Soundfield ST450 MKII Portable Mic System + Rycote Kit

The new portable, battery-powered ST450 microphone system is ideal for locationrecording film and TV sound specialists everywhere.

The updated portable, battery-powered ST450 MKII microphone system is aimed at location recording film and TV sound specialists everywhere, and builds on the success of SoundField’s previous ST250, ST350 and ST450 portable microphone systems.

In line with SoundField tradition, the design of the ST450 MKII has benefited from a great deal of practical feedback gleaned from users of previous models. The updated ST450 MKII has a completely new microphone pre-amplifier design which offers finer 3dB gains steps and an increased overall gain of 42dB as well as a peak-hold feature for the bargraph.

The electronics in the ST450 have been completely redesigned, taking advantage of new, improved components, resulting in a superior noise performance. Also incorporated is a new approach to converting the information captured by its four-capsule array resulting in more accurate stereo and surround imaging. All inputs/outputs are located on one side of the control unit for easy access and connectivity to portable recorders in the field. Best of all for location use, the ruggedly designed ST450 mic weighs just 290 grammes, and may be used at a distance of up to 200 metres from its associated control unit – the weight of the control box is 580 grammes.

Like its predecessors, the new ST450 MKII generates audio in any format including mono, stereo, M/S, 5.1 surround and beyond, without the need for more than one microphone and will generate both surround and stereo simultaneously. The microphone’s control unit includes a built-in front-panel headphone monitor, bar-graph metering, and the usual fine degree of control offered by SoundField over all microphone parameters.

Soundfield ST450 K2 Includes

ST450 MICROPHONE SYSTEM

• ST450 Microphone
• ST450 Control Unit
• HW3010 Shockmount
• 5 Metre 12 pin Lemo Mic Cable (Mic to Controller)
• B-Format & Stereo Output Cables
• External DC Power Supply

COMPACT RYCOTE KIT

• Pistol Grip with Suspension
• Mic Inner Cradle
• 105mm diameter Windshield
• Rycote Windjammer
• Rycote Anti-vibration Mic cable

Soundfield Microphones

A revolution in surround sound broadcasting and recording, SoundField microphones and accessories enrich the consumer-experience by bringing atmospheres of sporting events, concerts, documentary locations and film sets to life.

SoundField’s unique B-Format

SoundField Technology is based on the principle that all acoustic events can be represented by four basic elements. These are ‘X’ which is front/back information (depth), ‘Y’ which is left/right information (width), ‘Z’ which is up/down information (height) and ‘W’ the central point from which the other three elements are referenced. Collectively, W, X, Y and Z are entitled SoundField B-Format. Because the SoundField capsule array captures three dimensional sound at the same ‘central point’, all phase related anomalies created by spaced microphones are eliminated. Once in B-Format the point of acoustic origin is defined and all output variations i.e. mono, stereo, M/S, 5.1, 6.1 etc. are derived from this same ‘central point’. Thus, surround recordings made with SoundField microphones can be collapsed to stereo or mono – without the phase cancellation and high frequency differences encountered when ‘summing’ multiple spaced microphones.

Optimum control

A significant advantage that SoundField offers to engineers is that all microphone parameters are adjustable either in real-time or in post-production. These controls include microphone orientation – with controls such as Rotate, Tilt and Zoom – as well as output formats including Mono, Stereo and 5.1. This combination of controls allows the audio engineer to create the optimal microphone array right from the ideal listening position in the OB truck or the studio control room.

‘Future-proof’ audio archiving

If the B-Format signal is recorded to a four-channel storage medium, the decoding can take place in post-production, allowing decisions about the eventual output format to be made when it’s actually required. This makes the B-Format an excellent ‘future-proof’ audio archiving format, as B-Format signals could easily be decoded into any future surround formats, including 3D audio.