Blog 2

In his blog, Jeff mentioned our experience with microphones and recording. One additional aspect besides the decision on whether to go dynamic or condenser was what kind of pattern we wanted. While many different subtypes of microphone patterns exist, the main kinds are cardioid, omnidirectional, and figure-8 (which is more specialized than cardioid or omnidirectional). For the most part, the cardioid pattern (which is so named because it picks up signal within a heart-shaped field) is the most popular type. Because of the directional pattern, cardioid mics are useful for situations that require multiple microphones. Moreover, omnidirectional mics don't exhibit a proximity effect, meaning that any signal within the field will sound the same regardless of how close to the diaphragm it is; cardioid mics on the other hand have this proximity effect, allowing for a greater feeling of presence.

For our desired application (live vocals), we knew that we wanted to go with a cardioid signal pattern. Because we practice in a small space, it was recommend that we consider a hypercardioid pattern, which is considered to be the most directional of all the cardioid patterns. It has the most isolation, since it blocks more signals from the back and sides than regular cardioid patterns and is thus less likely to cause feedback, a major issue considering the small space that we have. In general, we have been very happy with this microphone choice.

--X