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Wireless Microphones

Beat the tangling cables during an on stage performance with the wireless microphones. It is the best way to utilize the stage and getting a clear sound while not bothering about the microphone cables. The wireless microphone, as it is typically interpreted, is a microphone, which works without a cable. It uses various standards, frequencies and transmission technologies to replace the microphone's cable connection and make it into a wireless microphone. Some of the basic models use the infrared light whereas many of them transmit in the radio waves using UHF or VHF frequencies, F, AM or various other modulation schemes.

The wireless microphone is known to have awarded us with many advantages of using it, but it is not always the advantages that come along with it. To understand this well, we have compiled a list of advantages and disadvantages of a wireless microphone that goes as follows:

Advantages of a wireless microphone:

The basic advantage of the wireless microphone is the freedom of movement it gives to the artist or speaker.

You can get rid of the cabling problems of a typical wired microphone, generally caused by constant moving and stressing the cables.

Disadvantages of a wireless microphone:

Many microphones offer a limited range with it closing in an area under 100mts. or 300Ft. These are the cheap models but the really expensive models ca easily surpass this range.

Some of them can be responsible for a possible interference with other radio equipment or other microphones. The new models with many frequency-synthesized switch-selectable channels are now widely available and cost effective at the same time.

Since they are battery operated, they offer a limited operation time.

Sometimes they can produce noise or dead spots, generally in places where it doesn't work.

The number of wireless microphones operating at the same time and place gets limited due to the limited number of radio channels they have to use.

In the wireless microphone the system consists of three main components that are an input device, a transmitter, and a receiver. The input device provides the audio signal that has to be set out or transmitted by the transmitter. With the transmitters behind them, the wireless microphones cab be assorted in two categories which are

Handheld Wireless Microphone

More like the conventional microphone with the basic difference being that in place of the cable this is bit bigger to house the transmitter and the battery pack. With the wireless microphone, wide arrays of microphone elements or heads are available.

Body pack Wireless Microphone

In the body-pack microphone the body-pack is a small box, generally the size of a cigarette packet, houses the transmitter and the battery pack. The body-pack transmitter easily clips to the user's belt or can be worn on the body. Generally for the instrument applications, a body-pack transmitter is often clipped to a guitar strap or attached directly to an instrument such as a trumpet or flute.



By: Dhiraj Bandurkar
























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Wireless microphone is a simple microphone but it has no wires attached. Previously people had a notion that a microphone has to be something big and must have many wires. But times have changed. And with time the design and technology of microphones also changed.

The history of wireless microphone is very interesting. There are many companies and individuals who claim that they are the inventors of this specific type of microphone.

In the year 1951, John F Stephens developed a wireless microphone. It was made for a navy musical show. All the singers, players were given their own microphone. And all of them were wireless.

In the year 1957, Sennheiser, a manufacturer of German audio equipment who was working with the German Broadcaster called Norddeutscher Rundfunk exhibited one microphone, which was wireless. This system was marketed under the name of Mikroport through Telefunken from the year 1958.

Beyerdynamic, a German equipment manufacturer claimed that Hung. C. Lin first invented the wireless microphone. It was then called a transistophone. Its production started in the year 1962. They also claimed that it was first used in a film called My Fair Lady in 1964. And it was used by rex Harrison in the film.

To do away with the wire was not at all an easy task. It took a lot of transmission technologies, standards and frequencies to make this removal. In this microphone transmission is possible in radio waves using VHF or UHF frequencies, AM, FM etc. There are some microphones that cost low. Many of them use infrared light. But this infrared microphone needs a direct line of sight between the receiver and the microphone. But the costlier models do not require this.

Some of the models work on single fixed frequency. But the advanced models do not use them. They work on a user selectable frequency. Using this frequency helps to avoid interference. It also helps to use various numbers of microphones at the same time.

Advanced versions of wireless microphone offer a lot of facilities. It gives full freedom of movement to the user. You must be thinking how. Simple. As this microphone is wireless, you can keep it anywhere on your body. Just attach them and you can move freely with them. It does not matter whether you are inside your house or outside. As this microphone has no cable, there is no chance for a problematic cables too.

Wireless microphone is mainly of two types, handheld and body pack.

