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Gear / Technical Help => Microphones & Setup => Topic started by: frohbego on December 14, 2016, 05:25:09 PM
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Anyone have a Rode NT4 Mic? Looking to get my first setup for taping live shows. Only found a few shows on Archive.org and it sounds great.
Rode NT4 >
https://archive.org/details/bigwu2006-10-29
https://archive.org/details/moe2011-02-13
Also if I use a Zoom H6 - https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/967366-REG/zoom_h6_handy_audio_recorder.html
or
Zoom F4 Multitrack - https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1260110-REG/zoom_zf4_f4_multitack_field_recorder.html
Do I also need a Preamp??
Please let me know your thoughts.
Thanks!
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Nice mic- same capsules and frequency response as the NT5- but you're stuck in XY, which limits channel separation and stereo imaging.
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Relatively large mic body.
If you are looking at this because of the option to power by 9v battery, you have many other options to use a battery box to power much smaller mics such as the church audio ones.
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My own experience echoes what's been written above. Although the NT4 has a "nice" sound with a clear, bright top end which isn't too ragged, it does have serious practical limitations. For a start it's large & heavy & a bit of a one trick pony. With the built-in battery, the NT4 is useful for a portable rig if you want to put a stereo mic in a blimp, & go straight to a handheld recorder with no extra boxes; but even then the weight is excessive and it's rather front heavy so difficult to balance. I like the clarity of this mic for distant acoustic sources, but I've hardy used mine in recent years since there aways seems to be a better option.
For use indoors on a stand, I'd much sooner go for a pair of NT5s (same cardioid capsule). With a few threaded adaptors & a stereo bar you can vary the mic angle to point directly at PA stacks etc and introduce some spacing (ORTF, NOS, or just experiment) which gives a way better spatial effect, especially if you ever intend to play back though headphones. With the NT5 you also have the option of buying the omni capsules to swap in. All in all, it's a much more flexible system. I just checked B&H, & a matched pair of NT5s is currently about $100 cheaper than an NT4. That's money towards a phantom power adapter or even one of the newer handheld recorders with XLR inputs. So something to think about...
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Anyone have a Rode NT4 Mic? Looking to get my first setup for taping live shows. Only found a few shows on Archive.org and it sounds great.
Rode NT4 >
https://archive.org/details/bigwu2006-10-29
https://archive.org/details/moe2011-02-13
Also if I use a Zoom H6 - https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/967366-REG/zoom_h6_handy_audio_recorder.html
or
Zoom F4 Multitrack - https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1260110-REG/zoom_zf4_f4_multitack_field_recorder.html
Do I also need a Preamp??
Please let me know your thoughts.
Thanks!
RE Zoom H6, you would not need a preamp. The H6 provides phantom power to the 4 xlr inputs.
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Don't forget about some of the other Stereo mics out there. I've had one of these and liked it and it's considerably cheaper if you are buying new -
http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/AT8022 (http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/AT8022)
or this one that is fairly well regarded here
http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/BP4025 (http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/BP4025)
I wouldn't buy an X/Y mic since I like the flexibility of different configurations but that's just me. I don't particularly care for the sound of Rode mics in general either - they sound kind of hollow in the midrange when used from a distance - but again, that's just me.
Good news is if you are looking for a easy to set up rig you can't beat a battery powered stereo mic into a small digital recorder.