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The Zoom Q2HD (current rrp in Finland: 205 €) is the company’s brand-new lightweight video recorder. Aside from full-HD video recording this new unit also offers MS-stereo.

In MS-stereo two different microphone types are used to create two discrete signals, called Mid and Sides. The advantages of MS are that placement of the two mics in relation to each other isn’t as critical for overall phase coherence as in other techniques, and that you can adjust the amount of room in relation to the mid-signal during mixing.

Classic MS-stereo uses a cardioid microphone for picking up the mid-signal with a bidirectional mic turned 90 degrees (= shooting sideways) to record the side-sound. You will get a stereo sound picture from these two discrete signals by “decoding” them: The mid-mic’s signal will be sent to the mixing console and panned dead centre. The sides-mic’s signal must be split…