Gear / Technical Help > Microphones & Setup
Running more than 2 mics
Top Hat:
This topic will likely be touchy.. Anywho I am a firm believer in less is more. Discuss
nulldogmas:
--- Quote from: Top Hat on April 18, 2023, 11:42:42 PM ---This topic will likely be touchy.. Anywho I am a firm believer in less is more. Discuss
--- End quote ---
I've tried testing this theory by running zero mics, and it hasn't worked out well.
flask:
I run either 2, 4, or 6 mics. Just because I run more than 2 mics at times doesn't necessarily mean they all end up in the final mix. It's a great way to compare different mics/patterns assuming you're capturing separate tracks.
fireonshakedwnstreet:
If you have a great all-arounder not necessary, but I have found it useful to run different patterns that complement each other.
Gutbucket:
The right amount is right. Certainly not less, not necessarily more. More involves complication, which may be worthwhile when offset by whatever value the addition provides.
Here are four good reasons that come to mind:
1) For making two or more stereo microphone pair recordings simultaneously. Why do that? To run setups that are intentionally different from each other so as to be able to choose whichever worked best. Or alternately, for a good basis of comparison between different setups, in which case they may be entirely different or nearly identical except for the variable of interest under test.
2) To create a recording intended for playback over more than two speakers: 3 channel L/C/R, quad, 5 or 7 channel surround, Atmos, Ambisonics,, etc.
^The second won't apply to many tapers at TS, while the first does. However, both are in the same basic category, consisting of setups where each individual microphone channel feeds an individual playback channel on a 1:1 basis. In either case, a microphone configuration properly designed to to accomplish the desired goal is of fundamental importance.
There is an fundamental categorical difference between that and..
3) Arrangements where there are more microphone channels than playback channels. Examples: Mono playback of recordings made with a stereo microphone pair. 2-channel playback of recordings made with more than two microphones (I suspect this is the focus of Top Hat's inquiry, and can post more about why one might want to do that if you like). Various forms of multichannel down-mixing.
4) Arrangements where there are more playback channels than microphones. Examples: Playback of mono recordings over a 2-channel stereo. Ambiance extraction and Matrix surround playback of 2-channel recordings over systems using more than two speakers. Various forms of up-mixing.
There are additional things to consider in these cases, yet again, a microphone configuration properly designed to to accomplish the desired goal is of fundamental importance. Here's the kicker- Optimizing microphone configurations for any of the four different categories above will equate to somewhat different solutions. In some cases the differences will be minor and in others substantial. Just like there are good reasons, there are also good solutions for each.
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