“stereo microphone for electromagnetic waves” You can build a microphone capable of picking up ambient electromagnetic waves (fields) without picking up sound waves using the disposible headphones offered on Air Canada flights. The following images and text will guide you through the surprisingly simple process of transforming the headphones into a microphone. The entire process should take no longer than 20 minutes and could take much less. You now have a tool for hearing the invisible waves through which we navigate every day of our lives.

You can use air canada headphones as well as many other headphones or telephone ear pieces to get the delicate speaker diaphragm and copper winding (with a permanent magnet situated within this copper coil) which will serve as a microphone for picking up electromagnetic fields. It is important to find headphones or earpieces with the permanent magnet inserted into a “plastic” housing, so the magnet can be removed without destroying or overly disforming the other components.

Carefully remove the outer housing of the headphones without breaking the various plastic components which will allow you to put it all back together to house your future microphone.

The air canada headphones work nicely because the permanent magnet is only glued into place in the center of the plastic body housing the speaker components. Adjust a pair of locking pliers to grip the magnet firmly but without deforming it, while avoiding the delicate wires which are connected to the solder points on the back of this piece. A careful twisting motion, back and forth, will usually free the magnet which can be removed, exposing the inner coil and diaphragm.

One magnet removed and one to go!

You can see the light glue line within the plastic rim of the speaker with the magnet removed, and the light but firm grip of the pliers on the second magnet.

Another look at the copper coil... So fragile yet so effective for registering the presence of electromagnetic waves.

A close up look at the inner speaker housing and copper coil.

This is the plastic diaphragm side of the speaker with the copper coil glued to the backside of the diaphragm.

Now replace the speaker module, with the magnet removed, into the original headphone housing and your stereo microphones are ready to go!

The new “stereo headphone microphone” is now plugged into the mic input on an Edirol digital recorder... The first recordings were done with a high gain setting and stereo input from external microphones. Listen to a recording done using these electromagnetic stereo microphonesListen to a recording done using these electromagnetic stereo microphones... The various electromagnetic sound sources include the edirol recorder, a laptop computer, a powerbar and other household sources of electromagnetic fields...

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