
The company's d:screet 4060 Miniature Microphone was the ideal choice to capture the sound of these tiny creatures for a new sound library collection.
DPA's d:screet 4060 Miniature Microphones proved the perfect choice for sound recordist David Kamp when he was putting together audio for a new sound library collection entitled Insects & Swarms.
The clue to what he was recording is in the name thousands and thousands of flies, bees, mosquitos and locusts, some of which were recorded individually while others were captured as part of a large insect swarm.
Kamp, who records and designs sound for animation, art and museum installations, commercials, short films, games and VR, chose d:screet 4060 Miniature Microphones for this project for their sound quality and because they were small enough to fit inside tight places such as bee hives and terrariums full of flies.
They were ideal for some extreme close-ups and other unusual perspectives where many other microphones simply wouldn't fit, he explains. I'd had good experiences using them for stealth ambience recordings for a Korean city sound collection I made in Seoul last year, so I knew the sound quality would be excellent. The big advantage of the d:screet 4060 mics over other bigger condenser microphones is their tiny size - capsule and cable.
Based in Berlin, Kamp's interest in sound recording started in early childhood and led him to study electroacoustic music composition and sound engineering at the Folkwang University of the Arts. A few years ago he decided to invest in the best mobile recording equipment available and actively go out hunting for exciting sound effects and ambiences to use in his project work. This newly found interest led him to form Shapingwaves, a company that makes these sounds available to other sound designers as themed collections.
The project started in Kamp's studio but he was soon recording beehives in Germany and cicadas in remote olive groves in Greece. With the help of a doctor friend at the Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology in Berlin he managed to capture mosquito sounds by recording the insects in the Institute's massive Insectariums.
Recording flies require the most creativity because I had to get a lot of them in one place at the same time, he explains. I bought a small terrarium intended for reptiles and hung two d:screet 4060 Miniature Microphones, plus windscreen, in the centre of the lid. I then put around 100 fly pupae (bought at a reptile food shop) into the terrarium and waited a few days for them to hatch. I soon had a neat fly swarm in a box, buzzing away. I put the mics in place before the flies hatched so that they could be in the centre of the action without me having to deal with hundreds of potentially escaping flies in my studio. Once I had my recordings I set all the flies free in a nearby meadow - no fly was harmed during the making of the collection!
Kamp''s collection was recorded at 96 kHz with the microphones running into either a Sound Devices 633 or a Sonosax SX-R4+ recorder.
For the bee hive sounds, I used the 4060s in many different places: on the exterior left and right of the entrance to get close pass by sounds, and between the racks containing the hives, he says. Some of my favourite recordings were done by placing them inside the hive's box only inches away from the insects. It sounds like being in another world.
Despite close exposure to creatures most people would run away from, Kamp says he has never been stung by any insect bigger than a mosquito in his entire life.
I am not a big bug enthusiast, so I am pretty happy to be done with these recordings, but provided you wear protective clothing there's no real risk. Bees are quite friendly and not very aggressive. While recording the bee swarms I had headphones on to monitor the interior mics. Hearing the insects as if they were right inside my ear did cause some hasty hand gestures!
Insects & Swarms is now available through Shapingwaves and Kamp has already used some of the sounds on animated short films.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
01/04/2026
January 4 2026, 18:00 (PST) DOLBY AND DOUYIN EMPOWER THE NEXT GENERATON OF CREATORS WITH DOLBY VISION
Douyin Users Can Now Create And Share Videos With Stun...
08/01/2026
An evidence-based analysis on disinformation and information manipulation in Sudan's ongoing conflict is published today. (January 8th 2026).
Thomson Found...
08/01/2026
At CFP Semifinals, ESPN Again Flexes Its Operational Muscle With 20+ MegaCast Vi...
08/01/2026
SVG Students To Watch: Sophie Fowler, University of OregonThe Portland product has honed her skills as a producer, director, and TD at Quack VideoBy Brandon Cos...
08/01/2026
Follow the Money, Episode 3: Inside the Sports-Media Biz With Sam McCleery and K...
08/01/2026
SVG New Sponsor Spotlight: Qualstar's Jeff Sengpiehl on the Enduring Power a...
08/01/2026
Legendary February: Production Leaders at NBC Sports Pull Back the Curtain on Ol...
08/01/2026
In 2025 we launched the Spotify Partner Program to give creators more ways to tu...
