Which Wireless Mic to Use for Nightclubs?? And what Sensitivity Settings??

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ChrisClark

Freshman
Jul 29, 2014
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I am using the Sennheiser EW122PG3-A to do a documentary on clubbing. I need to record human voice of myself and those I talk to at nightclubs. This comes with the EK 100 G3 Camera Mountable Receiver, SK 100 G3 Bodypack Transmitter, and the ME4 lavalier microphone. When recording, I want to maximize human voice sound volume and quality of myself and the people I talk to at nightclubs. There will typically be a great deal of background noise (DJ music over speakers, lots of people talking, etc). I have the microphone clipped onto the top of a tank top which sits underneath a button-up dress shirt.


Please let me know:
1. What would be a better microphone to enhance the sound volume and sound quality of human voice of myself and those I talk to in loud nightclubs. I am open to other types of microphones besides lavalier but it must be able to be concealed.
2. Where can I place the microphone so that I minimize noise from a shirt for instance but can still keep it concealed.
3. What should I set the sensitivity to on the transmitter. The range is -60db to 0db. The default setting is -30db. I was told that the best for human voice is -15db to -18db so I am considering setting the sensitivity to -15db.


Thank you so much in advance! The more details and suggestions the better!
 
Re: Which Wireless Mic to Use for Nightclubs?? And what Sensitivity Settings??

The golden rule of microphones: Loudest sound at the mic wins.

I don't think you have any chance of picking up your own voice (let alone anybody else standing nearby) with one lav in a club. Get real close with a handheld or headset and you *might* have a shot, and I wouldn't be at all surprised if a noise-cancelling microphone is necessary.
 
Re: Which Wireless Mic to Use for Nightclubs?? And what Sensitivity Settings??

You won't stand a chance with a concealed lav on the clothing in that environment.

I'd use a (hyper)cardioid earset but it would be difficult to conceal.

Probably a shotgun mic on a boom will be the best option for you...
 
Re: Which Wireless Mic to Use for Nightclubs?? And what Sensitivity Settings??

I actually have recorded my voice fine in these environments with the ME4 lavalier microphone under clothing. I would just like the voice to be louder and the quality to be better.

A boom is not an option. It needs to be attached to the clothing. As for a shotgun mic, aren't those too big to conceal within clothing?
 
Re: Which Wireless Mic to Use for Nightclubs?? And what Sensitivity Settings??

ChrisClark said:
I actually have recorded my voice fine in these environments with the ME4 lavalier microphone under clothing. I would just like the voice to be louder and the quality to be better.
Click to expand...
You contradict yourself here. If you want it louder and better then a clothed lav in this environment won't work for your application.

A boom is not an option. It needs to be attached to the clothing. As for a shotgun mic, aren't those too big to conceal within clothing?
Click to expand...
A shotgun mic can be operated from a distance and doesn't need to be seen by the camera.

What kind of an application are you trying to handle?

There are mics that you put into your ear that gets your voice from the vibrations of your skull. You might also try two lavs combined where one mic is pointing in the wrong direction. This way you might be abe to phase cancelling the environment sound from your vocals.
 
Re: Which Wireless Mic to Use for Nightclubs?? And what Sensitivity Settings??

ChrisClark said:
I actually have recorded my voice fine in these environments with the ME4 lavalier microphone under clothing. I would just like the voice to be louder and the quality to be better.
Click to expand...

Pardon my tone but if you want the voice to be louder (I assume you mean louder than the background environment) and the quality to be better then I don't think you've recorded your voice "fine" in these environments. Your results seem to be in line with what people here have been telling you.

A boom is not an option. It needs to be attached to the clothing. As for a shotgun mic, aren't those too big to conceal within clothing?
Click to expand...
Well, as far as I can tell, you've described a lavaliere microphone. If it clips to the clothing, that's basically what it is.

As far as the settings go, you should set the sensitivity low enough that you don't clip (overdrive) the transmitter. Until you experiment to see just how loud the signal is when in use... With that particular piece of kit there isn't a "magic" number to use.

The ME4 is a cardioid mic so you should try to point it towards the voices and away from the other sounds. Also note that it has a max spl spec of 120db. I can imagine you getting into that territory with someone yelling into it at close range (like inches) over a loud DJ. But I have no idea what it sounds like when being overdriven.

btw, this video is kind of awesome.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PUB1Mlww1pU
 
Re: Which Wireless Mic to Use for Nightclubs?? And what Sensitivity Settings??

how close is the camera? how big is hte production team? It is fairly common to see hyper cardiod mics attached to video cameras shooting up-close or for an interviewer to have a hand-held mic with the logo of whatever organization is shooting.

However, regarding shooting location - inside the booth or on the dancefloor with real-world party volume is not going to work as they are too loud. Any interviews I've seen have been in a more quiet area of the venue or the system has not been turned up yet.
 
Re: Which Wireless Mic to Use for Nightclubs?? And what Sensitivity Settings??

ChrisClark said:
I am considering going with this model:
http://www.shure.com/americas/products/microphones/other/countryman-b2d

Thoughts?
Click to expand...

My thought is it sounds like you're ignoring the advice people are trying to give you. A lav on or under clothing in a loud environment isn't going to work for you.

As people have already suggested, you're going to need more isolation from the environment, either by using a shotgun with a narrow pick up pattern from out of camera shot, or by putting a microphone much closer to someone's mouth.
 
Re: Which Wireless Mic to Use for Nightclubs?? And what Sensitivity Settings??

You need a two channel recorder. One channel records audio with a directional mic as close as possible to the subject. The second channel records omni room noise as close as possible to the first capsule

With some level fiddling in a DAW, you can invert the noise channel and mix it with the first channel to cancel some of the room noise.
 
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