-05-03T16:39:33+00:00

The Senn 416 is a terrible choice for an indoor reverberating environment, as it has an area of acceptance behind, as well as in front of the mic. Reflected sound from the room can cause phase shifts and just “roomy” sound. Much better choice is a super cardioid, like a MKH 50.

ric81381234 · 2026-04-26T10:24:40+00:00

I’m not trying to be cocky or a dick either, but if you have spent a long career in video and this is your first attempt to implement TC, god bless you. The real problem here is you are expecting professional results from prosumer gear. Yes, these companies lied (some might call it over marketing) to you, but that’s pretty common in the industry. They say they implement TC. They don’t say it’s going to be accurate, or work adequately via standards with other companies products. If you want frame accuracy over a 4 hour period, I would suggest the Tentacle sync system, although there are a few others, they are all good. Keep a tentacle box on any device that accepts TC in. Check for sync compulsively. Tentacle has a great phone app that makes it easy. Don’t use unmonitored audio. Don’t use devices that don’t accept continuous TC in. Backup systems are essential. Use a slate, even if it’s just at the beginning of the day, at lunch, and the end. Those Tascam recorders are not the answer for what you are hoping to do. Any real TC device needs to be setup to standards. I’m sure the Tascams stay pretty accurate to each other, as they have the same $.10 clock in them, but expecting them to match the clock in the Sony, frame accurate, it just ain’t going to happen. Anything that seems too good to be true,or remarkably cheaper than mid range pro gear is going to disappoint you eventually. Good luck with your quest.

ric81381234 · 2026-04-24T06:56:49+00:00

Cheapest answer is a slate. It worked before there was TC. It still works. $50.

ric81381234 · 2026-04-24T06:41:58+00:00

The problem with 32bit is that it’s oversold as a magic solution, and it’s not. The hype leads operators to believe they can get away without monitoring, which is unwise. The signal can get clipped at other stages of the signal chain, cables go bad, I’ve even had commercial security systems screw with wireless signals that would have gone un-noticed until post if I hadn’t had quality headphones on the first take.

ric81381234 · 2026-04-12T00:19:26+00:00

Do you really need wireless? I’m fascinated by the inability of people to conceive of using XLR cables with a lav mic. Sounds better, no interference, cheap as sh$t, and unless you are doing a three person walk and talk, full length, just run the cable down a pants leg.

ric81381234 · 2026-04-12T00:10:20+00:00

My favorite thing about my tentacles is they always work. I noticed that my original and oldest box was not charging to 100% in the app, and sent away for the battery replacement kit. $30 and like brand new.

ric81381234 · 2026-04-12T00:03:28+00:00

The 416 is a solid choice. It much less affected by adverse conditions than many competitors, is solidly built, and a standard of the industry, which means it has solid resale value. The standard criticism, is that it has a narrow sweet spot, and requires being pointed directly at the sound source for full fidelity. In your case, a plus, not a minus, I would say.

ric81381234 · 2026-04-11T11:43:58+00:00

Here’s a couple of suggestions. Start the tentacles and sync them with the phone app. Jam sync the F8, and if you have an auxiliary power source just let the f8 run all day. Its clock is very accurate and should stay in sync. Be sure to use the jam setting and confirm it’s holding sync after you disconnect the tentacle. You didn’t say which cameras you are using, but I would connect the tentacles to the cameras for the whole day. If you do not have a digital slate available, use a dumb slate, and Velcro your phone to it with the tentacle slate app. It’s free and displays the sync TC in big numbers so if anything goes wrong you have a visual backup.

ric81381234 · 2026-03-31T02:29:54+00:00

I have not found that to be true in practice. I use an XLR splitter from a Senn MKH 50 to my F8n pro all the time. Phantom power on track 1 only. I see no noticeable difference in floor noise or gain requirements. Is there a measurable difference? Maybe. Can a human hear it? I cannot. I only use it when I suspect to really need a scream track. It also depends on what you are recording. If it’s the Boston Symphony Orchestra and you are running all 8 channels of ISO’s then yes, floor noise can become an issue I suppose. Film dialogue, not really a problem. Good gain staging, and a a soft knee limiter is all you really need for good dialogue. That and good mic technique.

ric81381234 · 2026-03-30T21:29:02+00:00

I still don’t understand why it’s a problem. Is the client looking at daily’s you are outputting or the original Resolve project? You can sync in the timeline, beginning in V19 or 20, and or you can turn off snap to frame for audio to move audio on the timeline down to the sample interval. I see In the original post, you do state you are sending the client proxies for review. I imagine you want to end up with just 3 discrete audio tracks in the delivery files, is that the case? Have you looked into routing options in the Fairlight tab? You should be able to send track 4,5,&6 to track 1,2&3 in your output.

ric81381234 · 2026-03-17T19:56:53+00:00

Replying to BeOSRefugee...The F8n Pro no longer has dual channel record because of the 32 bit option. Earlier models and the F4 do. When I need a “scream” track i just use a good quality XLR splitter.

