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Webcam, Lights, and Audio for Remote Work, Podcasting, Videos, and Streaming

mattstauffer.com

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Re: Webcam, Lights, and Audio for Remote Work, Podcasting, Videos, and Streaming

#41

Post by geerlingguy »

whitehouse3 wrote: post #7

It’s disappointing to see the Shure SM7B recommended so widely for use in residential environments. While Shure’s classic offering is popular among 2020 media creators (Joe Rogan, Bret Weinstein, and streamers like Tfue or SypherPK) it is still cruel and unforgiving of poor microphone technique, audio reflection, and background noise. Considering its high noise floor when driven by all but the nicest preamps, other o…

I like the EV RE320; it's way easier to use (don't have to be a perfectionist for technique / distance, at least IMO as much as the SM7B), and it's usually discounted at least $100 less.

The Rode RE20 is a very similar mic used in broadcast radio scenarios almost as much as the SM7, mostly because it is so forgiving of poor technique, and when you have guests on radio shows, it's not nice (or often even possible) to force them to be a certain distance from the mic, and use a certain technique.

Re: Webcam, Lights, and Audio for Remote Work, Podcasting, Videos, and Streaming

#42

Post by geerlingguy »

whitehouse3 wrote: post #27
kwerk wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What would you recommend?

Shure's SM58 and SM57 have the same capsule as the SM7B for 1/3 the price and fuss. Like the Rolex Submariner, the SM58 has been cloned at lower and lower prices since its introduction. The design is solid regardless of the price point. Imitations from Pyle and Audio Technica sound great and cost less, but aren't as rugged. If you _want_ to spend money for more pleasing tone the Beta 87A from Shure is outstanding. As…

I've also driven a truck over an SM58, dropped it about a dozen times, and seen them smashed up beyond recognition—and they still sound as good as new. Those things are built like tanks.

Re: Webcam, Lights, and Audio for Remote Work, Podcasting, Videos, and Streaming

#43

Post by geerlingguy »

meheleventyone wrote: post #3
jamestomasino wrote: post #2

I was a bit surprised to see the recommendation of another inline preamp in the chain with the Focusrite. He recommends a TRITON AUDIO FetHead Filter in-Line Microphone Preamp. Does anyone have further experience with this setup? I've been using my MXL Mics 770 Cardioid Condenser Microphone with a Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 with nothing in-between. I know I've got the gain dialed up pretty high but it never occurred to m…

I don't see that recommendation in the article. Rather it's specific to the SM7B which is famously pretty quiet. I use a Cloudlifter with my SM-58 just because the gain it provides is a lot cleaner than my interface (Audiobox iOne) seems to provide at the top end.

It also gives you a little more headroom for doing things like talking at a greater distance from the mic (e.g. talk at 6-10" from the mic and still get great signal).

Of course, if the room acoustics are horrible, that's not going to sound nearly as good as talking close to the mic, but if you have a decent sounding room it is freeing to not have to be close (and a good mic won't necessarily sound worse at slightly longer distances).

Re: Webcam, Lights, and Audio for Remote Work, Podcasting, Videos, and Streaming

#44

Post by ravenstine »

The value of a good mic for remote work cannot be understated.

One of the worst aspects of my job as a remote developer has been working with people with crappy microphones. I worked with one client whose conference mic was so low-fi that a lot of what they were saying in meetings was incomprehensible. (I told them about this, but they didn't seem to care, which is why I'm glad I'm not working with them anymore)

Going against what the author suggests, I purchased a Blue Yeti mic. The reason I went for it is that I want my coworkers to not have to strain to hear me. Ideally, it should sound as if I'm in the same room with them. With cardioid mode turned on, I can use the mic with my MacBook Pro speakers as the output channel and never have feedback issues. My home is quiet, so I never have issues with bad noises coming through. If I'm at a cafe, that's when I'll use my AirPods. However, I use my Yeti mic when possible. A few of my other coworkers have since bought a Blue Yeti or a Razer Seiren, and it makes a world of difference.

Re: Webcam, Lights, and Audio for Remote Work, Podcasting, Videos, and Streaming

#45

Post by 52-6F-62 »

geerlingguy wrote: post #42
whitehouse3 wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Shure's SM58 and SM57 have the same capsule as the SM7B for 1/3 the price and fuss. Like the Rolex Submariner, the SM58 has been cloned at lower and lower prices since its introduction. The design is solid regardless of the price point. Imitations from Pyle and Audio Technica sound great and cost less, but aren't as rugged. If you _want_ to spend money for more pleasing tone the Beta 87A from Shure is outstanding. As…

I've also driven a truck over an SM58, dropped it about a dozen times, and seen them smashed up beyond recognition—and they still sound as good as new. Those things are built like tanks.

