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#1
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Ugliest microphones (inside and out!)
OK, instead of all the off-ff topic political stuff and backstabbing,
let's have a little fun here. What's the worst thing you've ever seen done to a professional microphone? I thought I'd seen it all until I went to a friend's house. He rescues unloved micorphones, the type most of us would turf into the trash. But he had an RCA 44BX that took the cake. The case and screens were nice enough but the silk had been replaced with some type of plaid mystery cloth! When he removed the screens, the inside was packed with that "foam that expands in place" with a crystal mike cartridge imbedded in it. None of the original 44 "guts" were left but the thing did have a cord and plug on it. Besides looking like a Scotsman in a cage, it sounded like pure crap! He calls it the "44BXtal". Now I've seen mics painted all different colours and original innards removed and replaced with "better" capsules but this was the worst butcher job I've ever seen. Anyone else with any examples? Mike Cleaver Broadcast Services Voice-overs, Newscaster, Engineering and Consulting Vancouver, BC, Canada |
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#2
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Mike Cleaver wrote: OK, instead of all the off-ff topic political stuff and backstabbing, let's have a little fun here. What's the worst thing you've ever seen done to a professional microphone? I thought I'd seen it all until I went to a friend's house. He rescues unloved micorphones, the type most of us would turf into the trash. Worst thing I ever heard about. ( I wasn't there to watch this, possible urban legend. ) Was some foley artist needed the sound of a car crusher, for a scene where the victim was crushed inside of one. He took an assortment of mics to a junkyard and left the mics inside of various cars while they were being crushed. The mics were not recoverable. --Dale |
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#3
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Mike Cleaver wrote: OK, instead of all the off-ff topic political stuff and backstabbing, let's have a little fun here. What's the worst thing you've ever seen done to a professional microphone? I thought I'd seen it all until I went to a friend's house. He rescues unloved micorphones, the type most of us would turf into the trash. Worst thing I ever heard about. ( I wasn't there to watch this, possible urban legend. ) Was some foley artist needed the sound of a car crusher, for a scene where the victim was crushed inside of one. He took an assortment of mics to a junkyard and left the mics inside of various cars while they were being crushed. The mics were not recoverable. --Dale |
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#4
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Might not have been a "butcher job", but purpose-built.
Although, in another life it probably deserved the kind of regard afforded to such a fine piece of equipment that observers here might give it, it might have wound up in a auction box-lot or a garage sale, and a high school theatre tech or director found what was left and since they were doing "Annie" or some other show that required a "vintage" microphone prop that could also be a practical, they modded it to sound sort of old-fashioned-y for the show. I'd say that's a creative use of what otherwise was considered a piece of junk. They had the look, just had to make the sound ("pure crap" is what they might have been looking for). I've done it myself on several occasions. Who knows...? TM Mike Cleaver wrote: an RCA 44BX that took the cake. the silk had been replaced with some type of plaid mystery cloth! the inside was packed with that "foam that expands in place" with a crystal mike cartridge imbedded in it. None of the original 44 "guts" were left but the thing did have a cord and plug on it. it sounded like pure crap! this was the worst butcher job I've ever seen. |
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#5
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Might not have been a "butcher job", but purpose-built.
Although, in another life it probably deserved the kind of regard afforded to such a fine piece of equipment that observers here might give it, it might have wound up in a auction box-lot or a garage sale, and a high school theatre tech or director found what was left and since they were doing "Annie" or some other show that required a "vintage" microphone prop that could also be a practical, they modded it to sound sort of old-fashioned-y for the show. I'd say that's a creative use of what otherwise was considered a piece of junk. They had the look, just had to make the sound ("pure crap" is what they might have been looking for). I've done it myself on several occasions. Who knows...? TM Mike Cleaver wrote: an RCA 44BX that took the cake. the silk had been replaced with some type of plaid mystery cloth! the inside was packed with that "foam that expands in place" with a crystal mike cartridge imbedded in it. None of the original 44 "guts" were left but the thing did have a cord and plug on it. it sounded like pure crap! this was the worst butcher job I've ever seen. |
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#6
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Mike Cleaver wrote in message . ..
