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Hi I need your help

I'm new in outdore sounds recording. It's an expensive hobby but want to go with it. Looking for good microphones for ambient sounds recording (outdoors) for nature sounds & birds sounds. Ocassionaly will record urban sounds too.

I have some budget for all my equipment, but want to get some 1-2 microphones for start. Also I love to have gear for years.

As for recorder I will go with SOUND DEVICES MixPre-6 II

As for microphones I found some nice shotguns from shennheiser's:

Sennheiser MKH 416
Sennheiser MKH 8070
Sennheiser MKH 8060
Sennheiser MKH 70 (can get used)

But what microphone to choose? What to get for recording streams or forest at all?

Other proposals regarding microphones and addicional equipment welcome

Maybe this helps;

Check my field-recordings and check them from eg felix.blume.
We have different high end gear like you would work with.

Most of the recordings are recorded as mid-side.
Listen to these recordings. Study how to handle ms recordings on youtube. Study wiki for all different microphone technic and what is pro and contra.

My advise…… do not buy to quickly but search youtube and wiki.

Regards

Ps the Sennheiser 418 s is a ms mic

So I understand, that 418 would be first microphone to get? Don't go with 8070 and 8060 ?? I need to start, so would like to buy first 1-2 microphones and go from there.

No, I never give buying advice. I advise you to first study extensively what is for sale, and what the pros and cons are of each choice you make. What are the results of each microphone setup?
Another cannot make a choice for you, you do that yourself.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microphone_practice
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gq5osDaqhHY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I6Fann2gMSs

and there is many more. succes

Do you think that Sound Devices MixPre 10 II is overkill for outdoor rerecording?

Will MixPre 6 II will be enough?

As for now I will go with Some Stereo setup + mono setup. For stereo thinking about Oktava MK-012-20 MSP8. Or maby standard MK-12 will see.

Since you didn't mention it, I assume you are not wanting to leave a mic permanently installed outdoors, right? If you were looking to that, the range of choices becomes considerably narrowed due to weather exposure. But even aside from that, outdoor audio does require planning to mitigate wind, at a minimum, and if you really want to do it in rainy/misty wetness then there are numerous things to consider. To get strong directionality, you can consider shotgun style mics or parabolic reflectors, and there are pros/cons to weigh. But I can't offer any concrete advice.

dell-os wrote:
Hi I need your help

I'm new in outdore sounds recording. It's an expensive hobby

skip
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Need not be.

Been using this for a number of years now: https://micbooster.com/clippy-and-pluggy-microphones/99-xlr-stereo-clippy-em272-microphone.html

These capsules are extremely sensitive and low-noise. Yes, I have Senns and all the fancy but, at the end of the day, I most often use the 'cheap' stuf, mainly because it's lighter, easier to carry and place properly when you are on the field. A quick search dobroide+clippy will give you an idea of the outcome.

Most importantly: don't forget to get the best windscreens you can afford, wind is your main enemy. Again, tiny capsules like those mentioned above are far easier to isolate from wind than relatively large mics. For example, I enclose one MKH60 + one MKH30 inside a Rycote blimp for MS stereo recordings with good results, but this combo also requires carrying a tripod so... I'm oten reluctant to get it.
And again, search for dobroide+Sennheiser if you want to get an idea.

Cheers

D

Edit: as for the recorder I wouldn't care much. In my opinion this is the least important piece of gear

You are great for helping. I've change my mind about what to get. I've want to go with stereo for start, as my main goal for now is to record soundscapes.

I will use them off and on water (canoe triping). Will record on trips for 2-3 weeks and also on foot trips for fiew hours. As for, will I live it outdoor for whole night? May by the case on trips. I've wont use them in rain if neseccery but will use them near waterfalls, rivers, seaside, etc.

I was thinking about pair of Sennheiser MKH 8020 or 8040 but price is "above" my budget, so started to think about AT4021, SHURE KSM137, Shure KSM141, NEUMANN KM184 MT... think not so great as 8020 but... half price there.

I can "squize" the pair of 8020 or 8040 if the quality of mics are as good as "pricetag".

My firm opinion is that the quality of the end result is 90% down to the experience of the person and 10% the quality(price?) of the equipment. (Figuratively - the two factors sort of multiply rather than sum)

This seems obvious from listening to some amazing recordings made on decent basic kit and some very average(or bad even) recordings from super expensive equipment.

I guess gaining that 90% worth of experience to overcome the minor limitations of a modest kit bag sets you up to squeeze that last 2% out of the expensive stuff you might buy tomorrow.

The cost of top end gear is likely wasted if the guy using it hasn't learned his skills by trial and error.

An F1 Mercedes with Lewis Hamilton will win races. The same car with strangely_gnarled wouldn't complete the first lap. (Hamilton drives a lot, strangely_gnarled drives 500 miles a year in a Renault Van. That's the only difference between us. yellowsmilything.)

Wibby

Great, got my self great price 2x new AT4022 and will go into woods soon Thanx all for information