That line of Shure's in general are amazing. I've got an old 565SD from the 60s or 70s that was given to me. It's beat to all hell and still sounds fantastic and is totally reliable. They've re-released them as well if anyone's into the shiny thing

https://www.shure.com/en-US/products/microphones/565sd

Re: Webcam, Lights, and Audio for Remote Work, Podcasting, Videos, and Streaming

#46

Post by kwerk »

davzie wrote: post #22
nickjj wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> A noise gate does not remove hiss or static, it simply reduces the volume of the signal when it gets below a certain level. But the end result is with a configured noise gate the audio coming out will not appear to have as much hiss or room noise. Check out the Youtube video I linked of his. It's super noticeable. With Sony MDR-V6 headphones, I hear a huge amount of hiss in his audio. To the point where it's distra…

A more directional and less sensitive mic like the NTG-2 may work better with some dampening on the walls or by adding a carpet. Additionally if you can't fix the room you can use a plugin to help reduce noise in dialog, something like Izotope RX7 will do a good job of doing this, but fixing the room should always be the first step. I've used both the SM7B and the NTG-2 and I would record vocals all day with the SM7B…

Does the NTG-2 work well in a desk setup with minimizing typing? I’m looking to find a better quality mic (blue yeti now) that does better at minimizing keystroke sound.

Re: Webcam, Lights, and Audio for Remote Work, Podcasting, Videos, and Streaming

#47

Post by ravenstine »

dalore wrote: post #21
SuddsMcDuff wrote: post #6

I think the section on mics could be enhanced by explaining a little about the different pickup patterns available. A cardioid pickup is a lot more appropriate for these uses than an omni pickup would be. The author mentions the Yeti mic picking up a lot of background noise - I'd bet that that mic has an omni pick up pattern. Some mics even have a small switch which allows you to cycle between different pickup patter…

There is a switch on the Yet that gives you 4 different pickup patterns. https://www.bluedesigns.com/products/yeti/ - cardioid - stereo - omni - bi

I use my Blue Yeti on cardioid mode without headphones and the noise picked up is relatively minimal. My apartment is pretty quiet to begin with, but cardioid limits some of the noise and also seems to prevent feedback. (which is taken care of to some degree by the software, but I never have issues when cardioid is on)

Re: Webcam, Lights, and Audio for Remote Work, Podcasting, Videos, and Streaming

#48

Post by dawnerd »

zebrafish wrote: post #30

One item that the author didn't touch on was internet connection. I would imagine that streaming with a 4k camera, even with codecs and compression and stuff that i know little about, would both take a decent sized upload pipe as well as no capping on uploaded data. Does anyone have more info about this piece of the set up?

What remote meeting app even supports 4K? Of all the ones I’ve seen they barely can even do 720 and even then it’s almost always pixelated at some point.

Re: Webcam, Lights, and Audio for Remote Work, Podcasting, Videos, and Streaming

#49

Post by slantyyz »

ravenstine wrote: post #44

The value of a good mic for remote work cannot be understated. One of the worst aspects of my job as a remote developer has been working with people with crappy microphones. I worked with one client whose conference mic was so low-fi that a lot of what they were saying in meetings was incomprehensible. (I told them about this, but they didn't seem to care, which is why I'm glad I'm not working with them anymore) Goin…

I used to use a Snowball, which worked great, but it obstructed my view of my 4 monitor setup. I currently use a Blue Snowflake, and it's been working very well. It's small and inobtrusive, and I haven't heard any complaints about the audio for calls. For a podcast, however, I would probably go back to the Snowball or higher end mic.

Re: Webcam, Lights, and Audio for Remote Work, Podcasting, Videos, and Streaming

#50

Post by nickjj »

lostapathy wrote: post #32
nickjj wrote: post #10

You can spend $700+ on his high end audio recommendations but 90% of home office style recording environments (even with acoustic panels) are going to have a noticeable amount of background hiss (computer fans, etc.) get picked up and his set up doesn't account for that. If you goto the OP's Youtube channel and listen to his recordings, for example https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lh0sTxLs9VA , there is a HUGE amount…

I'm going to disagree on a lot of this. The Triton fethead is just a "plug it in and go" solution in a lot of setups. That dbx preamp has a lot of knobs that, for the most part, need to be set right in order for it to work at all - let alone help the situation. Also worth noting that the fethead is tiny - it sits inline with your cable, whereas that dbx requires you to mount 19" rack gear at your desk, which is a big…

> The Triton fethead is just a "plug it in and go" solution in a lot of setups. That dbx preamp has a lot of knobs that, for the most part, need to be set right in order for it to work at all - let alone help the situation.

But that's the thing. The Triton is just a pre-amp, the Scarlett also has its own pre-amp, but maybe it's not strong enough to drive the Shure mic (it's strong enough for most other mics).

The DBX also has a pre-amp but it does many other things to improve the quality of your audio where as the Triton does nothing except boost the signal. I would classify the DBX as very much helping the situation. Way more than just having a pre-amp.

> whereas that dbx requires you to mount 19" rack gear at your desk, which is a big ask for a lot of people.

I don't think having a piece of gear on your desk is a big ask for a personal recording studio. It's not like you're sometimes streaming or recording your podcast at Starbucks. You also don't need to mount it. It sits flush on a desk without straining any of the parts or sitting uneven.

It's been happily sitting on my desk for a long time now.

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