...But he had an RCA 44BX that took the cake. The case and screens were nice enough but the silk had been replaced with some type of plaid mystery cloth! When he removed the screens, the inside was packed with that "foam that expands in place" with a crystal mike cartridge imbedded in it. None of the original 44 "guts" were left but the thing did have a cord and plug on it... Mike, you just made me cry. So now I hate you. ;-) |
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#7
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Mike Cleaver wrote in message . ..
...But he had an RCA 44BX that took the cake. The case and screens were nice enough but the silk had been replaced with some type of plaid mystery cloth! When he removed the screens, the inside was packed with that "foam that expands in place" with a crystal mike cartridge imbedded in it. None of the original 44 "guts" were left but the thing did have a cord and plug on it... Mike, you just made me cry. So now I hate you. ;-) |
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#8
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"Mike Cleaver" wrote ...
OK, instead of all the off-ff topic political stuff and backstabbing, let's have a little fun here. What's the worst thing you've ever seen done to a professional microphone? Legend has it that EV used to demonstrate the ruggedness of the old 664s by hammering nails into 2x4s with them. Reputedly the provenance of the name "Buchannan Hammer" And another legend about EV flushing a 635A down a toilet (with the cable attached and playing through a monitor spkr) to demonstrate its behavior under difficult (and humid) conditions(!) Ewwwwww! Wash your hands after using! |
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#9
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"Mike Cleaver" wrote ...
OK, instead of all the off-ff topic political stuff and backstabbing, let's have a little fun here. What's the worst thing you've ever seen done to a professional microphone? Legend has it that EV used to demonstrate the ruggedness of the old 664s by hammering nails into 2x4s with them. Reputedly the provenance of the name "Buchannan Hammer" And another legend about EV flushing a 635A down a toilet (with the cable attached and playing through a monitor spkr) to demonstrate its behavior under difficult (and humid) conditions(!) Ewwwwww! Wash your hands after using! |
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#10
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"Mike Cleaver" wrote in message ... OK, instead of all the off-ff topic political stuff and backstabbing, let's have a little fun here. What's the worst thing you've ever seen done to a professional microphone? - Snip. My worst experience was whilst recording a cookery programme, the chef, cooking scallops in a frying pan added a huge slug of whisky to flambé them. Well the slug was rather large and the whisky something like lots of proof alcohol. His lav mic, a minute sony job was also flambé. Flames reached the studio ceiling which was fortunately covered in rockwool, but the sound just fizzled out. The good news was that the culinary result tasted delicious. AND we got seconds after the retake. Expensive dish though. Peter Hill Foxglove Audio |
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#11
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"Mike Cleaver" wrote in message ... OK, instead of all the off-ff topic political stuff and backstabbing, let's have a little fun here. What's the worst thing you've ever seen done to a professional microphone? - Snip. My worst experience was whilst recording a cookery programme, the chef, cooking scallops in a frying pan added a huge slug of whisky to flambé them. Well the slug was rather large and the whisky something like lots of proof alcohol. His lav mic, a minute sony job was also flambé. Flames reached the studio ceiling which was fortunately covered in rockwool, but the sound just fizzled out. The good news was that the culinary result tasted delicious. AND we got seconds after the retake. Expensive dish though. Peter Hill Foxglove Audio |
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#12
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Dale Farmer wrote in message ...
Mike Cleaver wrote: OK, instead of all the off-ff topic political stuff and backstabbing, let's have a little fun here. What's the worst thing you've ever seen done to a professional microphone? I thought I'd seen it all until I went to a friend's house. He rescues unloved micorphones, the type most of us would turf into the trash. Worst thing I ever heard about. ( I wasn't there to watch this, possible urban legend. ) Was some foley artist needed the sound of a car crusher, for a scene where the victim was crushed inside of one. He took an assortment of mics to a junkyard and left the mics inside of various cars while they were being crushed. The mics were not recoverable. --Dale Probably a favor to some of those mics, and also to the pro audio community as a whole g. Karl Winkler Lectrosonics, Inc. http://www.lectrosonics.com |
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#13
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Dale Farmer wrote in message ...
