Best indoor mic for under $1,000?

openminded

New member
I'm going to get some serious gear soon and I have to upgrade my current shotgun.

I'll be shooting a lot of interior dialogue shots in small to medium sized rooms. From what I've been told, a shotgun mic like the MKH 416 is terrible for indoors, correct?

What's the best indoor mic for $1,000 and under?
 
What about the NTG-3 vs the Audio-Technica AT4053b?
Are either one of those better than the other or are they evenly matched?
 
The 416 is pretty much still the industry standard, indoors or out, with a few of caveats.

First, more and more often, location recordists are asked to provide an M-S stereo recording rather than the mono feed a shotgun will provide. This requirement was just becoming common when I retired so my experience is limited to about a year--we tended to use the Sennheiser 418s but there are other alternatives. Clearly this means also having a location mixer and location recorder that can handle this style of working.

Second, for dialogue, it's pretty normal to use the shotgun for a guide track and/or getting some room atmosphere. The actual dialogue is often recorded using wireless mics, usually taped to the chest under the clothes. This gives a super clean, almost clinical sound, hence the use of the shotgun/M-S mic to give some atmos that can be mixed in.

Third, despite all these efforts on location, be aware that on many big budget productions something like 80% of the dialogue you hear is re-done with ADR in post.

Edited to add: I notice somebody mentioned the Rode NTG3--very good mic for the money or you could also consider the NTG2 which is the same mic but with ability to self power with an internal battery, something that can be useful in emergencies. I used to carry an NTG2 in my kit as a back up for my 416 and, if/when I used it, the change was never noticed in post. However, in view of your original question, I'm not sure saying "almost identical to a 416" is what you want to hear! :)
 
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