08/01/2026
On Wednesday in Los Angeles, Spotify welcomed creators and press to a brunch cel...
08/01/2026
The Hollywood Professional Association (HPA) today announced several updates to its Board of Directors. As part of HPA's annual governance cycle, new leader...
08/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
08/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
08/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
08/01/2026
Spain's national public broadcaster, RTVE, has upgraded one of its main television production facilities in Madrid with the installation of two Alfalite NEO...
08/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
08/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
08/01/2026
Maxon's new release of Cinebench features performance enhancements and adds support for the latest Nvidia and AMD GPUs as well as Apple Silicon.
Maxon is t...
08/01/2026
Zixi, the industry leader in IP-based video transport and orchestration, today announced the appointment of Heather Mellish as Vice President, Global Sales.
In...
08/01/2026
Pebble, the leading automation, content management and integrated channel specialist, has provided a complete update of its installation at Canal Sur in Spain. ...
08/01/2026
iWedia, a global leader in software solutions for connected TV devices, proudly announces the success of its collaboration with Panasonic on the Z95B OLED TV, o...
08/01/2026
Secuoya Chile, a leading provider of television content creation and supporting services, has invested in Ikegami UHK-X600 and UHL-X40 broadcast cameras as the ...
08/01/2026
Kiloview, a global leader in AV-over-IP solutions, will showcase its latest innovations at ISE 2026, highlighting the continued evolution of its complete, light...
08/01/2026
iWedia, a global leader in software solutions for connected TV devices, and Realtek, a leading global SoC design house, today announced the next phase of their ...
08/01/2026
CJP Broadcast has completed a new pitch-side media installation for Cinderford RFC, creating a flexible production setup that supports match coverage, coaching ...
08/01/2026
PlayBox Neo further drives momentum in Playout, Streaming, Media Management and Delivery
"With a brand new year at PlayBox Neo already off to a flying start, I...
08/01/2026
Boston Conservatory at Berklee Presents Second Annual Commercial Dance BFA Conce...
08/01/2026
TSA awards Rohde & Schwarz contract for advanced airport screening ahead of Socc...
08/01/2026
Back to All News
New Korean Series Beauty in the Beast' (WT) in Production...
08/01/2026
The review looks back at DPA's miniature microphone development over the years. It compares the evolving technologies from the original mics through CORE an...
08/01/2026
Comscore Launches Audio Targeting and Measurement Capabilities with The Trade De...
08/01/2026
Tonight, on RT Prime Time at 9:35pm on RT One and RT Player
Tonight, Prime T...
08/01/2026
The Late Late Show celebrates the very best of traditional Irish music with its first-ever full special dedicated entirely to the tradition
Lisa Canny | Kevin...
08/01/2026
The next universal technology since the smartphone is on the horizon - and it ma...
08/01/2026
In the rolling hills of Berkeley, California, an AI agent is supporting high-stakes physics experiments at the Advanced Light Source (ALS) particle accelerator....
08/01/2026
It will be murder on the dancefloor when Dancing with the Stars returns this S...
08/01/2026
NVIDIA is wrapping up a big week at the CES trade show with a set of GeForce NOW...
07/01/2026
SVG Summit 2025: All General Sessions Now Available To Watch on SVG PLAYThe SVG Summit celebrated its 20th edition with a loaded agendaBy Brandon Costa, Directo...
07/01/2026
NBCU's Brings Rinkside Live' and Courtside Live' Features to Peaco...
07/01/2026
Spotify is launching a week-long celebration spotlighting creators at the center...
07/01/2026
We know people use Spotify not just to listen, but to share the songs, podcasts, and audiobooks they love with their friends and family. When we launched Messag...
07/01/2026
This week, all eyes are on the podcast industry as the Golden Globes recognizes ...
07/01/2026
Podcasts are stepping onto a new stage this week as the Golden Globes recognize the medium for the first time. To mark this milestone moment, we're hosting ...
07/01/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), in collaboration with a distributor, is commissioning new micro-budget fiction feature films and invites eligible...
07/01/2026
NASA's Space Launch System rocket carrying the Orion spacecraft launches on the Artemis I flight test, Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2022, from Launch Complex 39B at ...
07/01/2026
For the first time ever, new C' variants allow international users to interoperate with U.S. personnel via NSA-certified cryptography....
07/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
07/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...