The handheld microphone looks like the conventional microphone. But its body is a bit bigger than the conventional ones. And for that reason it is able to accommodate the battery pack and the transmitter.

Body pack is actually a little box. It has got the battery pack and transmitter in it. But it is not a microphone itself. It is attachable to belt. It has got a wire that connects the lavaliere microphone, guitar or headset.

Today there are lots of popular brands available for this microphone. All of them offer you a whole lot of new and innovative facilities. Sennheiser, Shure, Lectrosonics, Audio technical, AKG Acoustics, Samson technologies are all big names in this microphone industry.



By: Victor Epand
























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Microphones are commonly used in every stage performance, music concert, television program and such other events. Generally, during a performance, sound waves are captured in microphones with the help of diaphragm, which experience a vibration when the waves get initiated into the microphone. Finally the original sound is received after the vibrations get converted into electrical signals. Among various types of microphones, laser microphones are the exclusive ones, with latest technical features.

The technology of laser is quite interesting and a popular one. Laser microphones basically use the same technology while experimenting with the sound. They first of all detect the vibrations in a reflected laser beam and then convert them into audio signal. To say more, with the help of laser light, the laser microphones converts the acoustical sound waves to electrical signal, so that it can be processed and amplified for sound reproduction.

The laser beam that it has must be reflected off a glass window or any rigid surface, which will vibrate corresponding to the nearby sound. This microphone has the ability to turn any vibrating surface into a microphone just by measuring the space between itself and the surface. This is because, while doing so, the little fluctuations in the space become the electrical signal of the sound.

However, these types of microphones are designed in a typical way. The outer housing, which is cylindrical in shape, has spaced opening so that the sound waves can enter. There is also an inner housing, which too is cylindrical in shape and is positioned centrally inside the outer one. Then, to project the laser light into the space between the outer and the inner housing and a detector to receive the laser light that modulates the sound and produce electrical signals out of the waves entering the outer housing.

The laser in the laser microphones is capable of measuring the accurate distance between itself and the surface where it is bouncing off, so in this way it can measure the fluctuation of that surface with the vibration of the sound waves. However, these kinds of microphones are used in movies as spy equipments.

Besides this, there are other types of microphones too. Like, there are lavaliere microphones, contact microphones, parabolic microphones, which are generally used for musical purpose and are in demand. Among all these, the laser microphones are the latest ones but quite expensive and point to be noted is that it is not very portable.

The best feature of the laser microphones is that it provides realistic and distortion free sound that usually was a problem with the older form of mics. Infact, the use of laser beams for sound reproduction has solved many technical problems. In the earlier forms there was only one sound channel that usually received sound from one direction. But the newest forms of microphones like the laser ones have multiple sound channels, which produce sound that are much more realistic and amazing. These types of microphones are even used in movies to give special sound effect.



By: Victor Epand
























About the Author:

All microphones convert sound energy into electrical energy, but there are many different ways of doing the job, using electrostatics, electromagnetism, piezo electric effects or even the change in resistance of carbon granules. Microphones are used in many applications such as telephones, tape recorders, hearing aids, motion picture production, live and recorded audio engineering, in radio and television broadcasting and in computers for recording voice, VoIP, and for non-acoustic purposes such as ultrasonic checking.

When it comes to microphones used in music recording or live performance the vast majority of microphones used are either capacitor or electrostatic or dynamic or electromagnetic models. Both types employ a moving diaphragm to capture the sound, but make use of a different electrical principle for converting the mechanical energy into an electrical signal. The efficiency of this conversion is very important, because the amounts of acoustic energy produced by the voices and the musical instruments are so small.

Dynamic Microphones

Dynamic microphones work via electromagnetic induction. They are robust, relatively inexpensive and resistant to moisture, and for this reason they are widely used on stage by singers. There are two basic types. The moving coil microphone and the ribbon microphone.

Dynamic microphones have the advantages of being relatively inexpensive and hard wearing, and they do not need a power supply or batteries to make them operate. A lightweight diaphragm, usually made of plastic film, is attached to a very small coil of wire suspended in the field of a permanent magnet. When a sound causes the diaphragm to vibrate, the whole assembly works as a miniature electricity generator, and a minute electric current is produced. Because the electrical output is so very small, it has to be amplified using a microphone preamp. Dynamic microphones are most effective when working with relatively loud sound sources that do not contain a lot of very high frequency details.

