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Author Topic: Password Plus Technical/Equipment Question  (Read 4771 times)

calliaume

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Password Plus Technical/Equipment Question
« on: May 16, 2017, 08:54:54 PM »
A friend of mine wants to know what kind of microphones were used on the panel desk.  Anybody know?  (Paging Chris Clementson...)

calliaume

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Re: Password Plus Technical/Equipment Question
« Reply #1 on: May 16, 2017, 09:19:25 PM »
Withdraw the question - it's a Sennheiser K3 N+M380.

A musician friend of mine was asking.

knagl

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Re: Password Plus Technical/Equipment Question
« Reply #2 on: May 17, 2017, 01:52:26 PM »
They changed at some point.  Early in the run, which is what Buzzr is currently showing, they appear to be different microphones.




Chief-O

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Re: Password Plus Technical/Equipment Question
« Reply #3 on: May 17, 2017, 03:01:49 PM »
The originals were either Shure SM53 or 54.

This here forum's big cheese can set me straight, but I believe the Sennheiser shotguns (actually ME80) were used to cut down on fan noise from the in-desk password display projector. I'm sure there was some improvement in celebrity/contestant voice pickup as a result.

mystery7

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Re: Password Plus Technical/Equipment Question
« Reply #4 on: May 19, 2017, 12:47:21 PM »
Fan noise seems plausible. And I bet it's the same reason they used them on Bockbusters with all its slide projectors.

Curious about that ECM-53 next to Allen.

JasonA1

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Re: Password Plus Technical/Equipment Question
« Reply #5 on: May 19, 2017, 01:02:49 PM »
Curious about that ECM-53 next to Allen.

I believe, from earlier posts/educated guesses, the early solution to the noise problem was for each participant to get two microphones - one that picked them up while playing Password, and another for when they turned to guess the puzzle. They obviously figured out how to deal with one mic per person some weeks into the run.

-Jason
Game Show Forum Muckety-Muck

chris319

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Re: Password Plus Technical/Equipment Question
« Reply #6 on: May 21, 2017, 10:54:40 PM »
Curious about that ECM-53 next to Allen.

I believe, from earlier posts/educated guesses, the early solution to the noise problem was for each participant to get two microphones - one that picked them up while playing Password, and another for when they turned to guess the puzzle. They obviously figured out how to deal with one mic per person some weeks into the run.

-Jason

They originally thought they would need an additional mic when the players turned toward the puzzle board.

Most of the fan noise came from the projector for the puzzle board. Bobby Sherman thought these short shotguns would kill the fan noise but alas not. The shotguns were condenser mics and the Shures were dynamics. I think you hear more fan noise with the condensers, and the Shures had more presence. What do you think, Ian?

Next we tried an Altec noise gate. It caused the background noise to pump. After a while I would come into the booth and the Altec noise gate was in place and we were being charged to rent it, but it wasn't hooked up.

Lastly, we'd had enough trouble with the "tower" projector (it was mounted on a small tower behind the R.P. screen). I urged Bobby to switch to hard artwork for the puzzle board and we eventually we did.

The proj. in the desk was connected to a long length of 4" clothes-dryer hose with a fan at the far end to exhaust the heat.

Super Password had colossal problems with interference from the neon around the set getting into the wireless mics. They should've gone back to the cabled Shure SM-53's.

Nowadays you might be able to kill some of that fan noise by micing the projectors and doing some fancy phase shifting.

Chief-O

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Re: Password Plus Technical/Equipment Question
« Reply #7 on: May 21, 2017, 11:26:35 PM »
Most of the fan noise came from the projector for the puzzle board. Bobby Sherman thought these short shotguns would kill the fan noise but alas not. The shotguns were condenser mics and the Shures were dynamics. I think you hear more fan noise with the condensers, and the Shures had more presence. What do you think, Ian?

I'd have to do a little more exam, but it does seem a little more noticeable with the Sennheisers. The Shures, being dynamic, probably would've had to be driven at higher gain; self- or equipment noise probably would've become a bigger issue (you'd know better than me about the noise specs of the custom audio consoles NBC had at the time!) Sadly, I know from recent experience how easily condenser mics pick up fans; I taped a choir last week, and the off-stage fan was getting picked up by the group's 3 Shure PG81s (as well as an additional PG81 I put up as an audience mic). Such is life for AV folks...

Edit: I happened to find this episode....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZruBBVWs9o

.....where they used slightly different, and I presume less-directional, Sennheiser mics. The noise is really noticeable....(was this the aforementioned noise gate "pumping", perhaps?)

BrandonFG

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Re: Password Plus Technical/Equipment Question
« Reply #8 on: May 21, 2017, 11:32:07 PM »
Another technical question regarding the set. I never realized how long the set is on TV, and I'm sure it was much smaller in person.

Chris, recently watching a clip, they showed Tom Kennedy and Marcia Wallace crossing the set to the game board area, and I noticed there was another smaller wall between the right edge of the contestant area and the board. Was there any reasoning to have the game board so far downstage instead of behind the host? Or is the answer "because Bente designed it that way"? :P

"I just wanna give a shoutout to my homies in their late-30s who are watching this on Paramount+ right now, cause they couldn't stay up late enough to watch it live!"

Now celebrating his 21st season on GSF!

chris319

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Re: Password Plus Technical/Equipment Question
« Reply #9 on: May 22, 2017, 12:27:53 AM »
Brandon -

Please clarify by using stage left/right and the puzzle board or Alphabetics board. I'm confused.

That thing that looks like a blackboard in front of the puzzle board was after my time.

chris319

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Re: Password Plus Technical/Equipment Question
« Reply #10 on: May 22, 2017, 12:39:17 AM »
Ian - You would definitely hear the noise gate cutting the mics in and out. No noise gate in that clip. Ernie Dellutri liked to favor Allen's mic when the noise gate was in use.

I do hear some RF buzz from the neon getting into those condenser mics. Condenser mics and neon don't mix.

Myself, I prefer dynamics for location recording now, mainly because if phantom power dies you've still got sound. I like Senn MD 421 II's, AKG D202e's, Shure SM63 and have an E-V RE55. Sometimes an E-V RE18 for speech.

chris319

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Re: Password Plus Technical/Equipment Question
« Reply #11 on: May 22, 2017, 12:41:27 AM »
The placement of the puzzle board in the set wall, the Alphabetics board and the camera setup were all designed/specified by Ted Cooper.

BrandonFG

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Re: Password Plus Technical/Equipment Question
« Reply #12 on: May 22, 2017, 12:45:28 AM »
Brandon -

Please clarify by using stage left/right and the puzzle board or Alphabetics board. I'm confused.

That thing that looks like a blackboard in front of the puzzle board was after my time.
Sorry, puzzle board, stage left. That was indeed a blackboard; there was a discrepancy regarding Marcia's pronunciation of a word, and Tom explained the variations on the blackboard.
"I just wanna give a shoutout to my homies in their late-30s who are watching this on Paramount+ right now, cause they couldn't stay up late enough to watch it live!"

Now celebrating his 21st season on GSF!

chris319

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Re: Password Plus Technical/Equipment Question
« Reply #13 on: May 22, 2017, 02:16:46 AM »
If I understand your question correctly, Brandon, the puzzle board was in the stage left wall. It was angled so that the board could be shot by either of the stage-right cameras (1 or 2).

TimK2003

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Re: Password Plus Technical/Equipment Question
« Reply #14 on: May 22, 2017, 09:49:43 AM »

I would assume then that originally they wanted the neon on the whole time on P+ but the audio interference on the mics killed that idea?