Tips for Maintaining Condenser Microphones to Prevent Moisture
If you are in an area with high seasonal humidity, try to find a sealed case for the unsealed condenser microphone, such as a small shock-proof case. Put some moisture-proof beads inside. If the desiccant is wet, it means that the humidity is too high. Open the microphone head cover and check whether there is moisture on the inner wall of the metal. If the metal inner wall of the microphone is wet, use a hair dryer to dry it, then connect it to the device for ten minutes and test it.
When you use the microphone, it is recommended to mainly use the table stand to avoid holding the microphone with your hands for a long time, which will cause sweat and affect the microphone.
Rain and dust proof
Rain is the natural enemy of condenser microphones. Due to water, the diaphragm of condenser microphones will accelerate the corrosion of metal materials, and will Short-circuit the internal circuit wires. Don’t rush to put it in the box at the end, use a hair dryer to dry it before putting it in.
Anti-drop
Pay special attention not to overturn the microphone stand when the cable is pulled. Shock may desensitize or even damage the condenser microphone.
Warm-up
Many vacuum tube microphones require a period of warm-up before optimum operation is achieved. Microphone manufacturers often recommend that you preheat the microphone for anywhere from 2 to 3 minutes up to 15 minutes. So once you turn on the mic, keep it working until the end of the recording.
Pay attention to the use of the XLR plug
Use the XLR plug correctly, sometimes adding or replacing the microphone temporarily, picking up the XLR head and pulling and inserting it violently, it is easy to twist or break the three male feet.
Avoid hot-plugging operations
Most condenser microphones on the market are powered by phantom power, which means that most are powered by a microphone cable that is connected to the mixer. Therefore, you should try to avoid hot-plugging the microphone. Frequent large voltage fluctuations will greatly reduce the service life of the microphone. So try to connect the mic to the mixer before starting a channel before turning it on. It’s also important to avoid hot swapping if your vacuum tube mic can be connected directly to a power source. Do not turn on the power switch of the mic while you are connecting the mic to the mixer.
The advantages of condenser microphones convert sound directly into electrical signals
Condenser microphones use the principle of capacitive charge and discharge between conductors to sense the sound pressure with an ultra-thin metal or gold-plated plastic film as the vibrating membrane to change the sound pressure. The static voltage between the conductors is directly converted into electrical energy signals, which are designed to obtain practical output impedance and sensitivity through electronic circuit coupling.
It can show the characteristics of original sound reproduction
Audio experts take the pursuit of “original sound reproduction” as the highest level of sound! From the analysis of the basic design principle of the microphone, it is not difficult to find that the condenser microphone not only relies on sophisticated mechanism manufacturing technology, but also combines complex electronic circuits to directly convert sound into electrical energy signals. The best choice for those who “reproduce the original sound”.
Has an extremely broad frequency response
The diaphragm is the main component of a microphone that senses sound and converts it into electrical signals. The material and mechanism design of the diaphragm are the characteristics that determine the sound quality of the microphone. Since the diaphragm of the condenser microphone can be made of extremely thin materials, and the induced sound pressure is directly converted into an audio signal, the frequency response of the bass can be extended to ultra-low frequencies below 10Hz, and the treble can easily reach tens of KHz. Ultrasonic, showing a very broad frequency response characteristics!
With ultra-high sensitivity
Because there is no voice coil load on the diaphragm, it can adopt a very thin and light design, so it not only has excellent frequency response, but also has excellent sensitivity, which can sense very weak sound waves, Output the most clear, detailed and accurate original sound!
Fast transient response characteristics
In addition to determining the frequency response and sensitivity of the microphone, the vibrating membrane’s ability to respond quickly to sound waves, the so-called “transient response” characteristics, is one of the most important factors affecting the sound of the microphone. . The speed of the transient response characteristics of the microphone depends on the weight of the entire diaphragm. The lighter the diaphragm, the faster the response. The ultra-thin diaphragm of the condenser capsule has extremely fast transient response characteristics, which can show clear, bright and powerful sound and precise audio and video. In particular, there is no sound coloration and “box sound” in the middle and bass, and the treble is delicate and crisp, which is the most significant timbre feature of the capacitive type. It can be clearly seen from the following drawings that the instantaneous response characteristics of the condenser capsule are far superior to those of the dynamic type.
It has the characteristics of ultra-low touch noise
The touch noise caused by the contact with the palm when using the hand-held microphone makes the original sound mixed with additional noise, which has a huge impact on the sound quality, especially for the preamplifier circuit. The wireless microphone is more serious, so the touch noise has become an important item to judge the quality of the microphone. From the perspective of physical phenomena, the goose feather and the copper plate also fall to the floor, and the goose feather can hardly hear the falling sound, while the copper plate is very loud, indicating that the lighter material has less impact sound than the heavier impact. In the same way, the diaphragm of the condenser microphone is relatively light, and inherently has the excellent feature of “ultra-low touch noise”.
It has the characteristics of resistance to drop and impact
The use of the microphone will inevitably lead to failure or abnormality due to accidental drop and collision. Since the condenser capsule is composed of lighter plastic parts and a sturdy light metal shell, the impact force of falling to the ground is less, and the failure rate of damage is lower
Small size and light weight
Condenser microphones are Using ultra-thin diaphragm, it has the characteristics of small size, light weight, high sensitivity and excellent frequency response, so it can be designed as an ultra-small microphone (commonly known as small bees and small ants) for a wide range of applications
It is most suitable for assembly in wireless On the microphone
Condenser microphones have the above-mentioned excellent characteristics and become the favorite of sound engineering experts and singers. Wireless microphones have become the trend of today’s world for singing on stage or singing karaoke at home. It can provide the bias voltage required by condenser capsules, and has all the advantages of condenser microphones, making it the best microphone dreamed by professional audio experts in the digital audio era.
