Are Two Microphones Better Than One?

Heat84

You know the microphones that the on-air talent on various TV shows on various networks have clipped to their shirts or blouses? Why do some clips have one microphone on them and some have two? Is two just for redundancy? If two is better than one, then why are both types being used? I’m watching a show on Fox News while I type this where both types are being used.

real_aurgathor

Screen shots please.

Heat84

real_aurgathor Seriously? You don’t watch talking heads on TV? Or maybe you just don’t notice little things like that. It’s probably my autism that allows me to notice things that most people don’t notice. Ok. I’ll get the screenshots.

HooRU

I don’t know for a fact, but I imagine a few reasons:

Backup
Sound dimensionality
stereo

real_aurgathor

Heat84

Heat84 Seriously? You don’t watch talking heads on TV

No, I do not watch TV.

Heat84 Or maybe you just don’t notice little things like that.

For one, I don’t look for stuff I would consider irrelevant detail in most cases. I’ve seen mikes many times, but never noticed two.

Heat84

real_aurgathor

real_aurgathor For one, I don’t look for stuff I would consider irrelevant detail in most cases. I’ve seen mikes many times, but never noticed two.

Sometimes I notice something when I’m not even trying to notice it.

Heat84

real_aurgathor

Looking at 2nd picture, I do not see many rational reasons since they’re next to each other, so of the aforementioned reasons sound dimensionality and stereo sound are more or less out, unless the mikes have different polar patterns – like one is omnidirectional and the other is figure-8.

Explanation of polar patterns: https://ehomerecordingstudio.com/microphone-polar-patterns/

In any case, I consider this minor detail without much relevance.

telcodad

From Google AI:

Anchors wearing two microphones, often lavalier mics, primarily serve as a redundancy system to ensure uninterrupted audio quality during live broadcasts, with one acting as a backup in case the other fails.
Here’s a more detailed explanation:

Redundancy and Reliability:
The primary reason for using two microphones is to guarantee consistent audio quality, even if one microphone malfunctions.

Backup System:
If the primary microphone fails, the second microphone can immediately take over, preventing any interruption in the broadcast.

Seamless Audio:
This ensures that the audience hears the anchor’s voice clearly and without any glitches or interruptions caused by a microphone failure.

Other Potential Uses:
In some cases, two microphones might be used to capture audio from different angles or for specific noise reduction techniques, though the primary purpose remains redundancy.

Traditional Practice:
The use of two microphones is a common practice in broadcast journalism and other professional audio settings where reliability is paramount.

Astyanax

real_aurgathor Screen shots please.

Nothing will ever “match” the Gene Rayburn skinny microphone! 😄

px_eliezer_

According to one famous story, Cecil B. DeMille once directed a film that required a huge, expensive battle scene. Filming on location in a California valley, the director set up multiple cameras to capture the action from every angle. It was a sequence that could only be done once.

When DeMille yelled “Action!,” thousands of extras playing soldiers stormed across the field, firing their guns. Riders on horseback galloped over the hills. Cannons fired, pyrotechnic explosives were blown up, and battle towers loaded with soldiers came toppling down. The whole sequence went off perfectly.

At the end of the scene, DeMille yelled “Cut!” He was then informed, to his horror, that three of the four cameras recording the battle sequence had failed. In Camera #1, the film had broken. Camera #2 had missed shooting the sequence when a dirt clod was kicked into the lens by a horse’s hoof. Camera #3 had been destroyed when a battle tower had fallen on it.

DeMille was at his wit’s end when he suddenly remembered that he still had Camera #4, which he had had placed along with a cameraman on a nearby hill to get a long shot of the battle sequence. DeMille grabbed his megaphone and called up to the cameraman, “Did you get all that?” The cameraman on the hill waved and shouted back, “Ready when you are, C.B.!”.

https://theroundy.typepad.com/my_weblog/2009/04/ready-when-you-are-cb.html

Heat84

Astyanax He was the first one to use that? Although Bob Barker’s wasn’t that long. Maybe half as long.