Capacitor Microphones

Capacitor microphones have been around for several decades, and although modern ones do incorporate a few small technical improvements, the sound character has actually changed very little. Some of the best sounding capacitor ones were designed over 20 years ago. The main part of the capacitor microphone contains a pair of conducting plates, one fixed and the other in the form of a moving diaphragm. When the spacing between the plates changes the capacitance varies, and if a fixed electrical charge is applied to the capacitor, an electrical signal is produced, which faithfully represents the diaphragm vibration.

Capacitors are more expensive than their dynamic counterparts, but they are also much more sensitive, and can capture high frequency detail much more accurately. Furthermore, the capacitor principle, unlike the dynamic principle, lends itself easily to the production of microphones with switchable pickup patterns, although the cheaper models tend to offer just a fixed Cardioid pattern.

Electret Microphones

An electret is a ferroelectric material that has been permanently electrically charged or polarized. An electret microphone is a relatively new type of capacitor microphone invented at Bell laboratories in 1962. A static charge is embedded in an electret by alignment of the static charges in the material, much the way a magnet is made by aligning the magnetic domains in a piece of iron. They are used in many applications, from high quality recording and lavalier use to built in microphones in small sound recording devices and telephones.



By: Victor Epand
























About the Author:

Microphones have undergone a lot of changes over the years. Some designs stayed and others became a part of vintage microphones. Microphone, popularly known as mike or mic, is one of the primary elements in an audio or music system.

The main job of the mic is to convert sound into an electrical signal. It has a large number of applications as in music production system, telephone, hearing aid, motion picture production, etc.

Earlier, microphones were known as transmitters. In 1978, Thomas Alva Edison made the first commercial microphone. It was a type of carbon microphone. Later, in Bell Laboratories in 1962, a new type of capacitor microphone was invented.

There were a number of microphones which have made their marks over the last few decades. Some of the names went on to create history but now they are a part of the vintage microphones.

-Altec model 647

-American model D76

-RCA KB-1A, MI-11000

-RCA KN-3A, MI-3045

-RCA carbon type 1

-RCA model BK-7, MI-11016

-Amperite model R80L

-Bruno labs RV-3

-General Electric or Westinghouse carbon or condenser microphones

-Remler, Turner, or Jenkins-Adair condenser microphones

-Western Electric carbon transmitter model 369

-Western Electric condenser housing model 9-A

-Turner model 51D

-Western Electric carbon transmitter model 273

The History & Development of Vintage Microphones

The early 1930s saw the movie industry trying out new technology to record musical scores. However, the range of microphones offered was low. In came the MGM Studios, in Culver City, CA, to try out the newly invented cardioid mic made by the Siemens Co, Germany. It was used to make "Naughty Marietta" with the likes of Jeanette McDonald and Nelson Eddy.

Dynamic or condenser microphones were much smaller in size than the Siemens' version of the cardioid mic. There was a constant effort made to reduce the size of the microphones to facilitate its use.

James Cannon of Cannon Electric Co. in Los Angeles, CA, was told to build up a connector for the mic. His creation was a 6 pin connector which later on became the prototype of P-type connector, which turned out to be an instantaneous success. 3 conductor connector for camera cable was made then which put Cannon plug to history from 1929 onwards.

Mason and Marshall of the Bell Laboratories made a blueprint of a tubular microphone in 1939. The design was such that it utilized a single element and acoustical tubes of different sizes. It helped in the pickup of directional music. The tubular design was the forerunner of the modern day mics.

Electret condenser microphone is a part of the vintage microphones as it has a history dating back to 1928. It used polarized wax plates. Bogen offered this type commercially under the name Voltage Velotron. The WWII saw the development of wax electret mikes. The Japanese used it in their field devices. However, they did not become very popular due to their instability.

In 1962-1965 the electret mics got their diaphragm made of a metalized thin foil of mylar or teflon. Sony, in 1968, created the then finest electret condenser microphone. That too has now moved into vintage microphones.



By: Victor Epand
























About the Author:

Guitar is a very old musical instrument. It is normally played in an unplugged way. But when played in a show, a microphone is also used. Otherwise the sound will not reach every listener. Acoustic guitars have a unique sound.

