Lately I did a lot of testing to get better / more realistic sounding recording. At this moment, to my opinion, the Jecklin disc method gives me the most satisfying results. BUT the difference in stereo image (in comparrison to my mid/side set) is most noticeable when using headphones. So my question to you all is. What do you think your audience is using for listening to your material? Do you anticipate on this?
My idea would be that more and more people are most of the time using mp3-players to listen to music/sound. Does someone know if there has been done some research on this?

Related posts:

1. Listen to Africa

This is a series tests I to find out what was the audible effect of my Rycote full Windscreen Kit on my Schoeps Mk4/Mk8mid/side combination. This test was done in my studio. With a wave editor I created a pink noise file which was played back over Genelec studio monitors. I have to mention that the acoustics in my studio are not optimal. But I think that was not a problem for this test because I’d be measuring the difference between several setups and not the acoustics themselves. For this first test I wanted to start with a frequency test. So I put my field recording setup in the studio.  The Rycote windshield mounted on a Manfrotto tripod. Everything was recorded on a Sonosax SR-R4 in 44Hz/24bit. The mic rig was facing the speakers and was placed on the ‘sweetspot’.

I wanted to try three different setups.

• Rycote Suspension only. (not the new Lyre susp.)
• Suspension with basket
• full windscreen kit including windjammer.

 So in this test there the possible effect of wind causing vibration in the tripod and being transferred to the mics is left out of this test and might be tested later. Information from my supplier Noyzboyz tells me that using the new Lyre suspension might result in a better ‘disconnection’ with the tripod and basket.

I repeated the test twice with a lower loudness level on the studio monitors and a higher gain on the recorder. So I could cancel out the influence of the preamp on this test. But this did not give me any significant differences.

After recording all the material was loaded in a wave editor and analyzed using a demo of Blue Cat’s Freq Analyst Multi. I made a preset so the graphics are showing the average frequency response as long as needed so the results weren’t changing any longer (approx. 20 sec.). For comparing the results screen captures were made which were layered in Photoshop so I was able to easily switch between the different setups.

Looking at the images so far I can not explain the audible resonance occurring at 150Hz. But it is clearly visible what the windscreen is doing with the frequency response. Especially the MK8 side microphone is influenced in the lower region from 500Hz and down by 7dB. Then at 1000Hz and up the sensitivity is also compromised, but then both mics are about 5 dB dampened.  So you could say that only a small mid region is not affected by the windscreen. 

In another test I want to conduct I want to measure the influence of the mid/side matrix on the frequency response.

Suspension only

Suspension with basket

Full Windscreen

Click here to download the PSD version of this file for easy comparison

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1. Rycote windscreen part II