My mic journey was fun.

It did not cost a packet, I learned a lot and have certainly upped my game sound wise.

A year after the big buy and several years after getting into video, I am facing the reality that I will not be using it all.

A couple of factors.

The two schools I deal with are well equipped and I do not deal with anyone else really at the band or orchestra level.

My end product is video, so I appreciate good sound, but only need so much.

The three SeV dynamic mics and the Prodipe Pro-Lanen are going I think (might keep the Pro-Lanen). I have not used one of them, cannot see a time I will and the Lewitt sextet cover all I would need.

Even when I did some audio recordings recently, I ended up using a shotgun.

The Lewitts are a matched pair of 040 Match short/small condensers, a pair of LCT 240 medium condensers and a pair of 440 dynamic instrument mics. I can do either a single person or duo/trio with any conceivable instrument combination, in an intimate recording (could still happen), but for anything else I would go room wide, so an RCA tree, A/B, X/Y, figure of 8, with maybe a high/low pairing would be used from a central location, but any more is too much.

The Zoom H8 can handle 6 lines as is, and I will have 6 lines. The only thing I could see them being used for is for a panel podcast and that is still possible, but unlikely and if so, I could simply buy some more $15 Boya LAV’s or do the room.

So, my sound recording levels are;

• On camera shotgun, usually the MKE-400 for its handiness.

• LAV to camera, either wireless Lark M1’s or wired to camera or recorder.

• Placed shotgun (wireless or not) which includes mid-side Zoom, MKE 600.

This is normal, now for what I offer above this;

• Room cover several ways with the Lewitts.

• Podcast or audio recording.

• Instrument/vocalist proximity close mics again with the Lewitts, but matched to the job.

Hoping to gift the Se’s to a charity or burgeoning musician.