I start a new thread on microphones to avoid messing existing threads...
I had written:
pwhodges replied:
Paul, I have checked the Shure website, and they say that proximity effects arise when a mic is placed one foot from the sound source, or closer. If a mic response is defined at 1-meter from the source (as is said in the SM81 case), shouldn't it be free from such effects? If so, this problem is therefore relevant only for "dry" sampling at close distances, not for ambient sampling. Am I missing something?
Also browsing through the Shure site, I noticed the KSM109, whose response is not as flat as the SM81 down to 20 Hz, but is not dramatically dropping either. How can one obtain the "true" response for a mic, to apply "calibrated equalisation" post-facto as you say? Is it factory-tested and accompanies each microphone (as e.g. in research-grade optical filters)? Has someone more specific suggestions for mid-price mics suitable for organ sampling?
Thanks!
I had written:
I was about to post the same question on a microphone to record organs. However, my attention was drawn towards (a pair of) Shure SM81. These cardioids are advertised as having flat response down to 20 Hz, good for 32' notes.
Has anyone experience with them?
pwhodges replied:
Directional microphones are subject to the proximity effect, which raises the bass response at close distances. An unqualified frequency response will typically be measured at 1m or less; and a mic quoted as flat to 20Hz will usually be starting to roll off at 150Hz at a distance (this is true of pro mics too; it is a matter of physics). This is why many people prefer to use omnis for recording organs in particular. I use calibrated equalisation to correct the response of directional mics at a distance, but getting good enough info can be hard.
Paul, I have checked the Shure website, and they say that proximity effects arise when a mic is placed one foot from the sound source, or closer. If a mic response is defined at 1-meter from the source (as is said in the SM81 case), shouldn't it be free from such effects? If so, this problem is therefore relevant only for "dry" sampling at close distances, not for ambient sampling. Am I missing something?
Also browsing through the Shure site, I noticed the KSM109, whose response is not as flat as the SM81 down to 20 Hz, but is not dramatically dropping either. How can one obtain the "true" response for a mic, to apply "calibrated equalisation" post-facto as you say? Is it factory-tested and accompanies each microphone (as e.g. in research-grade optical filters)? Has someone more specific suggestions for mid-price mics suitable for organ sampling?
Thanks!