Shotgun Mic for VoiceOvers - Bassy

[c4etech]

Hi,

My name's Ash and I run a YouTube Channel... I've been struggling to find the right mic to suit my needs...

I read some very +ve reviews of the NTG-3 and ended up picking one up. Now the mic is quite good but is extremely boomy/bassy

- am quite unsure what I need to do but am almost sure that am missing something basic...

I am running the NTG3 to a Zoom H6 (no comp/limiter + high cut filter for 80hz)

any help/tips please?

Ash

 

[Bubba po]

Hi,

My name's Ash and I run a YouTube Channel... I've been struggling to find the right mic to suit my needs...

I read some very +ve reviews of the NTG-3 and ended up picking one up. Now the mic is quite good but is extremely boomy/bassy

- am quite unsure what I need to do but am almost sure that am missing something basic...

I am running the NTG3 to a Zoom H6 (no comp/limiter + high cut filter for 80hz)

any help/tips please?

Ash

Surely you mean a High PASS filter, not a High CUT filter? A high CUT filter will make it bassy.

Proximity effect will pump up the bass too. Are you sitting too close?

Also, I think it's the wrong mic for your application if you're using it for your own voice-overs. It's meant for picking up voices and other desired audio in fairly noisy environments because of its off-axis sound rejection.

 

[c4etech]

Surely you mean a High PASS filter, not a High CUT filter? A high CUT filter will make it bassy.

Proximity effect will pump up the bass too. Are you sitting too close?

Also, I think it's the wrong mic for your application if you're using it for your own voice-overs. It's meant for picking up voices and other desired audio in fairly noisy environments because of its off-axis sound rejection.

Oh Ya High Pass filter (should give you an idea of my noob level )

I'm sitting 12-18 inches away from the mic and I am amplifying the audio levels in audition, if I need to get to -6db I have to add about 15db of gain and the audio becomes too boomy...

now since I need to be on cam and can't have a mic in frame... what would you recommend? I've tried 2 lapels sony ecm44b and sony uwp d11 and they've been disastrous to say the least...

I am really out of ideas... any help would be greatly appreciated

Ash

 

[Bubba po]

It's really difficult to say without seeing or at least having an appreciation of the space you use to record in. Do you have any room treatment, bass traps, acoustic foam etc? Your room can have a massive effect on the recording you make.

The shotgun mic may be exactly the right mic for your situation, but if the room sounds bad/boomy or the placement is slightly wrong, then the sound quality will suffer.

 

[Steenamaroo]

Hey,
Big +1 to what Bubba said.

That said, I've heard people wear by shotguns for spoken word so maybe take advantage of the mic's selling point and put it farther away.
Experiment but maybe try 3-4 feet away and see how that sounds?

I'm not sure how proximity effect works with shotguns but I suspect it'd be easy and worthwhile to find out.


Do you have a point of reference that isn't bassy? If you don't it could be the mic, the mic position, the room, the headphones/speakers, or just your voice.

 

[c4etech]

It's really difficult to say without seeing or at least having an appreciation of the space you use to record in. Do you have any room treatment, bass traps, acoustic foam etc? Your room can have a massive effect on the recording you make.

The shotgun mic may be exactly the right mic for your situation, but if the room sounds bad/boomy or the placement is slightly wrong, then the sound quality will suffer.

Here's my room - https://www.instagram.com/p/0IZvEtzI8a/?taken-by=c4etech
10 * 10 - carpet - wood w/ wallpaper behind me, wooden table, wooden cupboard (not visible in this shot)

No Acoustic Foam and I really dont know what bass traps are

Any idea where I should start?

Hey,
Big +1 to what Bubba said.

That said, I've heard people wear by shotguns for spoken word so maybe take advantage of the mic's selling point and put it farther away.
Experiment but maybe try 3-4 feet away and see how that sounds?

I'm not sure how proximity effect works with shotguns but I suspect it'd be easy and worthwhile to find out.


