Microphones

1)  As a general guideline, it can be said that dynamic microphones are best suited for live sound work, and that

condenser microphones are more suited for use in a recording studio.

Give technical and practical reasons for why this may, or may not, be a valid statement (include diagrams if

necessary).

The Dynamic Microphone is best suited to work in a live workshop environment because it has good sound quality, it works really well with loud sounds that don't have a very high frequency, its rugged and robust, they are insensitive to changes in humidity, they don't need external or internal power to operate. The Dynamic mic is best used in this environment because it is not easily damaged and can take a hit time to time (not very fragile). Dynamic Mics are usually Uni-Directional capturing a more focused or specific sound, meaning that they pick up sound from only one direction, this making it easier for  just the artist to be heard. This is a good thing because instead of the mic picking up everything and being so sensitive to every little sound, it just mean who ever is in front of the mic can be heard. Example if i should perform an ac-appella piece it would only be me that is heard and not the silence of the room/air con. 

The Condenser Microphone is suited more in a recording studio because it is high-fidelity, it picks up detailed sound with lots of clean high frequency, they have a extended low and high frequency response, they do require external or internal power, phantom power, it can be affected by the humidity and temperature of a room. This mic picks up everything, this is why its best to be used in a recording studio where you as the artist wants everything to be heard. It can not be used in a live workshop because it would pick up everything from the band to even what the audience is saying. The condenser mic is fragile to sound, very sensitive to the energy sound brings and when shouted into the feed back for who ever listens would probably not be the most pleasurable thing to hear, and because most of them are expensive it has to be taken care of with a delicate approach. 

So yes your statement is true Grant because if used in the wrong places, time can be wasted and damage can be done. Both are mics but each mic is made for different purposes and if put into the wrong situations a lot can go wrong. 



2)  What are the three main polar patterns found on microphones? Describe the differences and give examples of how each could be used.


Polar Patterns : Omni-Directional, Uni-Directional/Cardioid and Bi-Directional.

Omni-Directional picks up sound from all directions, its great for capturing natural or ambient sounds. Omni-Directional picks up sound equally from all directions, this doesnt mean that the frequency response is always equal in all directions though so its still best for the front of the mic to be focused on where the sound is actually coming from so that it can pick up the sound most accurately  This does work well in studios because it can pick up the natural sounds of the drum-kit, guitar, bass or even woodwinds. Omni-Directional mics are very good to pick up vocals, and can be used in a group session, every harmony can be heard equally to the main vocal. Omni-Directional mics can be used in big halls or places with a large room space, it works well in this environment because then the person speaking/speakers can be heard clearly. Or where a choir is singing cause then it picks up all harmonies from different directions on the stage.

Uni-Directional or known as Cardioid it picks up best from the front of the microphone but can still be picked up a bit to the side or to the back. It mainly picks up the sound from one direction and captures a more focused, specific sound. Uni-Directional/Cardioid microphones can be used in live performances, with singers, it can also be used in radio stations, also in a hall of people if there is particularly 1 person speaking singing.

Bi-Directional it picks up equally from the front and the back, but picks up nothing to each side. Frequency is usually slightly better from the front of the microphone than the back and it sounds a bit brighter coming from the front of the mic than it would the back. A possible way for this type of mic to be used is in an interview, where only 1 mic is provided and one person sits at the front of the mic while the other sits at the back.




3)  Dynamic and condenser microphones are the two most commonly used type of microphone found in the studio. Can you name any other types? Also include their basic technical features and how, or why, they might be used.


Ribbon Microphones operates almost the same as the dynamic microphone but instead of a heavy coil of wire it uses a strip of ex-streamly thin aluminum foil in its diaphragm. This means that it responds quicker than the Dynamic mic would and can pick up sounds faster, it has a great high frequency as a result. One of the problems is because the foil is so thin, it has weaker out put signal than a dynamic microphone. A ribbon mic has a smoother response than the dynamic mic also. One of the biggest down sides to using a ribbon mic is that the mic is fragile because the aluminum foil is so thin that any sort of air blast or pressure from a loud vocal, kick drum or even slamming the protective case can pop the ribbon so fast before you even notice. Some mics are immune to it, but they have to be well taken care of but regardless these mics are great because the sound quality is amazing. Ribbon mics have a relatively flat frequency response, they have a better high frequency response than a dynamic mic, they dont need external or internal power to operate, but the are fragile and require care when being used. These mic can be used for Cymbals, Bass, Piano, Electric and Acoustic Guitars and Brass Instruments.


Laser Microphones are often seen in action films or spy films and it can pick up sounds from a distance from the microphone equipment it self. When being used a laser beam gets in contact with a surface of a window or a plane surface that is affected by sound. These vibrations from the surface changes the angle of where the beam is reflected plus the motion of the laser beam is then detected and is converted to an audio signal. It can be used in films.

4) Give suggestions as to what you might use the following microphones for and explain your answer:

a) Audix D6

b) SE Electronics titan

c) microtech gefell M300

Audix D6 is mostly used for low frequency instruments like, a bass drum or a bass guitar, and large toms. It picks up very low frequencies that a normal mic wouldn't pick up. The D6 is Lightweight, compact and easy to position. The D6s transformer less design, low impedance and balanced output allow for interference-free performance.

SE Electronics titan is a condenser microphone that has a large-diaphragm. In order to work it needs a 48v phantom power. It can be used for picked guitars, slap bass, kick drum, percussive recordings (instruments).

Microtech Gefell M300 is a compact cardioid condenser microphone that pick up sounds from the from of the mic but can also pick up sounds from the back, it picks up every little sound that is clear and to detail. It can be great for recording instruments such as parts of the drum kit and piano.