Mike Cleaver wrote: OK, instead of all the off-ff topic political stuff and backstabbing, let's have a little fun here. What's the worst thing you've ever seen done to a professional microphone? I thought I'd seen it all until I went to a friend's house. He rescues unloved micorphones, the type most of us would turf into the trash. Worst thing I ever heard about. ( I wasn't there to watch this, possible urban legend. ) Was some foley artist needed the sound of a car crusher, for a scene where the victim was crushed inside of one. He took an assortment of mics to a junkyard and left the mics inside of various cars while they were being crushed. The mics were not recoverable. --Dale Probably a favor to some of those mics, and also to the pro audio community as a whole g. Karl Winkler Lectrosonics, Inc. http://www.lectrosonics.com |
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#14
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"Peter Hill" wrote in message ... "Mike Cleaver" wrote in message ... OK, instead of all the off-ff topic political stuff and backstabbing, let's have a little fun here. What's the worst thing you've ever seen done to a professional microphone? - Snip. My worst experience was whilst recording a cookery programme, the chef, cooking scallops in a frying pan added a huge slug of whisky to flambé them. Well the slug was rather large and the whisky something like lots of proof alcohol. His lav mic, a minute sony job was also flambé. Flames reached the studio ceiling which was fortunately covered in rockwool, but the sound just fizzled out. The good news was that the culinary result tasted delicious. AND we got seconds after the retake. Expensive dish though. Peter Hill Foxglove Audio and then there are the radio DJs who think its a wonderful idea to spray Lysol directly into the mic in an effort to avoid catching colds. and those who after a remote broadcast drive off trailing then mic and cable behind the van. |
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#15
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"Peter Hill" wrote in message ... "Mike Cleaver" wrote in message ... OK, instead of all the off-ff topic political stuff and backstabbing, let's have a little fun here. What's the worst thing you've ever seen done to a professional microphone? - Snip. My worst experience was whilst recording a cookery programme, the chef, cooking scallops in a frying pan added a huge slug of whisky to flambé them. Well the slug was rather large and the whisky something like lots of proof alcohol. His lav mic, a minute sony job was also flambé. Flames reached the studio ceiling which was fortunately covered in rockwool, but the sound just fizzled out. The good news was that the culinary result tasted delicious. AND we got seconds after the retake. Expensive dish though. Peter Hill Foxglove Audio and then there are the radio DJs who think its a wonderful idea to spray Lysol directly into the mic in an effort to avoid catching colds. and those who after a remote broadcast drive off trailing then mic and cable behind the van. |
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#16
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Our best microphone at Unique Recording was the Ela M251. It was
constantly getting banged-around by the new GA of the day. The connector threads were grinding-down by the month. After a re-capping of the power supply, I decided to mount the mic and PSU to a dedicated boom stand, always mounted and connected. It lived in the rentals closet and worked well for a time. One night I watched a GA rolling the stand down the hall. The PSU was dragging behind by the mic interconnect, and the mic had been un-screwed and was all "expanded-like" and swinging around from the boom in a horrible articulated fashion. Nothing was really harmed- just scratched, and the GA was fired for being an idiot. The mic was later stolen, without the PSU, in an elaborate street scam. HUH? |
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#17
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Our best microphone at Unique Recording was the Ela M251. It was
constantly getting banged-around by the new GA of the day. The connector threads were grinding-down by the month. After a re-capping of the power supply, I decided to mount the mic and PSU to a dedicated boom stand, always mounted and connected. It lived in the rentals closet and worked well for a time. One night I watched a GA rolling the stand down the hall. The PSU was dragging behind by the mic interconnect, and the mic had been un-screwed and was all "expanded-like" and swinging around from the boom in a horrible articulated fashion. Nothing was really harmed- just scratched, and the GA was fired for being an idiot. The mic was later stolen, without the PSU, in an elaborate street scam. HUH? |
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#18
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Mike Cleaver wrote in message . ..