Heat84

px_eliezer_ This one is better😂:

In still another story, DeMille was sitting in a Paramount executive’s office, discussing a film he wanted to make. The climax of the film would be yet another huge battle sequence, requiring thousands of extras. When the studio executive complained that it would cost hundreds of thousands of dollars to pay all the extras needed for the battle, DeMille smiled wickedly. “I’ve got that covered,” he said. “We’ll use real bullets.”

But I thought they only used real bullets on movie sets 100 years ago.

Astyanax

Heat84 But I thought they only used real bullets on movie sets 100 years ago.

Alec Baldwin brought it back.

microphone

You called?

real_aurgathor

microphone

LOL. 😉

real_aurgathor

Astyanax Alec Baldwin brought it back.

Negative.

Splitpair

Heat84

Heat84 Why do some clips have one microphone on them and some have two?

There are two common reasons for two, the primary one is for redundancy, the other is when two different models/types are used.

For example a Shure MX185 which is described as a Cardioid lavalier microphone offers an interchangeable condenser and consists of a windscreen and a dual tie clip for 2 microphones. It features wide dynamic range and frequency response for accurate and balanced sound reproduction.

Others are Omni’s such as the MX183 which is described as Omnidirectional lavalier microphone offers an interchangeable condenser cartridge and consists of a windscreen and a dual tie clip for 2 microphones. It features wide dynamic range and frequency response for accurate and balanced sound reproduction.

By using one of each in the clip commonly on a lapel or near the collar of a blouse the Cardioid covers the talents mouth and delivers a fuller sound versus the Omni, however the Omni in turn provides fill during times the talent’s head is turned away from the Cardioid pattern.

This method of miking largely eliminated the need to have overhead shotguns to provide the fillin, which could be a real pain out in the field and allowed for a lot more movement by the talent without loss of audio such as for studio weather shots or most anywhere out in the field.

It also eliminated the need for talent to hold a microphone which in of it self can be a serious problem, talent can be downright destructive to microphones and cords.

Many years back at a remote I watched a reporter twirling a SM58 by the cord, he was bored waiting for his cue to go live, well for some reason the cord separated from the XLR the 58 went way up in the air and came back down on the hood of a new car,

I walked over picked the 58 off the ground and the lady who owned the car began screaming at me, I calmly explained to her don’t scream at me talk to the boss that’s him over while there pointing at the talent.

While she was screaming at him his 60s cue came up, then seconds later his in-cue, nothing the studio is calling me on the radio wanting to know what is going wrong I explained well “Joe” is busy talking to a lady and isn’t going to make it to the party at this time. ;-)

Back in the van I connected the 58 to another cord tested and it worked so I connected it to the Marti input on the outside of the van walked back to the talent who was still talking to the lady, handed it to him telling him not to twirl it anymore then commented by the way you missed your in-cue, after which I quickly retreated back to the van locking the door behind me.

Just another night of fun at the radio station.

https://www.shure.com/en-US/products/microphones/sm58?variant=SM58-LC

https://www.shure.com/en-US/products/microphones/mx183?variant=MX183

https://www.shure.com/en-US/products/microphones/sm58?variant=SM58-LC

Splitpair

Heat84

By the way this will give an idea of haw small lav’s can be, this is a Shure SM93 one of a dozen I purchased back when CH1 was active at the tine it was just $105.

Lavs are also popular for use on stage where another type of Mic would be visually intrusive.

Heat84

Why are one and two microphone clips used at the same time on a set? One person would have a 1 microphone clip and another would have a 2 microphone clip.

It’s very rare to see a field reporter without a hand microphone. They also need them for doing interviews. Also, it probably looks better to use a hand microphone in the field. I actually remember watching a reporter on Fox News doing a report yesterday or the day before in Texas where the flood happened. She wasn’t a regular Fox News reporter. She was a freelance or whatever you call it reporter. She was doing a field report using a lapel mic. I can’t remember the last time I saw that.

What do those field reporters that you only see when major events happen do in between major events? Whenever there’s a major event here in Florida, you always see the same freelance field reporter guy at the scene on Fox News. But you never see him field reporting a major event anywhere else. Maybe these freelance reporters work for a local TV station in between major events?

Hand microphones are all wireless these days, so that problem you had wouldn’t happen anymore. Although I assume they keep the wired microphones for backup. Why were you a sound guy for a news station instead of a band?