Having a cell phone around your speakers may result in some intermittent humming and buzzing. The cause of such interference could be a mystery, as inconsistent as it may be. Why do speakers hum/buzz around cell phones? A cell phone may cause a speaker to hum or buzz as data is transmitted to and from…
If you are an avid fan of live music performances, you may have noticed how some singers’ mouths will regularly touch their respective vocal microphones. Some artists have picked up the habit by observing their peers, while others do so for specific performance-enhancing purposes. Why do singers put their mouths on the microphone? The primary…
One of the most commonly asked questions about headphones, earphones, or earbuds is, “What should I do if my earphones get wet?” It happens. Maybe your earbuds fell out into a puddle or you forgot to take them out before showering. Along with what to do, many people wonder if they’ll get electrocuted using wet…
Microphones are a staple tool within the music industry. They amplify voices, record instruments, and make it possible to combine different sounds into one song. But even though microphones are essential in producing music, are they considered actual instruments? Is a microphone considered a musical instrument? Technically, microphones are not musical instruments; they are transducers….
Amplifiers are essential in most audio signal flow paths. When looking at power amplifiers to drive our loudspeakers, we come across many design variations, including the monoblock configuration. What is a monoblock amplifier? A monoblock amplifier is a single unit (“block”) responsible for amplifying a single channel (“mono”). The components of a monoblock amplifier amplify…
When looking into hardware equipment for an audio studio, perusers will likely come across 500 Series equipment. From microphone preamplifiers and DI boxes to equalizers, compressors and other effects, 500 series gear is readily available. What is 500 Series Audio Gear? The 500 Series is a modular format for audio equipment developed by API in…
Connecting a guitar, bass guitar, synthesizer, keyboard (and many other instruments) to their respective amplifier is often as easy as plugging one end of a patch cable into the instrument and the other end into the amp. If you’ve ever wondered how this simple setup works on a more technical level, this article is for…
For guitarists that love to play with pedals, buffer pedals may seem unexciting and, in some cases, useless. However, these pedals could make or break a pedalboard, depending on a few factors, of course. Are buffer pedals necessary, and where do they go in a signal chain? Buffer pedals are often unnecessary when connecting a…
So you’re interested in making money in the audio industry. It’s a big industry with many jobs to fill and in this article, we’ll go through 100 of these jobs to give you a good idea of how to either start making money or how to make some extra cash on the side if you’re…
Sound and audio are regularly measured in order to improve our understanding of how audio equipment performs. There are many units of measurement and prefixes that often accompany these measurements. In this article, we will go through the definitions of common units of measurement; how they work within the context of sound and audio, and…
If you’re familiar with microphones, you’ll know that they require preamplifiers to boost their relatively low-strength output signals to usable levels. Microphone preamps come in various shapes and sizes and are defined by a list of specifications. What are microphone preamplifier specifications? Mic preamp specifications, shown on specifications/datasheets and product pages, are pieces of information that…
There are many headphones and headphone types on the market that are defined by a large number of specifications. These specs tell us a lot about the headphones and how they’re likely to perform. Of course, it’s always best to listen critically and make up your own mind about headphones but knowing and understanding the…
