Las Vegas, NV (March 26, 2024)—Seasoned sound supervisor Fernando Delgado added DPA Microphones’ 6060 and 6061 subminiature mics to the ingredients list for the reboot of Gordon Ramsay’s series Kitchen Nightmares.
Delgado’s involvement with reality cooking productions started in 2020 with a call to work on Gordon Ramsay’s Next Level Chef. During that time, Delgado, who had previously transitioned from ENG audio to live shows, also made a shift in his equipment, upgrading to a Zaxcom Wireless System and DPA microphones.
“We’ve used a couple of different microphones over the years, but we have never come across any that provided us with the ability to critically listen to everything on a regular basis,” he said. “When we switched to DPA, I was immediately impressed. The accurate off-axis linearity of the microphones is particularly beneficial for capturing accurate audio in noisy environments, like busy kitchens. The mics do not color much at all, and they’re incredibly transparent compared to what I was using before. They’re very warm and kind of beefy-sounding for a lavalier mic. Additionally, the Zaxcom wireless system has a very low noise floor, which really allows the DPAs to excel when used together.”
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The cables also survived being in an unhospitable environment like a kitchen, he said: “I was worried about the cable in the field, but the heavy-duty design and reinforced cable made it a perfect choice for the physically challenging and fast-paced kitchen environment.
Delgado put microphones not only on talent but also around the space, hidden during filming, to capture ambient sound on Kitchen Nightmares. “We hid many microphones in bowls of fruit and plants, even underneath a flower petal,” he said. “We did a lot of unique mic placements, often in the centerpieces on tables, so that we could hear the judges’ comments while they were tasting the food. The DPAs work great in capturing everything we need, clearly.”
