At a cost of just more than $1,000, the MKH 8060 Sennheiser offers a natural sound that comes in a small but powerful package. The boom microphone is not only compact and lightweight, but it was designed to suppress off-axis sounds without coloration, making it ideal for boom camera mounting.
The popular hit on ABC that brings in millions of watchers per week, Modern Family, is one of the first network television shows taking advantage of the new technology. The show is filmed as a “mockumentary” and production sound mixer, Stephen Tibbo, felt due to the show’s spontaneity he needed to be prepared for just about anything.
For example, many popular television shows primarily shoot on sound stages. This gives the sound mixer the ability to have somewhat control of the ambience noise in the background and adjust the microphones if needed. However, because Modern Family shoots at multiple locations, with many of them being outdoors, Tibbo needed to find a way to control the background noise enough to allow the actors scripted lines to be heard. Tibbo explained how he dealt with challenges many times on set, particularly with one scene.
The crew was filming a scene with multiple actors outside, right in front of a construction site. “We had three days of shooting in front of their home but there were two construction sites literally across the street. There was also a local delivery truck bringing in pallets of drywall and wood,” said Tibbo. “There was quite a bit of noise going on in the neighborhood, so we brought the Sennheiser MKH 8060s out – I have to say, they really shined and it was amazing.”
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Sam Mallery, blogger, reviewed the microphone and said if you are looking for something to record sound professionally, this is your tool. “When you buy an MKH 8060, you’re effectively getting a Sennheiser 8000 Series starter kit. You can expand your kit by getting the longer 8070 capsule, or the shorter 8050 capsule,” said Mallery. “The 8000 series also has all sorts of extension cables, mounting brackets, and podium stands that you can use this equipment with. If you have future plans to rig up the stage for an Academy Awards ceremony, you have found your mic.”
Tibbo agreed, saying he plans on using the microphone to record sound for many of the upcoming episodes of Modern Family, saying it’s not only natural sounding, but reliable – which in television is “the name of the game.”