Chapter 13 Main Points
► In radio, in particular, when positioning a microphone in front of a seated or
standing performer, it is important to keep excessive sound that is reflected from
surfaces, furniture, and equipment from reaching the mic to preserve the
medium’s sonic intimacy.
► To reduce unwanted sounds such as popping and sibilance, use a mic with a
windscreen or pop filter, speak within the pickup pattern across the mic, or both.
► The closer a mic is placed to a sound source, the closer to the audience the
sound source is perceived to be; the farther a mic is placed from a sound source,
the farther from the audience the sound source is perceived to be.
► In disc jockey, interview, and panel programs, the participants should sound as
though they are coming from the front and center of the aural space. With more
than one participant, using individual microphones, the loudness levels for the
participants must be similar if the sound is to be perceived as coming from the
front and center of the aural space.
► Dramatizations on radio involve creating a “theater of the mind,” using sound to
impel the listener to “see” the action.
► To create perspective using one microphone in radio dramatization, performers
are positioned at appropriate distances relative to the mic and to one another, as
the dramatic action dictates.
► Using the multimicrophone technique in radio dramatization, perspective is
created in the postproduction mix.
► For stereo radio dramatizations, coincident or nearcoincident microphone arrays
(also called X-Y miking) are usually employed. Coincident miking positions two
microphones, usually directional (or a stereo mic), in virtually the same space
with their diaphragms located vertically on the same axis. Near-coincident miking
positions two mics, usually directional, horizontally on the same plane, angled a
few inches apart.
► A main difference and advantage of surround-sound miking of radio
dramatizations is being able to position performers much as they would be on a
stage and recording them from those perspectives or recording them
conventionally and creating those perspectives in postproduction.
► In radio, microphones can be placed anywhere without regard for appearance so
long as the participants are comfortable and the mics do not get in their way. If
the radio program is also televised, some care for appearance should be taken.
In television, if a mic is not in the picture, it must be positioned close enough to
the performer so that the sound is on-mic.
► Generally, for optimal sound pickup the recommended placement for a mini-mic
is in the area of the performer’s sternum, about 6 to 8 inches below the chin.
► The earset mic is more obtrusive than the lavalier, but some producers prefer it:
its voice pickup is more consistent than that of the lavalier; its mouth-to-mic
distance can be adjusted to the speaker’s strength of delivery, and proper
positioning out of the slip stream eliminates breath sounds and plosives; and
because of the inverse square law, even with an omnidirectional pickup the close
mouth-tomic distance usually provides decent rejection of surrounding noise.
► In television a desk mic is often used as a prop. If the desk mic is live, make sure
that it does not block the performer’s face, interfere with the performer’s frontal
working space, or pick up desk noises.
► The handheld mic allows the host to control audience questioning and mic-tosource distance and, like the desk mic, helps generate a closer psychological
rapport with the audience.
► The boom microphone, like the mini-mic hidden under clothing, is used when
mics must be out of the picture. Often one boom mic covers more than one
performer. To provide adequate sound pickup, and to move the boom at the right
time to the right place, the boom operator must anticipate when one performer is
about to stop talking and another is about to start.
► Desk mics used for panel programs may be mounted on flexible gooseneck
stands fixed to the desk. This facilitates adjusting each mic to the height of each
panelist.
► Different techniques are used in controlling levels, leakage, and feedback of mic
feeds from multiple sound sources: following the three-to-one rule, moderating
limiting or compression, noise gating, or using an automatic microphone mixer.
► If an audience is present, it must be miked to achieve an overall sound blend and
to prevent one voice or group of voices from dominating.
► Loudspeakers feeding program sound are positioned throughout the audience
area. If they are mounted near the microphones picking up audience sound, the
speakers are directional and situated to avoid feedback.
► Increasing audience laughter or applause, or both, by using recorded laughter or
applause tracks adds to a program’s spontaneity and excitement. But these
effects should not be so loud as to compete with the sound of the program
participants.
► For stereo, audience sound is usually panned left-to-right with a lower level in the
center. Or it is placed left and right of center, where the participants’ audio is
placed. For surround sound, feeding audience mics to the rear channels provides
a spacious effect to the overall program audio.