Capture of sound

Question 1

What is the proximity effect?

C3

Answer 1

The proximity effect is when you get a lot of low frequencies as you are too close to the microphone.

Question 2

What are the characteristics of Dynamic microphone?

C3

Answer 2

1. Sturdy
2. Can handle high sound pressure levels (SPL) - this makes them good for closemicing loud intruments
3. Less frequency response than condenser microphones

Question 3

What are the characteristics of condenser microphones?

C3

Answer 3

1. sensitive and responsive with a wide frequency response
2. Require phantom power
3. They can capture subtle nuances, this makes them great for capturing vocals, acoustic instuments and studio recording.
4. Fragile, may be prone to distortion at high SLP
5. Good for studio and room ambience recording

Question 4

What are the characteristics of Ribbon microphones?

C3

Answer 4

1. Feature a thin metal ribbon suspended between magnets, which generates an electric signal when subjected to sound waves.
2. They have a smooth and natural freqency repsonse, characteristically warm and vintage tone. This makes them good at capturing natural sounding recordings.
3. They usually have a figure 8 polar pattern (excluding sound from the sides, but able to record from both sides of the microphones)
4. They are fragile and sensitive to loud volumes, requiring careful handling and placement.

Question 5

What are the different drum mic’ing techniques?

C3

Answer 5

1. Close mic’ing
2. Glyn Johns technique
3. Overhead mic’ing

Question 6

What are the advantages and disadvantages of Analogue Synthesisers?

Answer 6

Advantages:
- Warm organic sound
- Physical control
- No latency
- Unique sonic character
- Large dynamic range

Disadvantages:
- Limited memory (cannot always find exact sound you created before)
- Regular maintanence
- Expensive

Question 7

What is this polar pattern?

Answer 7

Cardioid polar pattern

Question 8

Label each of these

Answer 8

Question 9

Name four types of polar pattern

Answer 9

1. Cardioid
2. Omnidirectional
3. Figure 8
4. Shotgun

Question 10

What is another name for a coincident pair?

Answer 10

X-Y Pairs

Question 11

What does coincident pair microphone set up look like?

Answer 11

Question 12

What does a spaced pair microphone set up look like?

Answer 12

Question 13

What is Spaced Pair technique good for?

Answer 13

Spaced Pair technique is good for capturing the full stereo field.
They’re good for capturing live performances (orchestra/bands). They make the listener feel like they are in the middle of the action.

Question 14

Name one pro and two cons of omnidirectional polar patterns

Answer 14

Pros:
- Captures sound from every direction.

Cons:
- Can’t block background noise
- More likely to get feedback

Question 15

Name 2 pros and 2 cons of cardioid polar pattern

Answer 15

Pros:
- Focussed sound focus
- Less prone to feedback

Cons:
- Don’t catch as much ambient sound
- Proximity effect

Question 16

Name 1 pro and 1 con of figure of eight polar patterns

Answer 16

pros:
- Good for interviews

Cons:
- Can pick up ambient noise and reverberations

Question 17

Name 2 pros and 2 cons of hypercardioid polar patters

Answer 17

Pros:
- Focussed sound focus
- Less feedback

Cons:
- Doesn’t catch as much ambient sound
- More sensitive to rustling noises