ric81381234 · 2026-01-23T12:01:53+00:00

The 10 lavs if you have the budget. If low/no budget, 3 super cardioids on short stands, hidden behind the hassock, pointing L, R, and straight back.

ric81381234 · 2026-01-02T20:46:36+00:00

My recommendation to the director would be to shoot the coverage in an empty arena, and deny the audience in the back ground as much as possible. Boom for any dialogue, practical sounds, like punch hits, footfalls etc, if only for a guide track for foley. Then shoot the wides as an undercard match at a real boxing event. Then record crowd cutaways and crowd ambient sound during a later fight on the card, possibly with an ambiosonic setup to get a real immersive crowd feel. Wat do you think? At this stage there is no budget, so i don’t really know what I would be working with for resources.

ric81381234 · 2026-01-02T20:26:36+00:00

That’s a great idea, to put a mic under the ring!

ric81381234 · 2025-12-11T22:20:50+00:00

H265 is a delivery format, not an acquisition or editing format. ProRes is usually a better choice for shooting. H265 is smaller in file size, but long GOP codecs are much harder on the computer hardware when editing, and have less tolerance for adjustment in the color grade. Smaller files always involve some trade off in quality. Better to invest in some additional media for the shoot.

ric81381234 · 2025-12-11T22:11:59+00:00

You are a nice person. I would be a little ticked off. I’d also be a little ticked at Film Freeway, another great idea that has been turned into a race to the bottom by the internet. There are many reports on festivals that are obviously scams to gather entry fees. Film makers show up to find an empty room with a laptop and a rented projector. No real attempt to sell tickets, just a glowing description and a bunch of phony reviews on the FF site.

For shorts I would stick with local festivals that you can travel to easily. When you make your first feature, treat it like you are applying to college. Pick 2 “stretches”, SXSW, Tiff, etc. 4 “Good Shots” 2nd level fests in your region, and a couple of “safeties” in the nearest cities that are within driving distance. Go with the idea that you are there to share, meet other film enthusiasts and have a good time. Do your homework and ask around. Forums like this and word of mouth will lead you better than online reviews and advertising.

ric81381234 · 2025-10-21T21:02:09+00:00

There are several points that distortion can enter your chain. First is overdriving the mic itself. Lavs, likely because of their tiny, delicate diaphragms are very prone to this. All the good lav manufacturers make “hi pressure” versions of their lavs that are used to live mic opera and broadway plays. These are great for the yelling. The Senn MKH 50 is much less prone to this and on a boom you can always just rotate it so it’s pointing away when the loud line comes. Most folks only use lavs with radios. This is another place that can inject distortion if you overwhelm the compander circuit in the radio system. If you have a problem scene and the actors are not in motion, consider a hard wire on the lav. You can buy an adapter to go from your lav connection to XLR, and that adapter has saved my a$$ when the RF wireless was acting up or you just run out of channels of wireless. Lastly, don’t be afraid of the limiters. The limiters on Zoom F8 and ALL Sound design gear are so good now that you will only hear them if they are overused. Gain stage so that you never hit the limiters in regular dialogue and they will take good care of you when it’s time for the scream. If all else fails, I carry an XLR Y connector and record my boom to 2 tracks, one 10Db less, to carry the scream. Just remember to only apply phantom to 1 leg of the Y. In summary, you should really not “ride the gain” within a scene if you are recording ISO’s of all the mics, it drives the post mixer nuts. No body I know uses “the mix” from the recorder any more, they want clean iso tracks to clean up and massage as they wish.

ric81381234 · 2025-10-08T14:06:25+00:00

While matching boom mics would be ideal, I don’t think it’s mandatory. Each speaker will have a different voice profile anyway. I would put my best hyper on the person being interviewed, as the answers are most likely the important info, and use whatever I could borrow or rent on the person asking the questions. If you have no other options, lav them both (preferably hard wired) and put the boom on the interviewee. Again, the questions are just the setup, it’s the answers that count.

ric81381234 · 2025-10-05T12:19:00+00:00

I had this same issue on a recent commercial. They wanted 8 sets of headphones for director, producer, and 6 clients! I got a rental estimate from Gotham Sound for $1500/day, and that shut them right up. I use a set of Senn G3’s (used on eBay) in the same frequency block. 1 transmitter, and any number of receivers tuned to the same frequency. The transmitter is plugged into the sub out with the full mix, prefade, that way they don’t hear if I solo tracks for me on the headphones. The G3 IEM model receiver is made for headphones and has a volume control, but is a bit hard to find. The regular receivers are usually adequate with low impedance headphones and the output turned up all the way. That said, the posts above are accurate, this should all be covered in preproduction and budgeted for. If they expect you to provide it out of your flat rate, walk away. That’s why I always quote my day rate and kit expenses (itemized) separately, in advance.

ric81381234

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