5) When using microphones, why is a mic pre-amp necessary? What features would you expect to find on a professional pre-amp (either standalone or as a part of a mixing desk)?

Pre-amps are used to help or boost the sound from the microphone to a higher level or more useful level, all mic pre-amps will come with a gain control and an overload indicator. The gain controls how much sound is amplified through the pre-amp. The overload indicator tells you how much sound is being pushed or let out, showing weather or not it is too quiet or too loud. The input pad is a switch that keeps the hot signal from the mic from overloading the input sirkitery of the mic pre-amp, it is mostly used when trying to catch a very loud sound source like a snare drum or electric guitar. The phase switch on the pre-amp changes the quality of the sound. The HPF (High Pass Filter) only allows frequencies to pass which means that the low frequencies are attenuated which is why its sometimes called the low cut filter. There is also a phantom power switch that condenser have to use witch usually comes at a standard 48V. The last switch is HI-Z switch that you should switch on when recording other instruments that you can just plug straight into the pre-amp box, becomes an active direct box.

Arranging Music - Philip Theory

What The World Needs Now Is Love - DIONNE WARWICK

Dionne Wawick's version of the song is quite swung, the drumbeat keeps it going and then the main vocal on top of it makes in more swung, the chords that are used especially with the piano makes it more bluesy/jazzy. There is a trumpet at the beginning of the song and the main vocal copies it and then she develops it as it goes along to suit the feel of the song. The harmonies in the chorus keeps the listener engaged, so the arrangement is quite powerful because putting the harmonies in the chorus is kinda hammering the message that is being sent across to the listener. She ad-libs at the end making the song her own.

What The World Needs Now Is Love - HORLICK SINGERS

In the Horlick Singers version there is a completely different vibe because the there is no lead vocal because they are a choir combined with men and women, there are harmonies in the chorus but the arrangements of the harmonies are different. The choir sings it straight but the band keeps it swung. The choir tend to drag their words and some parts are given to the females and then the men would join towards the end of the verse and then carry on in the chorus at the end of the 2nd verse the key is transposed up which gives the listener something new to listen to.

We Three Kings - Christmas Carol - Villancico 

This version of We three kings sounds like it is the original song, the arrangement is beautiful. It is an ensemble of men. The song starts with an organ, but most of it is done a-cappella with just the voices, the bass keeps it going when the hook is sung, and it gives it a warmth. the arrangement is quite simple using humming in some of the parts gives the song dynamics, in some parts they start of mellow and quiet and then it is changed to powerful vocals. Because it is a male choir it has a deepness to it. 

We Three Kings - Ella Fitzgerald

The harp in this makes the song sound a bit lite compared to the Villancico version where is feels heavy and deep. There is also a piano that plays 7ths and 9ths that gives it a jazzy/blues feel. There is also ooh's and ahhh's which fills the song. The main vocal supports the instrumentation of the song which keeps the listener interested. The arranger also gave the song harmonies in parts of the song. The sung is swung which is a contrast to the Villacico version, which gives the song an acceptance in a new era/genre. The arrangement was well thought out.

We Three Kings - Kamelot 

This is an amazing arrangement, it starts of with strings that plays an on going melody which then becomes the part that carries the song underneath it. Then a distorted Guitar is introduced in the song that is the main melody, the distorted sound of the guitar and the drum pattern of the drums clearly tells us that this belongs to the genre of rock. This makes a statement that you can turn anything into what ever you want it to be. The main guitar improvises giving the listener space to take in everything that is played. Which makes this version very different is that it has no vocals there for making the listener want to listen to what ever is offered. They move into another carol 'God Rest ye Merry Gentlemen' this is just an example of what can be done when arranging a piece of music. In some parts there is a sound of two guitarists at the end the main guitar plays the melody and the other guitar plays the harmony of it but both are distorted. The ending ends quite simple with a drum patter with the snare and the guitar plays the simple melody, stripping the song of its heavy sound and making it very lite.

Greatest Love Of All - Whitney Houston 

The piano in this song is bright and has a pop sensation to it, the main vocal is the focus of the song and the piano follows the vocals. It has a straight drum pattern, the bass plays the root notes. The song structure is very typical in pop verse, chorus, verse, chorus, middle 8 and chorus, this is very common in pop. The vocal tends to stay the same through out the song until the end and then the vocal begins to develop its own sound. The harmonies in this song support the main vocal. 

Greatest Love Of All - Score Edit 

The song is in FMajor, the arrangement has been changed well the key signature has been changed. The way its been changed is so that it makes it easier for student or learner to learn it, the song, to make it simpler to learn has been arranged in minims and crotchets. This makes it easy for a beginner to learn because its done in halftime, giving the learner space to learn the chords and when they have learnt it they can easily improvise.

Music Production Techniques

Grant

We started of by choosing the song we wanted to do the practical with. Then we decided which mics we were gonna use!

We used the Rode NT1000 

And we used two SM57's   

We used the NT1000 to record our vocals because its a dynamic mic and its great for vocals. 

And we used the SM57's to record the piano and drums. 

The first thing we did was set up the equipment and we plugged XLR cables into the mics, and connected it to the channels we wanted the signals to go through. After doing so we made sure that the right channels were connected to the logic file so that the inputs and outputs were correct. 

We used the SM57's to record the Piano and the Drums. We put the two mics where the symbols were so that it could pick up the sound very clearly and we placed the mics two different places of the piano.

Trying to record was a bit of a difficulty at times because we tried to get the metronome to play through the headphones and that was a problem at one point. To record DAW would have to be pressed of and then listening back DAW would have to be pushed down to get the playback. In order to get a signal we would have to turn the red nob.

Each track was named appropriately for the channel that was connected to the mic and what was being recorded e.g Mic Rode NT1000 Main Vocal.