Microphones sometimes cause different kinds of problems. And for that reason, the use of a proper microphone is ensured for acoustic guitars. Here we will talk about different microphone techniques for acoustic guitars.

The acoustic guitar delivers a varied range of frequencies. The range is from under 100hz to the extent which is not audible to human beings. The resonance of the largest string delivers low frequencies and the plucking system delivers the high frequencies. In most types of acoustic guitars, the sound hole generates the bass sound.

This instrument has always been so popular that people have thought of making some microphone which will not harm the sound of this instrument. And for this reason, a lot of experiments were made on microphones.

After a lot of experiments, dynamic and condenser microphones were made. These two microphones are suitable for acoustic guitars. But among these two, the condenser microphone delivers the most detailed and the brightest sound.

There are small and large diaphragm microphones available. Both of them are perfect for acoustic guitars. But while playing the lead portion of the acoustic guitar, if you stroke the string hard, then a sharp transient will be produced. It is louder than the sustain portion of the waveform. This will not sound well at the time of recording. So it will be better if you use the dynamic microphones for playing the lead portion.

To get a good sound out of the microphone, it is necessary to know where you should keep the microphone. If you keep the mike just in front of the sound hole, then the guitar will create a very dark, boomy sound. Just like that if you put it in front of the neck then it will produce a thin sound. Even the surrounded portion of the bridge will not be able to produce a proper sound, if you put the mike there.

Actually the proper microphone technique for acoustic guitars depends on the instrument itself and the playing pattern. That means it depends also on whether the instrument will be strummed or plucked, and on the music style and the recording place. The perfect place for a microphone is one to two feet away from the acoustic guitar. The mike must be pointing at a place somewhere between the sound hole and the very place where the neck of the guitar meets its body.

If you use a directional mike, then you have to adjust the distance, to make a balance between the proximity effect and the room ambiance. If you use an omni microphone for acoustic guitars, then you will be able to put it closer to the instrument and also will get a sound which is pretty much well balanced.

The most common microphone technique for acoustic guitars is the use of two microphones. One will be closer to the guitar and the other will be a bit far away.

But the interesting thing about microphone techniques is that you do not always have to use all these existing styles. You can try some technique of your own. And perhaps one day you will be able to make a microphone technique that will help many acoustic guitar players.



By: Victor Epand
























About the Author:

Microphone was devised to intensify and amplify small sounds, making them more distinctly audible and comprehensible, thereby facilitating long distance communication. The first microphone was invented and developed to be used as a telephone voice transmitter. The word microphone is taken from two Greek words. They are micro, which means small, and phone, which means communication.

A microphone is a form of a transducer that changes sound from one form to another. It converts sound waves, existing as patterns of air pressure, into electric signals and eventually back to sound waves through speakers. There are several techniques that can be employed in constructing a microphone but the most commonly used technique is the magneto dynamic design.

In a dynamic microphone, sound waves emitted from a source cause movements in a thin metallic diaphragm and an associated coil of wire. A magnetic field is developed around the coil with the help of a magnet and as the coil moves within this field under the effect of the sound waves, it produces an electric current. The amount of current produced depends on the velocity of that motion, so it is velocity sensitive.

The dynamic microphones are of two different types, ribbon microphones and moving coil microphones. A ribbon microphone consists of a metal ribbon which is thin. And it is balanced in a magnetic field. The ribbon is connected electrically to the output of the microphone. The vibration of the ribbon within the magnetic field generates the electrical signal.

The moving coil microphone is something different. Here a small movable coil is placed inside the magnetic field. There is a diaphragm with which the coil is attached. Sounds enter there through a windscreen. And then the diaphragm is moved by the sound waves. With the vibration of the diaphragm, the coil moves and produces a current there through electromagnetic induction.

The other popular type of microphones is the condenser type. Here the diaphragm is mounted close to a rigid back plate and a battery is connected to the plate, thereby creating an electric charge between them. The amount of charge depends upon the voltage of the battery, the respective surface area of the diaphragm and the back plate, and on the distance between them. The distance between them changes in accordance with the movement of the diaphragm in response to the sound.

