• After witnessing the continued decrease of involvement in the SpotterNetwork staff in serving SN members with troubleshooting issues recently, I have unilaterally decided to terminate the relationship between SpotterNetwork's support and Stormtrack. I have witnessed multiple users unable to receive support weeks after initiating help threads on the forum. I find this lack of response from SpotterNetwork officials disappointing and a failure to hold up their end of the agreement that was made years ago, before I took over management of this site. In my opinion, having Stormtrack users sit and wait for so long to receive help on SpotterNetwork issues on the Stormtrack forums reflects poorly not only on SpotterNetwork, but on Stormtrack and (by association) me as well. Since the issue has not been satisfactorily addressed, I no longer wish for the Stormtrack forum to be associated with SpotterNetwork.

    I apologize to those who continue to have issues with the service and continue to see their issues left unaddressed. Please understand that the connection between ST and SN was put in place long before I had any say over it. But now that I am the "captain of this ship," it is within my right (nay, duty) to make adjustments as I see necessary. Ending this relationship is such an adjustment.

    For those who continue to need help, I recommend navigating a web browswer to SpotterNetwork's About page, and seeking the individuals listed on that page for all further inquiries about SpotterNetwork.

    From this moment forward, the SpotterNetwork sub-forum has been hidden/deleted and there will be no assurance that any SpotterNetwork issues brought up in any of Stormtrack's other sub-forums will be addressed. Do not rely on Stormtrack for help with SpotterNetwork issues.

    Sincerely, Jeff D.

Selecting an External Camcorder Mic: Omni vs. Unidirectional

Jeremy Perez

Supporter
Joined
Aug 31, 2008
Messages
342
Location
Flagstaff, Arizona, USA
I’m looking to invest $100-200 in an external mic for my camcorder (Canon VIXIA HF M30). I’ve had my eye on a couple options

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Canon SM-V1 5.1 Channel Surround Microphone

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Azden High-performance (SMX-10) Stereo Condenser Microphone

(+ wind sock appropriate for either)

The first is omnidirectional and the second unidirectional. Does anyone have experience using either general type of mic when chasing and if they’ve discovered pros/cons for either?

My thought is that omni/surround would provide nice environmental audio with good results for thunder, rain, hail, birds, etc. The downside I guess is that if you’re shooting out the window of your vehicle, you’re giving equal weight to all the distracting sounds happening inside the car.

Unidirectional would help reduce in-car distraction noises when pointed out the window and hey, a hundred bucks less. But then maybe it doesn’t capture environmental noises as immersively.

Best case would be to get both and swap as needed, but I’m trying to ease into the audio aspect of things. (I’ve searched the forum and found some limited external mic discussion, but it didn’t seem to get at these particular issues.)

Thanks in advance for any feedback! *

* heh

[edit: Looks like the linked surround mic does have ability to switch from surround to stereo-zoom mode, but if others have found omni to be completely useless for chasing, it might not even be worth considering.]
 
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I'm using a Sennheiser MKE-600 (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00B0YPAYQ?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_search_detailpage) on one of my cameras, and that thing is a beast. The camera records in xavc and it has something like 5 audio tracks on it from that mic. Point it out the window at a tin barn getting annihilated with hail and the audio is great! It also keeps all the dumb stuff I say and my stupid heavy breathing somewhat off the video which I enjoy.
 
@Ben Holcomb Thanks for the reference on that mic, Ben! The more I look around, it seems like most chasers are running with shotgun mics. The MKE-600 definitely has glowing reviews at Amazon...(except for the one guy who was frustrated that the mic was too good since it picked up the heartbeat sounds from an interviewee. Sheesh.)
 
Can confirm, the MKE-600 is awesome. I shoot a lot of sports video using that mic and it's amazing! You'll want to get a sturdier mount than what comes stock with it, and keep in mind you'll need an XLR to 1/8" adapter for your camera along with a AA battery for the mic. Unfortunately it's not the best when it comes to omni-directional pickup because it has a super-cardioid pattern. You would definitely want another/secondary mic (or a cheap handheld LPCM recorder) if atmosphere is important to you.
 
I'd avoid the omni. It's effectively what comes stock on many camcorders/DSLRs and you'll get plenty of environmental noise coming through a directional mic still. Just a lot less of your own noises.

If ambience/directivity is important to you get a directional X-Y stereo mic pair.
 
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