OK, instead of all the off-ff topic political stuff and backstabbing, let's have a little fun here. What's the worst thing you've ever seen done to a professional microphone? I thought I'd seen it all until I went to a friend's house. He rescues unloved micorphones, the type most of us would turf into the trash. But he had an RCA 44BX that took the cake. The case and screens were nice enough but the silk had been replaced with some type of plaid mystery cloth! When he removed the screens, the inside was packed with that "foam that expands in place" with a crystal mike cartridge imbedded in it. None of the original 44 "guts" were left but the thing did have a cord and plug on it. Besides looking like a Scotsman in a cage, it sounded like pure crap! He calls it the "44BXtal". Now I've seen mics painted all different colours and original innards removed and replaced with "better" capsules but this was the worst butcher job I've ever seen. Anyone else with any examples? Mike Cleaver Broadcast Services Voice-overs, Newscaster, Engineering and Consulting Vancouver, BC, Canada I once saw "The Cramps" when I was in college, the lead singer took an SM-58 and stuck it down his pants...then he bent over, pulled it out of his open zipper and stuck the entire ball in his mouth and turned upward with just the mic and cable hanging out of his mouth. I'm not sure what he was trying to prove but I made sure I brought my own mic to any school sponsored shows after that my band played at! Analogeezer |
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#19
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Mike Cleaver wrote in message . ..
OK, instead of all the off-ff topic political stuff and backstabbing, let's have a little fun here. What's the worst thing you've ever seen done to a professional microphone? I thought I'd seen it all until I went to a friend's house. He rescues unloved micorphones, the type most of us would turf into the trash. But he had an RCA 44BX that took the cake. The case and screens were nice enough but the silk had been replaced with some type of plaid mystery cloth! When he removed the screens, the inside was packed with that "foam that expands in place" with a crystal mike cartridge imbedded in it. None of the original 44 "guts" were left but the thing did have a cord and plug on it. Besides looking like a Scotsman in a cage, it sounded like pure crap! He calls it the "44BXtal". Now I've seen mics painted all different colours and original innards removed and replaced with "better" capsules but this was the worst butcher job I've ever seen. Anyone else with any examples? Mike Cleaver Broadcast Services Voice-overs, Newscaster, Engineering and Consulting Vancouver, BC, Canada I once saw "The Cramps" when I was in college, the lead singer took an SM-58 and stuck it down his pants...then he bent over, pulled it out of his open zipper and stuck the entire ball in his mouth and turned upward with just the mic and cable hanging out of his mouth. I'm not sure what he was trying to prove but I made sure I brought my own mic to any school sponsored shows after that my band played at! Analogeezer |
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#21
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I think it was on Howard Stern that he had some porn actresses in who
did some rather moist things with a microphone. If it was an RE-20 it would take a real professional. On 15 Nov 2004 09:17:03 -0800, (Analogeezer) wrote: Mike Cleaver wrote in message . .. OK, instead of all the off-ff topic political stuff and backstabbing, let's have a little fun here. What's the worst thing you've ever seen done to a professional microphone? I thought I'd seen it all until I went to a friend's house. He rescues unloved micorphones, the type most of us would turf into the trash. But he had an RCA 44BX that took the cake. The case and screens were nice enough but the silk had been replaced with some type of plaid mystery cloth! When he removed the screens, the inside was packed with that "foam that expands in place" with a crystal mike cartridge imbedded in it. None of the original 44 "guts" were left but the thing did have a cord and plug on it. Besides looking like a Scotsman in a cage, it sounded like pure crap! He calls it the "44BXtal". Now I've seen mics painted all different colours and original innards removed and replaced with "better" capsules but this was the worst butcher job I've ever seen. Anyone else with any examples? Mike Cleaver Broadcast Services Voice-overs, Newscaster, Engineering and Consulting Vancouver, BC, Canada I once saw "The Cramps" when I was in college, the lead singer took an SM-58 and stuck it down his pants...then he bent over, pulled it out of his open zipper and stuck the entire ball in his mouth and turned upward with just the mic and cable hanging out of his mouth. I'm not sure what he was trying to prove but I made sure I brought my own mic to any school sponsored shows after that my band played at! Analogeezer Willie K. Yee, M.D. http://users.bestweb.net/~wkyee Developer of Problem Knowledge Couplers for Psychiatry http://www.pkc.com Webmaster and Guitarist for the Big Blue Big Band http://www.bigbluebigband.org |
