Have you ever used a microphone in an electronic device, in the studio, or in film? There’s a good chance it was an electret condenser microphone. These microphones are common in our day-to-day lives and are worth knowing about. What is an electret condenser microphone? An ECM is a type of condenser microphone transducer which…
As technologies advance, they often become smaller. This is partly the case with microphones and is certainly the case with the invention of the MEMS microphone. What is a MEMS microphone? A MEMS (micro-electromechanical systems) mic is a pressure-sensitive diaphragm etched into a silicon wafer via MEMS processing. MEMS mics are largely based on electret…
To get the most out of our microphones, we need to know their directionality. Understanding how microphones respond to sound at varying angles and the directions in which microphones point will be invaluable in our work as musicians and audio engineers/technicians. What is a directional microphone? A directional mic is a microphone that is most…
Microphones of all types are designed to convert sound pressure variations into electrical signals. There are pressure and pressure-gradient microphones that react slightly differently to pressure in order to do so. What is a pressure microphone? A pressure microphone is a mic that has one side of its diaphragm open to external sound waves, and the other side closed in…
There are many types of microphones and nearly countless methods to differentiate one mic from another. One such differentiating factor with condenser mic capsules is the way in which they are terminated. They are either centre-terminated or edge-terminated. What is a centre-terminated condenser capsule? A centre-terminated condenser mic capsule has its electrical leads terminating from…
If you’ve been involved in music or audio for any length of time, you’ve probably heard of tube equipment, including tube microphones. What is a tube microphone, and how do tube mics work? A tube mic refers to any active microphone (typically a large-diaphragm condenser) that utilizes a vacuum tube (typically a triode) as its…
Solid-state electronics are everywhere in our day-to-day lives. Chances are you’re reading this on a solid-state device. If you’re using the microphone within that device (cell phone, laptop, tablet, etc.), you’re using a solid-state microphone as well! What Is A Solid-State Microphone? A solid-state microphone is an active mic (one that requires electrical power to…
Microphones come in all sorts of different shapes and sizes. One such microphone shape, which is actually quite common, is the “pencil shape.” Mics with this shape are known as pencil microphones. What Are Pencil Microphones And What Are They Used For? The term pencil microphone refers to a top-address microphone that is long and…
There are many specifications that help us to understand the nature and performance of a microphone. Transient response is one such specification that is difficult to measure and does not show up on data sheets but is, nonetheless, important to understand if we are to comprehend the true nature of a microphone. What is microphone…
When judging a microphone’s frequency response, we often use the terms “flat” or “coloured.” These general adjectives give us a broad understanding of how a microphone’s outputted audio signal will sound relative to the sound source it is capturing. What is a flat frequency response? A purely flat microphone frequency response means the microphone will…
Have you ever noticed that microphones need to be connected to other audio devices for their audio signals to be used properly? These mic inputs could be on preamplifiers, mixing consoles, recorders, or, as the name of this article suggests, interfaces. What is an audio interface, and why would a mic need one? An audio…
Knowing where your microphones are pointing is an essential part of mastering the art of microphone positioning. The address type of a microphone is a great indicator of a mic’s directionality and helps us know how to best position our microphones. So what are top-address and side-address microphones? Top-address microphones have the centre-axis of their…
