MICROPHONES

Dynamic microphones A Dynamic microphones converts sound waves to an electrical signal by electromagnetism. Most rugged, hard to kill. Most common. Due to the mass of the coil, they don’t have as good a transient response as a condenser microphone.

Condenser Mics Conductive Moveable Diaphragm suspended over a solid metal back plate. Requires an impedance converter circuit to convert the fluctuating capacitance to a voltage we can use (send to mixer.) Requires a battery or phantom power. More fragile, the diaphragm has to be extremely thin. Higher output volume and lower noise they dynamic mics Better transient response due to low mass of the diaphragm.

Ribbon Microphones It’s actually a dynamic microphone, but don’t call it this. Works by the same principle of magnetism. Thin strip of aluminum suspended between two magnets. Most fragile. Low mass of the single ribbon means more accurate transient response at lower frequencies. Suffers at higher frequencies. (can be a good thing.) Very low output, needs lots of gain and very low noise preamps.

Boundary Microphones

Frequency Response Plot

Pickup Patterns

SPL Handling Proximity Effect Gain Before Feedback Other things to know… SPL Handling Proximity Effect Gain Before Feedback

Mic’ing techniques Speaker Singing Vocals Vocal Mic Video Choir (3-1 rule) Choir Mic Video Acoustic Guitar (Mic’d, not through DI) Electric Guitar Amps Drums Piano Orchestral Instruments

Vocal Video