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#22
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On Mon, 15 Nov 2004 11:35:59 +0000 (UTC), "Peter Hill"
wrote: "Mike Cleaver" wrote in message .. . His lav mic, a minute sony job was also flambé. Ahh, I will put Lavalier Flambé in the cookbook with Click and Clack's Eggs Prestone. Willie K. Yee, M.D. http://users.bestweb.net/~wkyee Developer of Problem Knowledge Couplers for Psychiatry http://www.pkc.com Webmaster and Guitarist for the Big Blue Big Band http://www.bigbluebigband.org |
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#23
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On Mon, 15 Nov 2004 11:35:59 +0000 (UTC), "Peter Hill"
wrote: "Mike Cleaver" wrote in message .. . His lav mic, a minute sony job was also flambé. Ahh, I will put Lavalier Flambé in the cookbook with Click and Clack's Eggs Prestone. Willie K. Yee, M.D. http://users.bestweb.net/~wkyee Developer of Problem Knowledge Couplers for Psychiatry http://www.pkc.com Webmaster and Guitarist for the Big Blue Big Band http://www.bigbluebigband.org |
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#24
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"Mike Cleaver" wrote in message ... OK, instead of all the off-ff topic political stuff and backstabbing, let's have a little fun here. What's the worst thing you've ever seen done to a professional microphone? Dunno, but cleaving them sounds a bit extreme. geoff |
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#25
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"Mike Cleaver" wrote in message ... OK, instead of all the off-ff topic political stuff and backstabbing, let's have a little fun here. What's the worst thing you've ever seen done to a professional microphone? Dunno, but cleaving them sounds a bit extreme. geoff |
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#26
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"Richard Crowley" wrote in message And another legend about EV flushing a 635A down a toilet (with the cable attached and playing through a monitor spkr) to demonstrate its behavior under difficult (and humid) conditions(!) Ewwwwww! Wash your hands after using! That would certain duisuade proximity -effdect problems ! geoff |
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#27
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"Richard Crowley" wrote in message And another legend about EV flushing a 635A down a toilet (with the cable attached and playing through a monitor spkr) to demonstrate its behavior under difficult (and humid) conditions(!) Ewwwwww! Wash your hands after using! That would certain duisuade proximity -effdect problems ! geoff |
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#28
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"Willie K.Yee, M.D." wrote in message ... I think it was on Howard Stern that he had some porn actresses in who did some rather moist things with a microphone. If it was an RE-20 it would take a real professional. Nicely ribbed ... geoff |
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#29
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"Willie K.Yee, M.D." wrote in message ... I think it was on Howard Stern that he had some porn actresses in who did some rather moist things with a microphone. If it was an RE-20 it would take a real professional. Nicely ribbed ... geoff |
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#30
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Sorry, I misunderstood and thought that you wanted to know which
microphones looked the least appealing to us _as designed_. I would have suggested the Sanken CUW-180 stereo microphone, as shown on page 177 of the Nov. 2004 MIX Magazine, and on Sanken's Web site at http://www.sanken-mic.com/english/ . Someone should put a sock on that. |
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#31
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Sorry, I misunderstood and thought that you wanted to know which
microphones looked the least appealing to us _as designed_. I would have suggested the Sanken CUW-180 stereo microphone, as shown on page 177 of the Nov. 2004 MIX Magazine, and on Sanken's Web site at http://www.sanken-mic.com/english/ . Someone should put a sock on that. |
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#32
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On Sun, 14 Nov 2004 21:26:45 GMT, Mike Cleaver