The sensitivity of a microphone depends on how much electric output is produced by a given sound. Any microphone will produce distortion. If it is overdriven by loud sounds such sustained overdriving can have the effect of causing permanent distortion of the diaphragm. This affects the performance and quality of sound even at ordinary sound levels.

The distortion characteristic of the device is what determines its price, and it depends on the amount of care taken in constructing and mounting the diaphragm.

What you have read is only a very simple explanation of how a microphone works. Though this is not comprehensive information about microphones it will give you some idea about the functioning of them.



By: Victor Epand
























About the Author:

Wireless microphones work well when it is clearly defined what they are for. The purpose dictates the kind of wireless mic needed.

Wireless microphones work by using different frequencies, standard or transmission technologies to replace the cable. In a wired microphone, the cable is used to transmit sound from the receiver in the microphone to an amplifying or recording device. The sound travels as an electric signal through the cable then gets converted back to sound waves. In wireless microphones, the electric signal for sound travels through the air in the form of waves or frequencies to a transmitter.

Wireless microphones can use radiowaves such as those in the UHF and VHF frequencies, FM, AM or other digital schemes. Some low cost models even use infrared, which required that the transmitter have an unobstructed line to the microphone.

There are two main kinds of wireless microphones in use today. One is the handheld type, which comes with its own battery, and transmitter while the other is a body pack, which has the battery pack and transmitter separate from the receiver of the microphone, which may come in the form of a lapel, headset or others.

There are several things to consider when choosing a wireless microphone. One has to consider what the mic will be used for. Since wireless microphones are often used for productions, shoots and live performances, the type of setting it will be used in will help determine what kind of wireless microphone to get. A body pack with a lapel mic would be ideal if the purpose is to use a wireless mic without it being too obvious. A handheld wireless mic could be used if it is not important whether the microphone is seen.

Since modern wireless microphones use frequencies to transmit sound, it should be considered how many microphones would be used at the time. Several microphones used together may result in a mix up of the signal. Wireless microphones that enable the user to configure the frequency would be ideal so that there will be no crossing of signals and that all will work properly.

In using wireless microphones, one has to consider the fact that some spots or areas inhibit the use of frequencies. These spots are called dead spots, and there may be some in the area where the mics will be used.

One concern with wireless microphones is the range. Some wireless microphones have a limited range, which restricts the movement of the one using it. Higher end wireless mics can provide users with a greater range of movement because of its stronger signal and frequency.

Another concern when choosing wireless mics is the battery life. Since wireless mics come equipped with its own battery packs and are not plugged directly into any outlet. One has to check the standard battery life of the wireless mics to ensure that they can last for the duration of the desired use.

The type of wireless mic on the market comes down to two main categories. The first is the consumer or prosumer level of wireless microphone. These products enable enthusiasts, amateurs and beginners to try using wireless microphones for non-professional use. Consumer grade wireless microphones are often sold as a complete set and most often come in the form of handheld mics with charger and receiver.

The professional grade wireless microphones are those meant for professional use. They are often sold individually as components that can be added to an existing set-up such as a digital video or recording set-up. These often cost more but make up for it with better features and changeable settings.



By: Dave Text
























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It is said that everything passes everything changes. This change happens with time. Like all other things, microphones also changed with time. And this change occurred with the use of advanced technology by popular brands of microphones. There was never such wide and varied range available until these brands emerged. These brands changed the face of market for mikes.

These brands started making better microphones using advanced technology. These mikes gave music a better performing platform. Actually microphones are one of the most important tools that make music sound good. A good mike enhances the clarity of the music. It also makes the instrument sound good. It enhances the tonal quality of both the instruments and vocals, to some extent.

There are lots of brands that make good mikes. Below we are providing you the list of few of these popular brands.

AKG Microphones

It is a reputed brand of microphones. The best thing about them is they offer their top models at a very reasonable and cheap price. Their monthly payments are also pretty low. They many different kinds like studio microphones, vocal microphones, drum microphones etc.

