Parent category for microphones.
There are plenty of ways to describe the sound of a microphone. Presence is one of these factors and is an especially common metric in vocal microphones. What Does “Presence” Mean In Terms Of Microphones? The term “presence” refers mostly to the “presence band” of audible frequencies (described loosely as 3 kHz – 6 kHz)….
With so many microphones on the market, it’s sometimes difficult to choose the best one for any given application. Many of us only have access to a small mic locker (mics are expensive). For those who have a plethora of mics to choose from, a microphone shootout is an excellent method of subjectively picking the…
When recording audio, microphones are nearly always required. When setting up a professional studio, talkback microphones are essential for quality communication. What are talkback microphones, and why are they important? A talkback microphone is any microphone in a studio environment that allows for communication from the control room to the live room. Talkback mics aid…
Love it or hate it, distortion is something we should always be listening for in our microphones, audio chain, and playback. Measuring distortion quantitatively is difficult, but total harmonic distortion provides a decent method of calculating distortion in an audio signal. What is total harmonic distortion in audio and microphones? Total harmonic distortion (THD) is…
It seems that “gold-sputtered” is a buzzword for condenser microphone diaphragms nowadays. Is this just good marketing, or is it a necessary part of condenser microphone design? Why are condenser microphone diaphragms gold-sputtered? Condenser mic diaphragms are often gold-sputtered since they need to be electrically conductive (to hold a charge across the capsule) but are…
Whether we’re dealing with sound or with audio, we’re dealing with waveforms that have peaks, troughs, and polarity. Microphones act as transducers that convert sound into audio and, therefore, also deal with polarity and phase. What is microphone polarity, and how does it affect mic signals? Microphone polarity is thought of and noted in two…
Both microphones and loudspeakers utilize voice coils to convert sound to audio or audio to sound, respectively. To be more specific, dynamic microphones have voice coils, and most loudspeaker designs do as well. What is a microphone voice coil? A voice coil is a coil of conductive wire that is attached to a moving-coil dynamic mic’s diaphragm….
Some microphones have transformer-coupled outputs, while others are deemed transformerless. Some microphones even have transformers in the middle of their signal chains rather than at their outputs. What is a microphone transformer? A mic transformer is a passive electrical device that physically isolates two circuits while maintaining an electrical relationship between the circuits. Mic transformers…
Because sound travels through any medium, including water, it would make sense for microphones to be waterproof. So are microphones waterproof? Typical microphones are not waterproof, and many will actually be damaged by water and even by excess humidity. That being said, there are waterproof microphones on the market, and there are methods to make…
The size of a condenser microphone’s diaphragm is a key differentiator between mic types. As the title suggests, condenser mics can be separated into the categories of large-diaphragm and small-diaphragm (and miniature diaphragm if we count lavalier mics). What are the differences between large-diaphragm condensers (LDCs) and small-diaphragm condensers (SDCs)? LDCs generally have a diaphragm…
Tube condenser microphones are commonly cherished for their character, while non-tube (FET) microphones are often described as more accurate and are much more popular on the market today. For all subjective preferences, there are other major differences between the tube and the FET microphone. What are the differences between tube and FET microphones? Vacuum tubes…
When we use the term “dynamic microphone,” we typically mean “moving-coil dynamic microphone,” even though ribbon mics are also dynamic. These two microphone transducer types convert sound into audio via electromagnetic induction, though they do so differently. What are the differences between moving-coil and ribbon dynamic microphones? In moving-coil dynamic mics, the mic signal is…
