Category: sound mixer

Hiring a location sound recordist might feel like buying a pig in a poke to those not familiar with the sound department. I find most producers and PMs know only a little bit about the equipment and processes happening in the audio department where they're much more technically knowledgeable about…

The radio spectrum for wireless microphones is getting really crowded. Really, really crowded. And if you're a producer you should be concerned. Wireless audio equipment. So why should you be concerned? Well because your production is likely a source of a lot of wireless pollution and potentially a could be…

Depending on who you ask, the job of a location sound mixer has many different definitions. You ask a young mixer and they might say their job is a technical one understanding gain structure, audio engineering principals, microphones and lav micing techniques. You ask the DP and she may likely…

A standard location sound package isn't exactly the same for every mixer but there are some pretty fairly standard things that producers expect and we mixers try to comply the best we can. Industry parlance in North America for a standard location sound package is "Two wires and a boom."…

It's very rare that the sound department is brought along on the tech scout for smaller productions. Therefore, it's the small productions that usually end up with sound problems that they can't afford to "fix in post." Sound is more physics than art so you can reduce how good or…

Over the last several years, the FCC has made vast changes to the wireless spectrum that have had detrimental effects on the operation of wireless microphones. These changes began an evolution in wireless gear that many sound professionals were already heavily invested in. Over time much of the existing equipment…

When an experienced client books a sound mixer "two wires and boom" is often where the negotiation starts when it comes to equipment. It's also the minimum amount of kit required for many jobs that sound recordists who work out of a bag might need on many of their jobs.…

This is one of the more hotly debated topics in the sound mixer community. Which are the best headphones for location audio work. Not everyone agrees that there's a best headphone but they certainly agree there is a most popular headphone and that would be the Sony MDR-7506. I've owned…

Wireless lavalier microphones have become the industry standard on set. For some very good reasons too. They're pretty reliable when proper RF coordination is practiced and the good ones sound excellent when properly gain staged. But are there times when it might not make sense to use them? There sure…

Researching location sound mixer rates and hiring a location sound mixer can feel like an expensive task until you consider how much it costs when you don't hire one. Having to fix problems with poor location audio can be a lot more expensive than hiring a competent professional with professional…