Not only a review but something more. Thank you so much: very well explained! Very very interesting. This is how tests, reviews and explanations should be.
Another excellent video of yours. Having watched it a couple of times I've just ordered a Super Softie with a Lyra mount for my K6 and ME capsules. I'm less likely to have rain as a major concern, more just day to day breezes that would otherwise ruin a take. Plus, I wouldn't use either for very heavy wind, that's where I'd use a full blimp system. So, on balance and after listening to your video, the Super Softie is the most pragmatic choice for my particular use. Again, excellent video and thank you for doing a proper real world test outdoors. Cheers, Dave.
Very informative, probably the most informative and in-depth video I've found - a recurring theme across your whole channel. This has given me some ideas about what to buy as I need something very good at reducing wind, and still be useable after getting wet (as - don't laugh - I like to hang out of train windows, and this being the UK it tends to rain just as I'm doing so)... so I think my best bet is to go with the more "traditional" furry windshield. Liked, and subscribed: Very good work sir.
I think for that job you'll need something more if you can stretch to it - one of the full "blimp" type windshields with furry cover. You can get them from Rode and Rycote. Eg here's a video on my other channel of the Rode one: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-zFSnR26J-mo.html
+UKAirscape Ah right. While I indeed think a blimp style shield would bring the best results, they're a bit out of my price range. Also, my mic is (or would be, as it's not arrived yet) camera-mounted and a big blimp would probably make it a tad cumbersome. To be completely honest though, fur seems to have worked fine for me so far - in the time I've been using the camera's built-in mic, I've simply sticky-tacked a piece of fake fur from an embroidery shop over the mic and heard absolutely no wind noise - this can be seen in, for example, my video 'Front Window 5 - Large Prairie 4160' where I calculated a speed of about 40mph with still no wind noise! Thanks for your help, I'll definitely keep the Blimp in mind if I ever upgrade to other mics.
Excellent. Can't beat a bit of DIY :-) Careful you don't muffle the sound, losing high frequencies though (probably less relevant with trains I suppose)
The old softie seems to reduce highs a lot more and allows the tactile wind to hit the capsule. When paired with rx-7 there's no comparison! Superb to see some progress! I'd still rather use a blimp outside when possible, but even the weight reduction alone is nothing to laugh about. Definitely blurring the lines. Begining of the end for blimps?
Well, on the 11min test with no wind going i can hear some comb filtering going on with the super softie..the older one sounds more natural there..Regarding wind noise i thought that the noise on the super softie was at higher frequencies whereas the old one had more LF rumble that you can easily filter out in post..However the super softie sounded more transparent in the wind..
Enjoyable and informative review. So nice not to have to start a review with a presenter, baseball cap on backwards, shouting 'Hey guys, what's up? Clone reviewer guy here with (yet) another....' and so on. Thank you.
Hi thank you for making this video, it was very informative! I am still new to field recording and I was wondering what is the best way to record audio in the rain, without hearing that rain hitting your windjammer and microphone!?
Honestly, the answer is an umbrella! Seriously, you need something to deflect the rain off the audio gear, and you will still hear the rain hitting that to some degree.
Thanks an excellent real world test. One query is pack bulk. How do each cope with being stuffed into a tight space/bag possibly with irregular lumpy hard bits of metal alongside as might be found on a video rig, cage camera set-up packed down for travel? Will both revert to 'normal shape' ok or is that sort of abuse considered a really bad idea?
I’m also curious how well they would do for spoken word once you add a reasonable high pass filter. I imagine that would take a considerable amount of rumble without affecting the tonality of a voice too much whereas the Super Softie’s wind noise is at frequencies that would overlap with a voice more.
I don't agree with you at 4:40. If the waveform with the new software looks better than the old one, it is because the low frequencies have more energy than the high frequencies and therefore have a larger waveform. But, for the ears, for a sound recording, a mix, with the old softie, we would have cut the low frequencies at for example 80hz -18db / oct (3 order) and it is very silent. With the new software, the wind is only slightly present in the bass (lower spl therefore) but it is on the entire audible bandwidth, and therefore it will mix with the voice and will not be cleanable in mix.
I live in Washington State where it tends to rain most of the year. Does the Super Softie provide any advantage at all over the original in terms of protecting the microphone itself from being damaged by water soaking through the softie? I currently have a rode NTG3 camera mounted with the original softie and although it had seen some rain I have not allowed it to get even close to "rain-soaked" for fear of damage. What would you recommend?
As far as I remember from the product, no, as the little holes that let the sound in would also let the water in. Your only realistic choice is to get a mic which is undamaged by water ingress (see for example the review I did on the original Aputure Deity, over on my Tubeshootermag channel. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-POawJfj21g4.html
Thank you very much for this test ! It's very well done. It will help a lot of people to take the right decision. But what is the right decision? My conclusion will be to check out the Rode WS6 Softie and maybe later buy the Rycote Super Softie. But in Germany they still offer everywhere the 2014 version of the Super Softie. Could you test the WS6 against old and Super Softie from Rycote? Would be very interesting I guess.
Suraka1998 It's a good idea but I don't have a WS6 (I'll see if they're willing to send me one perhaps). I have always found Rycote to be the best though, so I would easily expect the Super Softie to out-perform a WS6.
A Blimp will always do a better job than a softie but they are more costly and more fiddly to put on / take off. If you need the ultimate wind protection though, a Blimp is the way to go.
I think you've done well to get 4.5 years out of it! Mind you, I know cameramen who've got the most ancient manky old softies and refuse to update them ;-)
+UKAirscape I work for a guy from time to time who supplies a kit and the softies in both his audio kits are in very poor shape. Both very matted and the rubber has completely detached in one and have been working on him to replace them both but won't. Many people use the kits and I guess he doesn't care since he doesn't use any of this kit at all.