Some of their very popular models are:

AKG C 414 BXL II Condenser Microphones

AKG C 4000 B Stage and Studio Condenser Microphone

AKG WMS 400 Wireless System For Guitar Channel

Audio Technica Microphone

This is another brand among the popular brands of microphones. They offer a varied range of audio technical at cheap price. Their monthly payments are also very low. Some of their largely demanded models are:

Audio Technica 815 ST Stereo Shotgun Condenser Microphone

Audio Technica PRO 49 QL Podium Microphone

Audio Technica PRO 31 Cardioid Dynamic Microphone

Audio Technica ATM 410 Dynamic Vocal Microphone

CAD Microphones

This is another popular brand on the block. It consists low monthly payment along with good quality microphones in reasonable price.

Their popular models are:

CAD ST 100 Cardioid Electret Condenser boundary Microphone Black

CAD M9 Tube Large Diaphragm Microphone

CAD GXL 3000 Pro Studio Microphone

CAD KBM 412 Bass and Kick Drum Microphone

MXL Microphones

This brand offers models like MXL V6 Silicon Valve Microphone, MXL 190 Large Diaphragm Condenser Microphone, MXL Cube Condenser Microphone, MXL604 Instrument Microphone, etc

These were to name a few. But apart from these, some other popular brands of microphones also exist. They are equally good like the ones mentioned above. Nady Microphones, Sennheiser Microphones, Shure Microphones, Peavey, Roland, Gemini, Electro Voice etc are some other popular brands.

These popular brands of microphones are really cool. They have lots of facilities. They are sleek. These may be a bit expensive. But they are of good quality.

And the best thing about these brands are, they are long lasting and completely ready for professional use. So, you can simply go ahead and buy them. And from now on rest assured that your music show would not face any trouble due to microphones.



By: Victor Epand
























About the Author:

A microphone is a device made to capture waves in air, water or hard material and translate them to an electrical signal. The most common method is via a thin membrane producing some proportional electrical signal.

Most microphones in use today for audio use electromagnetic generation (dynamic microphones), capacitance change (condenser microphones) or piezoelectric generation to produce the signal from mechanical vibration.

What are the differences between the types of microphones available? Well, that’s what we’ll be looking at in this article.

There are a lot of things to consider when it comes to the sound you get from your microphone, not only in terms of price and quality, but also where you actually place the mic in relation to your amplifier.

Whilst the chances of getting a great recording are consistently better with a high quality microphone, price and quality do not always match. However, with that said, when it comes to high quality recording, the most important part of the entire process is the original sound source. If you’re original sound from the microphone is good to begin with it will generally have fewer problems at later stages when you are mixing.

Dynamic Microphones -

Most people's first microphone is a dynamic one. They're simple, versatile and they generally sound quite good on everything from voices to guitar amps and brass instruments. Also, dynamic microphones are usually cheaper than condenser microphones (which we will look at next­)

Dynamic mics are usually cardioid or hyper cardioid in their polar pattern, which means that they only pick up the sound that's coming at them from the direction in which they're pointing.

Dynamic microphones can be great for use at home as they tend to reject a lot of background sounds like the noise of traffic outside your house. Once you start using a quality microphone, you won't believe how noisy your home studio room can be. Dynamic microphones also have a high SPL, which stand for sound pressure level, this means they are perfect for pointing at loud amplifiers.

Condenser Microphones -

Condenser mics are generally more expensive than dynamic microphones; however they do share a lot of the same characteristics.

You’ll find that a lot of condenser microphones are used when recording vocals. Most artists record vocals through a large diaphragm condenser microphone because they are a little less harsh than a dynamic mic, can be smoother sounding and have a broader frequency range.

Condenser microphones may not be entirely suitable for use in an ordinary house as they could well receive sound from televisions, neighbours or sounds from the streets.

Some condenser mics have a cardioid polar response while others have an omni-directional pattern. This means that they pick up sound equally from all directions. What’s great about some condenser microphones is that they have switch-able polar patterns. This means they can be cardioid, hyper-cardioid or super cardioid like a dynamic microphone, but can also be figure 8, which means it’ll accept sound from the front and back, or omni, meaning it will accept sound from all round.

You can find some great condenser mics for $150 - $250, which will serve most home recording needs. There are absolutely tons on the market, even at the lower end of the price range.

Another factor to take into consideration is that condenser mics require power to operate. Some will take an internal battery but others need to be powered remotely from the mixing desk. This is done through a power source called Phantom Power.



By: Richard Marples
























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