Gadgets January 14, 2010 posted by Dan

Holophone PortaMic 5.1 – Surround sound 5.1 microphone

holophoneportamic51 1 Holophone PortaMic 5.1 Surround sound 5.1 microphone

Most of the familiar multi-channel sound that we hear; stereo, 5.1, 6.1 etc, is produced in post-production. Multiple (usually mono) sound sources are mixed and tweaked to produce the surround-sound-extravaganza that we know and love. Well Holophone do things a little differently, they make a range of 5.1 surround sound microphones, including the PortaMic 5.1, that can record 5.1 sound using a single mic.

holophoneportamic51 Holophone PortaMic 5.1 Surround sound 5.1 microphone

The PortaMic 5.1 sits on the microphone accessory shoe of high-end camcorders and lets you record 5.1 sound as either a final mix or into its discrete channels. The audio is encoded into Pro Logic II and can be decoded back to 5.1 in post so you have the choice of keeping it all or leaving it as stereo. It weighs 400g, (~1lb) and needs a 9V battery which will keep it running for around 3 hours. Price is around US$599.

World’s most affordable Professional Grade Portable Surround Microphone, designed for both audio and video applications.

* 5.1 Channel Professional Grade Surround Microphone.
* Compact
* Low Profile
* Powered by 9V Battery
* Captures Discrete and Instantaeous 5.1 channel audio

Tags: gadget, photography, holophone, holophone+portamic+pro, 5.1+microphone

About the Author:

Dan Ferris is the Red Ferret’s Oceanic correspondent and Associate Editor based in Sydney, Australia. Despite not knowing Russell Crowe or Nicole Kidman, Dan has risen above adversity and now scours the world for interesting tidbits to write about. He spends far too much time photographing stuff and tinkering with computers.

Dan – who has written 1169 posts on The Red Ferret Journal.