wrote: What's the worst thing you've ever seen done to a professional microphone? I once put a condom on a sm57... just to capture dropping water sounds.. but I've recently seen something really weird on Italian TV: a man put some dog **** (ouch..) all over the foam and started interviewing famous people.. -- Ciao, Pietro WEBTRONIC "Tutta l'elettronica nel web" Prossimamente on-line: www.webtronic.it e-mail provvisoria progettoecommerce@virgilioPUNTOit .... sostituire PUNTO con "." |
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#33
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On Sun, 14 Nov 2004 21:26:45 GMT, Mike Cleaver
wrote: What's the worst thing you've ever seen done to a professional microphone? I once put a condom on a sm57... just to capture dropping water sounds.. but I've recently seen something really weird on Italian TV: a man put some dog **** (ouch..) all over the foam and started interviewing famous people.. -- Ciao, Pietro WEBTRONIC "Tutta l'elettronica nel web" Prossimamente on-line: www.webtronic.it e-mail provvisoria progettoecommerce@virgilioPUNTOit .... sostituire PUNTO con "." |
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#34
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David Satz wrote:
Sorry, I misunderstood and thought that you wanted to know which microphones looked the least appealing to us _as designed_. I would have suggested the Sanken CUW-180 stereo microphone, as shown on page 177 of the Nov. 2004 MIX Magazine, and on Sanken's Web site at http://www.sanken-mic.com/english/ . Someone should put a sock on that. "Ehh, Candi, how many times have I told you to use the OTHER end ?!" Hans |
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#35
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David Satz wrote:
Sorry, I misunderstood and thought that you wanted to know which microphones looked the least appealing to us _as designed_. I would have suggested the Sanken CUW-180 stereo microphone, as shown on page 177 of the Nov. 2004 MIX Magazine, and on Sanken's Web site at http://www.sanken-mic.com/english/ . Someone should put a sock on that. "Ehh, Candi, how many times have I told you to use the OTHER end ?!" Hans |
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#36
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"David Satz" wrote in message om... I would have suggested the Sanken CUW-180 stereo microphone, as shown on page 177 of the Nov. 2004 MIX Magazine, and on Sanken's Web site at http://www.sanken-mic.com/english/ . Someone should put a sock on that. Eek. Peace, Paul |
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#37
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"David Satz" wrote in message om... I would have suggested the Sanken CUW-180 stereo microphone, as shown on page 177 of the Nov. 2004 MIX Magazine, and on Sanken's Web site at http://www.sanken-mic.com/english/ . Someone should put a sock on that. Eek. Peace, Paul |
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#38
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On 16 Nov 2004 06:41:31 -0800, (David Satz) wrote:
Sorry, I misunderstood and thought that you wanted to know which microphones looked the least appealing to us _as designed_. I would have suggested the Sanken CUW-180 stereo microphone, as shown on page 177 of the Nov. 2004 MIX Magazine, and on Sanken's Web site at http://www.sanken-mic.com/english/ . Someone should put a sock on that. Some of the Russian Oktava designs look pretty ugly. Willie K. Yee, M.D. http://users.bestweb.net/~wkyee Developer of Problem Knowledge Couplers for Psychiatry http://www.pkc.com Webmaster and Guitarist for the Big Blue Big Band http://www.bigbluebigband.org |
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#39
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On 16 Nov 2004 06:41:31 -0800, (David Satz) wrote:
Sorry, I misunderstood and thought that you wanted to know which microphones looked the least appealing to us _as designed_. I would have suggested the Sanken CUW-180 stereo microphone, as shown on page 177 of the Nov. 2004 MIX Magazine, and on Sanken's Web site at http://www.sanken-mic.com/english/ . Someone should put a sock on that. Some of the Russian Oktava designs look pretty ugly. Willie K. Yee, M.D. http://users.bestweb.net/~wkyee Developer of Problem Knowledge Couplers for Psychiatry http://www.pkc.com Webmaster and Guitarist for the Big Blue Big Band http://www.bigbluebigband.org |
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#40
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tttttttttttttt (Willie K.Yee, M.D.) wrote in message ...
I think it was on Howard Stern that he had some porn actresses in who did some rather moist things with a microphone. If it was an RE-20 it would take a real professional. Reminds me of the joke where the punchline (from the prostitute) is "Pretty tight, huh?" Karl Winkler Lectrosonics, Inc. http://www.lectrosonics.com |
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