🎤📢MICRO🎙PHONES🎤📣

/as of center

___*AKA*___

“MIC”

“MIKE”

“MICRO-PHONE”

/ˈmaɪk/

-MICROPHONE TESTS-

-MICROPHONE GEAR-

-MICROPHONE TYPES-

-OUR [MICROPHONES]-

-a [micro-phone] is a [trans-ducer] that converts [sound] into an [electrical signal]-

‘microphones’ are used in many applications such as…

‘telephones’

‘hearing aids’

‘public address systems’
(for ‘concert halls’ + ‘public events’)

‘motion picture production’

*’live’ + ‘recorded’ audio engineering*

‘sound recording’

‘2-way radios’

‘mega-phones’

‘radio braodcasting’

‘television broadcasting’

‘computers’

(for recording ‘voice’ / ‘speech recognition’ / ‘VoIP’)
(“VOIP” –> “voice over internet protocol”)

(…and for ‘non-acoustic purposes’ such as…)

‘ultra-sonic sensors’

‘knock sensors’

(several different types of ‘microphone’ are in use, which employ different methods to convert the ‘air pressure variations’ of a ‘sound wave’ to an ‘electrical signal’)

[the 3 most common microphones are…]

*the ‘dynamic microphone’*
(which uses a ‘coil’ of ‘wire’ suspended in a ‘magnetic field’)

*the ‘condenser microphone’*
(which uses the ‘vibrating diaphragm’ as a ‘capacitor plate’)

the ‘piezo-electric microphone’
(which uses a crystal of ‘piezo-electric’ material)

(‘microphones’ typically need to be connected to a ‘pre-amplifier’ before the signal can be ‘recorded’ or ‘reproduced’)

*20-FOOT XLR CABLE*

*COMPLETE SETS* –>

“PRO-LINE MIC PACK”
*official link*
(via ‘guitar center’)

XXX

*MICROPHONE PLACEMENT* –>

MXL 990

POP FILTER

VOCALS

*VOCAL RECORDING TIPS*

(MUSICIAN ON A MISSION)

*LINK*

*3 PHASES*

*PREPARATION*

*RECORDING TECHNIQUE*

*PERFORMANCE*

“PREPARATION”

*ROOM*

*SOFT FURNISHINGS*

*AVOID ‘HARD SURFACES’*

*AVOID ‘WINDOWS’*

“DEAD ROOM”

(meaning no ‘reverb’)

(because it’s not ‘good’ for vocals?)

(it’s not?)

(it makes the vocals harder to hear)

(you want vocals at the “front” of your mix)

*’lively’ medium/small – sized rooms sound “unprofessional”*

(does music need to be “professional” to be “enjoyable”?)

(can “professional” be a bad thing for some listeners?)

(and reverb will be harder to blend in with ‘artificial spaces’)

*’pitch correction’ is less effective on ‘reverb heavy vocal tracks’*

*’voca tracks’ are highly dynamic*

(meaning a bigger range between ‘soft’ / ‘heavy’ parts)

(in terms of ‘loudness’ / ‘volume’)

(which means more ‘automation’/’compression’/’limiting’ is necessary to make it sound good)

(if the vox have lots of reverb, this is harder to do)

(it will change the nature of the ‘reverb’ and sound ‘un-natural’)

(a room can also be TOO dead)

(“dead” meaning “sound” is absorbed in its surroundings)

(rather than ‘reverberation’)

“muffled highs”

“un-natural sound”

*best choices* –>

*BEDROOM*

*LIVING ROOM*

*worst choices* –>

*KITCHEN*

*WINDOWED CONSERVTORIES*

*MIC PLACEMENT* –>

2 *RULES* –>

*don’t place mic in center of room”
(because there will be ‘build-up’ of ‘standing waves’)

“position microphone away from walls/reflective surfaces”

*place mic just ‘off-center’*

*use ‘proper acoustic panels’ to create a temporary ‘vocal booth’ around vocalist*

(where do i find “acoustic panels”?)

*make-shift panel suggestions* –>

mattresses

duvets

heavy curtains

(any material that will ‘absorb’ sound)

(you can test efficacy by shouting into the material and seeing how good it is at absorbing the shouts)

(you can also place “treatment” behind the singer’s head)

(with ‘cardiod’ mic, this will affect sound the most)

(for ‘omni-directional mics’, place treatment behind/to sides as well)

(‘cardioid’ is recommended microphone for ‘home recording’)

*use ‘dynamic microphones’ for powerful vocals / to make vocals sound ‘warmer’*

(they also are better at blocking out ‘background noise’)

*TRIPOD / BOOM ARM*

*SHOCK MOUNT*

*POP FILTER*

(use ‘closed back headphones’ when recording vocals)

*MONITOR SETUP*

*MIX*

*WATER*

*MUSIC STAND*

*STOOL*

*”AMBIENT SURROUNDINGS”*
(for maximum ‘comfort’)

*EXPERIMENT WITH ‘MIC PLACEMENT’*

If you are pressed for time, you will have to resort to your go-to position.

My go-to microphone position is slightly above lip level, pointing slightly downward, at about 6 inches away.

In general, it’s best to bit a bit further away from the microphone when using a cardioid condenser microphone.

This is because variations in distance (when the signer starts dancing around) will have less of an impact on the tone and volume when the vocalist is a bit further back.

To stop a vocalist from moving around too much when tracking, you can use a pop shield as a physical barrier for them to reference.

*for ‘cardioid condenser’, don’t get closer than 4 inches*

Some old school engineers (like Al Schmitt) will default to around 10 inches.

For a modern sound, it’s best to get a bit closer.

Start at around 6 inches and experiment from there.

It’s pretty simple, really.

The further away they are from the microphone, the brighter the sound will be and the more of the room you will capture.

The closer they are to the microphone, the warmer the sound will be and the less of the room you will capture.

Far away (12 inches) = open and airy.

Close (4 inches) = warm and intimate.

If you don’t have trained ears and aren’t 100% confident with your decisions, it’s better to be further away than too close.

The proximity effect can quickly ruin a good recording.