Do you have a point of reference that isn't bassy? If you don't it could be the mic, the mic position, the room, the headphones/speakers, or just your voice.

Point of reference for non bassy sound - LR module w/ zoom h6 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4-SDx0nUvQ
Current audio via the NTG 3 - https://youtu.be/GTgu50Us-TQ

Does that help?

Ash

 

[Steenamaroo]

Hey, thanks for the links.
Yeah, I hear what you're talking about for sure.
To be honest, I'd probably just use a bass roll off or a careful cut somewhere but....

Simple test - Try the mic farther away.

If it's less bassy then it's a proximity thing, which I now doubt.
If it's more bassy then it's a room ambience thing. Hearing the clips, this is now what I'm thinking.

So contrary to my first post, I'd actually try to get the mic closer to you, so the room is less of an issue, if that is what's happening.

 

[c4etech]

Hey, thanks for the links.
Yeah, I hear what you're talking about for sure.
To be honest, I'd probably just use a bass roll off or a careful cut somewhere but....

Simple test - Try the mic farther away.

If it's less bassy then it's a proximity thing, which I now doubt.
If it's more bassy then it's a room ambience thing. Hearing the clips, this is now what I'm thinking.

So contrary to my first post, I'd actually try to get the mic closer to you, so the room is less of an issue, if that is what's happening.

Please accept my apologies for my ignorance... can you explain what you mean by bass roll off? & what should I cut?

I will do the tests and get back in a few hours... its 10pm here... I start my day at 3am... so need to rush to dinner now... will post back asap..

Ash

 

[Farview]

Why were the lapel mics disastrous? That would seem to be the perfect solution. (It won't be noticed in the picture and it's close enough that the room won't be much of an issue)

It really does sound like the boomy sound in your clip is the sound of the room. Getting the mic closer will take care of that.

If you are going to fix the room, foam will make it worse. It only absorbs high frequencies, which mill make the room more boomy.

You need bass traps. They absorb low frequencies, which is the problem you are having.

 

[Steenamaroo]

Please accept my apologies for my ignorance... can you explain what you mean by bass roll off? & what should I cut?

I will do the tests and get back in a few hours... its 10pm here... I start my day at 3am... so need to rush to dinner now... will post back asap..

Ash

Hi Ash,
The recording is kinda bassy, sure, but not in the way where'd i'd be searching for a fault.
I'd just use an EQ to tame it a little.


Don't get me wrong. If you can remedy it through positioning or treating your room that's always better, but a simple roll-off at about 100z would probably sort it out.

Here's an example of what that might look like.

 

[c4etech]

Why were the lapel mics disastrous? That would seem to be the perfect solution. (It won't be noticed in the picture and it's close enough that the room won't be much of an issue)

It really does sound like the boomy sound in your clip is the sound of the room. Getting the mic closer will take care of that.

If you are going to fix the room, foam will make it worse. It only absorbs high frequencies, which mill make the room more boomy.

You need bass traps. They absorb low frequencies, which is the problem you are having.

Here's a an example with the https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j3VovVd9KPE - I felt the audio was just lacking - very flat - am a noob so not sure what the terms are... but its just meh... thats the sony uwp-d11, have tried the ecm44b in the past that was worse

Bass traps - am moving to a new place next month (put down a deposit and all) now I'll know what to look for... hopefully I have better luck there... "if you are moving why the hell are you wasting our time?" if thats the question in your head right now - am just trying to figure out what am doing wrong so that I can at least fix it before moving there... its easier to fix before you set things up

Hi Ash,
The recording is kinda bassy, sure, but not in the way where'd i'd be searching for a fault.
I'd just use an EQ to tame it a little.


Don't get me wrong. If you can remedy it through positioning or treating your room that's always better, but a simple roll-off at about 100z would probably sort it out.

Here's an example of what that might look like.

View attachment 96857

So basically that means add a 30 band eq to my clip in audition and pull down sliders in a curve from 160hz? 160 seems to be most problematic... is that what you mean?

