Topic: ill admit this question may be stupid but i need to ask......

[millhouse412]

what does everyone use to make their angle and spacing measurments in the field? How percise is everyone ussually??

thanks
dan

[jesse]

I have cardboard cutouts of DIN and ORTF.  They work pretty damn well

[charles]

I just eyeball it. I like to use my own little config creations as well. As for how much difference it really makes....I'm too new to this to give my own opinion on this....but others opinions seem to vary. I know some people who have been taping a long time who always use exact measurements. I knoiw other who have taped just as long that don't worry themselves with it. If I were you, I'd try both out and see what suits you best. It seems with all of this taping stuff that everyone has different opinions and that in the end all that matters is what you find that works for you through your own trial and error out in the field.

[MattD]

DPA XY/ORTF mount. No guesswork!

[bhtoque]

I've got 45* and 55* marks on my t-bars. I've got a small ruler/protractor in my bag, but I almost never use it anymore.

JAson

[greenone]

I've got a small ruler/protractor in my bag, but I almost never use it anymore.

I just keep it next to my slide rule in my pocket protector...

[pfife]

I have cardboard cutouts of DIN and ORTF.  They work pretty damn well

same here

[bagtagsell]

I actually bought a protractor.  Go team precision taping!!!  But I forgot it 3 times in a row.
90 degrees is a real easy angle to see.  So XY and DIN, are easy on the angle side.  Or if you can't eye it up, look for a piece of paper or anything around that is 90 degrees.  Tons of stuff are like that.

Now the question becomes how far apart should my mics go.  I havent found a good answer yet.  But if I'm running DIN I put them so the screw on my 481s are just outside of my shock.  It gives me a reference point to make sure both mics are equally spaced 

[d5]

I've got a small ruler/protractor in my bag, but I almost never use it anymore.

I just keep it next to my slide rule in my pocket protector...

I use a plastic protractor also... I feel like a complete geek when I use it. I do ORTF more often than not and I rather be more precise than trying to eye ball 110.

[creekfreak]

with the TL's I eye ball it for the most part......with the mk41's I am happy to have a DINA bar....

[Swampy]

If I spread my hand, from my thumb to my pinky is 20cm, and I pretty much always run DIN, so it works out. The angle isn't really hard to eyeball...

[dklein]

If I spread my hand, from my thumb to my pinky is 20cm, and I pretty much always run DIN, so it works out. The angle isn't really hard to eyeball...

small hands, smell like cabbage    You some kind of carny or something?

[Tall Adam]

i too made a cut out but mine is a little different, its 30cm long, w/ a 90° included angle...then its marked again on one side, parallel to the edge at 20 and 17 cm. then i drew a slightly wider angle line at 110° for ortf. it was a big triangle but i cut off the bottom making it a trapezoid, about 3in tall. then i cut into the middle of the shorter part (the side that doesnt have angles marked) a 90° corner for XY or other 90° checking. basically, i can put it in between my mics (stacked vert bar style) and see if the mic is parallel with the line it should be, and if the cap is in the middle of the marking for distance. i hope that just made sense.

also, i have learned that w/ my homemade vert bar and SP c4s and SP shocks...NOS is mics in middle of shocks, shocks extended to full length, DIN is mics in middle, shocks bent to 90° angles.  ORTF is the only one i really bust out the cardboard for.

[Brian]

i usually eyeball everything.

i can't remember the last time I used an EXACT  stereo config strict to their descriptions when not using XY.  Every venue I tape in I need to run some sort of modified angle and spread.  for intance at the pageant, because the stacks are so far apart from eachother I'll run Hypers, 20cm at an angle of around 100º or so.  Front rail at mississippi nights,  same situation, wide stacks, but smaller venue.  Cards, 17cm, 120º.

[Kevin Straker]

When I ran full bodies I used a ruler and a protractor, but then again I'm a nerd. It's a lot easier with the active caps since you just have to snap them onto the bar.