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Gear / Technical Help => Microphones & Setup => Topic started by: grapefruitvendor on October 13, 2011, 12:38:04 PM
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I'm interested in doing oral histories in the homes of friends. I have no gear and am starting from scratch.
I don't want to hold a mic or pass it back and forth, but I do want my questions recorded. So, do I have a setup with two desktop mics- (one facing each person) or 1 interview mic between me and my interviewee? I don't think I want to record using the onboard mics of whatever portable recorder I buy.
I'm having a hard time finding concrete advice about this online...
Thanks!! 8)
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Just use two mics if you're unsure about using 1. You can record the questions on one channel of a stereo recording deck, and the "answers" on the other channel. Mixing them down to mono is very simple using any audio software. You also may want to consider having the interviewee wear a lavalier mic, depending on the setting.
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If your questions are to be included in the final edited program then 2 mics would be best. One facing the interviewee and one facing the interviewer, each on separate channels.
If you just want to hear your questions for yourself and are editing them out then a single omni interview mic would be fine. The single mic would be facing the interviewee with interviewer close enough to be picked up by it but don't speak over the subject.
Typical single mic interviews work by the interviewer standing/sitting next to interviewee, the interviewer controls the mic holding the stick mic and pointing it at each talker in turn.
Omnis are typically used for interview mics as they are less susceptible to wind/handling noise and will pick up some of the surrounding atmosphere/ambience. They are also more forgiving of positioning as you are moving/pointing the mic during conversation. If you interviewing in a noisy environment the mic will need to be positioned closer to the mouth of each speaker and in extreme situations like sporting events or factory floor etc. cardioid mics would be better suited.
Bear in mind it can be beneficial to record some atmosphere/ambience separately while on location, which could be useful for smoothing out your edits and the sonic flow of your interview.
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my advice still stands, keep it simple.
I would recommend the sony m10 or possibly the tascam dr2d (although I have not used it, i have read its nice from people here) because these are ~$200 records that have been used a lot by people on this board. Two mics would be nice but I'd rather have one good quality mic than two okay mics. Handling noise will be an issue with any mic if you're not monitoring the recording. Since this is audio only, wear headphones and hold the mic firm.
What's the budget for recorder and mics?