 

[Farview]

Those lavalieres are omni-directional, which brings back the room problem. (while getting rid of proximity effect) Also, if you are going to wear the lav, get rid of the necklace. You should probably do that anyway, as it makes noise as you move around.

There are several ways to make this work. The room is your primary problem.

1. get a directional lav, lose the necklace.
2. Treat the room so it doesn't sound so bad. (probably the best solution, since any of the mics would work better in a better sounding room)
3. Use the shotgun and cut out the low end boom with EQ
4. any combination of things that make the room sound better and lessens the effect of the room on the audio.

You could do that with a 31 band EQ, but a parametric EQ is the more appropriate tool. With a parametric, set the high pass filter (it may be called low cut...same thing) to about 135hz and pull the gain all the way down.

A 31 band EQ is like a broadsword and a parametric is like a razor blade. Both will do the job, but one is much more precise.

 

[Steenamaroo]

Those lavalieres are omni-directional, which brings back the room problem. (while getting rid of proximity effect) Also, if you are going to wear the lav, get rid of the necklace. You should probably do that anyway, as it makes noise as you move around.

There are several ways to make this work. The room is your primary problem.

1. get a directional lav, lose the necklace.
2. Treat the room so it doesn't sound so bad. (probably the best solution, since any of the mics would work better in a better sounding room)
3. Use the shotgun and cut out the low end boom with EQ
4. any combination of things that make the room sound better and lessens the effect of the room on the audio.

You could do that with a 31 band EQ, but a parametric EQ is the more appropriate tool. With a parametric, set the high pass filter (it may be called low cut...same thing) to about 135hz and pull the gain all the way down.

A 31 band EQ is like a broadsword and a parametric is like a razor blade. Both will do the job, but one is much more precise.

He said what I was going to, and more.

 

[Bubba po]

Thanks for picking up on this guys, I've been out gigging and I was beginning to run out of first-hand experience/advice to give, anyway.

 

[JefferySmith]

The SPL De-Verb plugin can get rid of some of the room reverberation. If they have a trial version of the plugin, I'd recommend giving it a shot. I usually only have to apply it lightly to remove room reverberation. [edited for typo... thanks Steenamaroo!]. It's SPL, not DPL!

 

[mixsit]

Why were the lapel mics disastrous? That would seem to be the perfect solution. (It won't be noticed in the picture and it's close enough that the room won't be much of an issue)

It really does sound like the boomy sound in your clip is the sound of the room. Getting the mic closer will take care of that.

If you are going to fix the room, foam will make it worse. It only absorbs high frequencies, which mill make the room more boomy.

You need bass traps. They absorb low frequencies, which is the problem you are having.

+1 The voice isn't particularly out out balance, it's mostly quite a lot of room decay- the sound of a 10x10 box down in that range.
I wouldn't even have stepped in but I'm curious -surprised, wondering why the shotgun isn't more discriminating than it is?

 

[Steenamaroo]

wondering why the shotgun isn't more discriminating than it is?

I'm kinda curious about that myself!

 

[mixsit]

I guess I just found out. Polar plot doesn't look any much tighter than a hypercard. And they don't show below 500.
So - I guess 3-4 feet, not so goot maybe'.

 

[Steenamaroo]

Does that mean you've to get further from the mic to avoid proximity effect?
I was wondering about this earlier....Never used one myself.

 

[mixsit]

Does that mean you've to get further from the mic to avoid proximity effect?
I was wondering about this earlier....Never used one myself.

Talking about the sound in the clip? I'm not hearing too much low on the voice. Just 100-400 or so room decay.
Don't know the mic but doubting it's proximity effect problem. Too far away if anything. ( at least closer- if you picked up some proximity effect, it'll be 'drier'- and you can then low shelf 0-- to a few hundred and kill two birds with one
I'm guessing here -just applying what you pick up along the way you know