USER REVI EW | DPA CORE MI CRO SHOTGUN
PR I CE £ 389 / $51 0 DPA CORE MICRO SHOTGUN
The tiny directional microphone that can discreetly record high-quality sound
WORDS AND P I CTURES TOM ANDERSON
RIGHT The DPA Core Micro Shotgun is a supercardioid directional microphone with high sensitivity and a large dynamic range
ound mixers are always looking for the best way to record an actor’s dialogue in tricky
locations. Whether it’s booming a shotgun mic from above or concealing a lav mic within clothing, capturing clear audio without ruining the shot is an ever-present challenge on-set. But one often overlooked method is to plant a mic right under the audience’s noses. The audio company DPA has produced a plant mic designed for film sets and interviews, and it comes with some impressive specs. The DPA 4097 Core Micro Shotgun is a tiny supercardioid directional microphone with high sensitivity and a large dynamic range. Its size means you can hide it in places near your actors to discreetly record clean dialogue. The high SPL capability means details are preserved even with loud yelling, providing your levels are set accordingly.
“ITS SIZE MEANS YOU CAN HIDE IT IN PLACES NEAR YOUR ACTORS”
Placing the microphone around eight to 12 inches away from the actor’s face while aimed slightly in front of their mouth gave us the best results. Due to the directional pickup pattern, voices from the side were reduced in volume. However, the details of those voices remained, with no muffling. With some volume and EQ adjustments in post-production, you can maintain clarity, even if the microphone is pointed slightly away from the actor. This would work well for scenes with multiple actors. However, if you’re shooting in a noisy environment with background chatter, then you might find it more difficult to remove those noises in post compared to, say, a traditional shotgun microphone, which tends to have a more directional pickup. Background sounds that come from behind the microphone are dramatically reduced in volume and lack detail, with only lower frequencies being registered. This means that if you point the mic away from unwanted noises, they are far less distracting. Also, as these noises are captured at a low frequency, you’ll find it easier to reduce in post without harming the main dialogue too much. Traditionally, shotgun microphones are best used outdoors due to their directional nature. However, the DPA 4097 handled
interior locations rather well. Providing the microphone is at a good distance, it captures dialogue without too much reverberation. In post-production, the audio stood up well to standard EQ adjustments. By cutting the low end at around 100-150 Hz, and reducing some distracting frequencies, we were left with a really clean piece of audio. The detail was sharp, and therefore no frequency boosting was needed. You can choose to connect an XLR cable (with an adapter) or attach the microphone to a wireless transmitter – great for when you can’t have cables in the way. We could see this microphone working well on a sound stage hidden within a set, inside a bouquet of flowers or behind a prop on the table. If you plan on mounting the DPA 4097 in various places, you might want to look into the additional accessories to find the best mounting method for you. DPA also sells a wind cover, which it recommends using while recording outdoors. We tested it without the wind cover, and despite it being a light breezy day, we had no issues present in the audio. We were surprised at how small this mic is – the quality is impressive considering, and with such strong detail in the mid/high frequencies, it’s clear the DPA 4097 has been designed with dialogue in mind.
46 DEF I N I T ION | NOVEMBER 2020
Powered by FlippingBook