Microphones/Recording info Flashcards
What is an Omnidirectional Polar Pattern?
Picks up all sound equally in all directions
What is a Cardioid Polar Pattern?
- Heart shape
- Pickup front - less back
What is a figure of 8 polar pattern?
- Picks up from front/rear
- rejection of sides
What is a hyper cardioid polar pattern
like cardioid but more precision
Advantages of a Dynamic Microphone?
- Higher SPL response
- No external power required
- Not sensitive
- Robust
- Cheaper
Disadvantages of a Dynamic Microphone?
- Poor high frequency response
- Gain needs increasing for pickup
- Increase in hiss/hum
Advantages of a Condenser Microphone?
- Good high frequency response
- faster transient response
- can record quiet sounds
Disadvantages of a Condenser Microphone?
- Expensive
- Need external phantom power
- Cannot handle high SPL’s
What is the proximity effect?
Increase of decrease of low frequencies depending on how close the microphone is to the source
What is Preamp?
Amplifier for boosting signal to a suitable level for processing
What is stereo recording?
Use of 2 signals (L/R) to mimic sound that is naturally heard by ears
What is a potential issue of stereo recording? - explain what it is.
Phasing (cancellation) -
- Two signals with identical frequencies and opposite phase angles are combined
- Peaks of one signal align with troughs of the other cancelling each other out
- Causes loss of volume or complete silence
Describe the AB recording method?
Two microphones in parallel at distance 2ft or over apart to capture the stereo image
Describe the XY recording method?
Two microphones ‘criss-crossed’ over each other at angle from 90 degrees to no more than 130 degrees
What is a DI Box/It’s uses?
- Converts unbalanced to balanced signal
- converts signal or line level to microphone level
Describe Unbalanced Cables/adv + disadv
- 2 Wires running through cable acting as conductors
- Less expensive
- Susceptible to noise
- shouldn’t be used over long distances
Describe Balanced Cables/adv + disadv
- 3 Wires running through cable, all acting as conductors
- have opposite ploarities to reduce noise
Describe XLR cables
- Balanced cable
- +ve/-ve cable carries signal from balanced input to another device
Describe Jack cables
- Connect guitars, keyboards/other instruments to amplifiers
Type of Jack connections
TS - (Tip, Sleeve) Just two wires
TRS - (Tip, Ring, Sleeve) Three wires - can be used as stereo connections
