EW100 -- what kind of lavalier should I purchase to replace headset?

[ArDubbayoo]

My company has started a video production department, and I'll be setting up the studio. This company already has a Sennheiser EW100 G2 wireless mic system which they use for corporate events, etc. To save money on other equipment I'll need, they're giving it to me to use for the studio. I'll be connecting the receiver to my camera (obviously a portable/wireless receiver would be ideal, but since the camera is locked down in a studio situation this will work fine). This set comes with a headset microphone, which will not work for what I'm going to be doing. I need to purchase a lavalier microphone to go with this set. I have the receiver and transmitter -- I just need the microphone.

So with that background, I have 2 questions:

1) Can I use any brand of lavalier microphone to connect to the transmitter (as long as it will fit in the jack)? The cheapest version Sennheiser makes for this mic set is $140. Or, can I go with something like an Azden microphone that's only about $30? I realize the quality will be substantially different, I only want to know if it will work.

2) This is going to be in an office we're making into a studio. Should I use an omnidirectional condenser, or a cardioid condenser? They're both the same price. I'm assuming the omnidirectional picks up more background noise, but I wanted to check with the pros here to see if there's more to it.

Thanks for your help!

 

[thebigcheese]

As long as it has the right plug, you can use any brand. I know Audio Technica makes several headsets that can be ordered with any plug (I realize you're replacing a headset, I'm just using that for reference). Sennheiser mics tend to be pretty good, though, so you might want to just get one of those.

You are right that omni will pick up some background noise, but it will also be more forgiving of head movements. If you go with cardioid, you'll probably have it aimed up the middle, so if they turn their head to one side, it won't pick up as well. Omni won't have that problem, or at least not to a noticeable degree. Of course, if they're just going to be staring at a prompter the whole time, it won't matter much. The people who need cardioid the most are pastors and presenters--people who are likely to have monitors or PAs nearby and thus feedback problems.