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    Dynamic Microphones : Index

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    Juan Gabriel Niño
    Dynamic microphones are usually used for loud sources like drums and brass instruments during live performances as they can withstand high volumes. Condenser microphones are used for accurate reproduction and are better suited for recording acoustic instruments and ambient sounds due to their more linear frequency response. The document discusses the key components and operating principles of dynamic, ribbon, and condenser microphones and compares their advantages and disadvantages.

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    Dynamic Microphones : Index

    Uploaded by

    Juan Gabriel Niño
    93 views6 pages
    Dynamic microphones are usually used for loud sources like drums and brass instruments during live performances as they can withstand high volumes. Condenser microphones are used for accurate reproduction and are better suited for recording acoustic instruments and ambient sounds due to their more linear frequency response. The document discusses the key components and operating principles of dynamic, ribbon, and condenser microphones and compares their advantages and disadvantages.

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    Microphones

    Original Title

    01-Microphones

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    Dynamic microphones are usually used for loud sources like drums and brass instruments during live performances as they can withstand high volumes. Condenser microphones are used for accurate reproduction and are better suited for recording acoustic instruments and ambient sounds due to their more linear frequency response. The document discusses the key components and operating principles of dynamic, ribbon, and condenser microphones and compares their advantages and disadvantages.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    93 views6 pages

    Dynamic Microphones : Index

    Uploaded by

    Juan Gabriel Niño
    Dynamic microphones are usually used for loud sources like drums and brass instruments during live performances as they can withstand high volumes. Condenser microphones are used for accurate reproduction and are better suited for recording acoustic instruments and ambient sounds due to their more linear frequency response. The document discusses the key components and operating principles of dynamic, ribbon, and condenser microphones and compares their advantages and disadvantages.

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    of 6

    Unit 25 - Music Production Techniques

    Lesson 4 - Microphones
    Written by Idan Altmann and Stefan Knauthe

    A microphone converts the movement of sound waves to an electric pulse or in other


    words – kinetic energy to electric energy.
    All microphone types have three parts in common:

    - A diaphragm

    When a sound wave strikes the diaphragm it will move in sympathy with the sound wave.
    Its weight has an influence to the sound of the microphone.

    - A transducer

    It converts the movement of the diaphragm into an electronic signal/ voltages.

    - A casing

    It provides mechanical protection for the microphone, but also has an influence to its
    directional response.

    There are three main microphone types, dynamic, ribbon and condenser. They convert
    the sound waves in three different ways and have different characteristics.

    Dynamic Microphones​
    (aka Electromagnetic Microphones)

    Index:
    1 - sound waves
    2 - membrane
    3 - coil
    4 - magnet
    Sound waves (air pressure) move in the direction of the membrane (blue) and push the
    membrane making it go back and forth. The membrane is connected to a coil wrapped
    around a magnet and when the membrane moves back and forth, so does the coil, which
    together with the magnet creates an electric pulse that represents the sound waves.

    Advantages:

    - Can withstand high sound pressure levels (very loud signals).


    - Do not require a power supply (phantom power is not needed).
    - Cheap to manufacture.
    - Robust (not easy to break).
    - Tend to feed back less (therefore used in live situations).

    Disadvantages:

    - Limited frequency response -The membrane vibrates relatively slowly because of it's
    weight which means that the captured signal is not the most accurate (positive when
    regarded as colour).
    - Non linear frequency response, especially on the higher end of the spectrum.
    - Don't capture as much depth (room information) as condensers.

    Dynamic microphones in the EMP-Lab:


    Shure SM 58
    Shure SM 57

    Ribbon Microphones

    Ribbon microphones are dynamic as well but in this mechanism the ribbon element acts
    as the membrane and as the coil.
    Advantages:
    - The ribbon element has a lower weight than a regular dynamic membrane which means
    that it vibrates faster and therefore captures a more accurate signal.
    - Have a very soft high end which is great for recording harsh sounding sources (singers
    who emphasize their “sss” for example).

    Disadvantages:

    - Relatively low output – need a lot of gain and therefore have a higher noise floor.
    - Not robust and quite sensitive.

    Condenser Microphones​
    (aka Capacitance Microphones)

    Sound waves make the front plate (membrane/diaphragm) move closer to the back plate.
    The front and back plate are separated by a voltage that is generated by a battery or an
    external source (phantom power (48V) that comes from the microphone preamp). The
    amount of voltage between the 2 plates changes when the membrane vibrates and this
    change is translated to an electric pulse that represents the sound waves.

    Advantages:

    - High sensitivity - the membrane is very thin and therefore vibrates relatively fast which
    means a better translation of the sound waves.
    - More linear frequency response (has more highs).
    - Higher output than in dynamic microphones (need less gain).

    Disadvantages:
    - More expensive to produce – these microphones require an internal amplifier in order to
    work and the sound and character of the microphone depends highly on the quality of
    this amplifier which can be very expensive.
    - Do not withstand very loud signals.
    - The high sensitivity of these microphones makes them less directional than dynamic
    microphones which means that they feed back in live situations.

    A special type of condenser microphones are​


    Electret Condensers​
    :

    They have an almost identical mechanism to regular condensers but the membrane is
    made out of a special material called electret.
    Normally found in cellphones, there are also some common studio electret models.
    These microphones have a thicker membrane than regular condenser microphones but
    still translate the sound better than dynamic microphones.

    Condenser Microphones in the EMP-Lab:


    Rode NT-2A
    Rode NTG1
    Peluso CEMC Stereo Kit
    Thomann T-Bone Ovid System
    Audio Technica AT2035/AT2050
    Zoom H4N

    Summary:
    Dynamic microphones are usually used on loud sources (drums, loud singers (live!) and
    brass ie trumpets, trombones, tubas etc) and in live situations. Condenser microphones
    are used when high fidelity and accurate reproduction is nectary, for example for acoustic
    instruments and for ambient recordings (from a distance).

    Important Microphone Parameters


    - Sensitivity

    This is a measure about how much electric energy is produced when a sound wave
    strikes a microphone. A condenser mic produces higher voltages (internal amplification)
    as a dynamic mic. A dynamic mic signal needs more amplification from your soundcard.
    This is important when we choose a mic for our tasks. For example a very loud instrument
    recorded by a condenser mic may cause distortion and clipping, because the generated
    voltages are too high.

    - Frequency Response

    All microphones have different qualities concerning the reaction to certain frequencies.
    There is always some kind of "coloration" included, every microphone has a "character".
    That means they emphasize frequency areas, which makes them useful for certain
    applications. For example a condenser mic has a higher sensitivity in the high frequency
    spectrum and is therefore often used for high fidelity vocal recordings.

    - Noise

    There are two varieties of noise, self-noise generated by internal amplification in a


    condenser microphone and handling noise.
    A signal captured by the diaphragm and the transducer in a condenser microphone often
    needs a large amount of internal amplification (up to factor 1000). That means any noises
    are amplified by the same amount.
    Handling noise is caused by mechanical vibrations through the microphones body. Many
    microphones have shockmounts to lower those vibrations.

    - Polar Pattern

    A microphone's directionality or polar pattern indicates how sensitive it is to sounds


    arriving at different angles around its central axis.

    Sound Pressure Level SPL


    The maximum SPL the microphone can accept is measured for particular values of​ total
    harmonic distortion​(THD), typically 0.5%. This amount of distortion is generally inaudible,
    so one can safely use the microphone at this SPL without harming the recording.
    Example: "142​dB SPL​ peak (at 0.5% THD)" The clipping level is an important indicator of
    maximum usable level.

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