Test your basic knowledge |

Microphones Theory

Subject : engineering
Instructions:
  • Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
  • If you are not ready to take this test, you can study here.
  • Match each statement with the correct term.
  • Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.

This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.
1. Another name for condenser microphone.






2. Stereo configuration using a spaced pair 3-10 feet apart.






3. Never store mic in a damp place; Keep dirt & dust away from the mic; Never 'pop' test the mic; Check if a mic is working by lightly scratching the grill.






4. Tube microphone capable of SPL's over 140dB.






5. Stereo coincident pairing where the middle mic (usually a cardiod) is facing source and a bidirectional side mic is placed at 90






6. Omnidirectional: 0 - Cardioid: 8 - Supercardioid: 12 dB - Hypercardioid: 6 dB - Bidirectional: 0






7. Part of a mic stand that the mic stands on.






8. 2 - 4 ft. from player; Placed below the line of sight of the bell - rotated at about 30 degrees off axis - and tilted upward.






9. - Omnidirectional: 1 - Cardioid: 1.7 - Supercardioid: 1.9 - Hypercardioid: 2 - Bidirectional: 1.7






10. Shure's ribbon microphone that utilizes Roswellite to prevent ribbon damage.






11. Condenser; Cardioid; Side Address; 48V Required; Large Diaphragm; Manufactured by AudioTechnica; Transformerless circuitry virtually eliminates low- frequency distortion.






12. Extremely narrow area of sensitivity in front with extended reach; Also has multiple lobes which vary in position with frequency; Not made from combining pure patterns - but created by using an interference tube.






13. 4 to 6 ft. from the player; Mic should be placed below the line of sight of the bell - rotated at about 40 degrees off- axis - and tilted upward.






14. Allows all low frequencies to pass; Blocks the higher frequencies from being processed.






15. The combination of the ribbon and magnet in a ribbon microphone.






16. Barrier made of shaped wire covered with a piece of nylon that is placed between a sensitive mic and the talent to avoid damage to the diaphragm of the mic.






17. Coincident pairing that is at 90






18. Small Diaphragm Electret condensers; Extremely flat frequency response; Omnidirectional pattern.






19. Condenser; Multiple; Side Address; 48V Required; Manufactured by AKG; Dual Diaphragm; Nine selectable pickup patterns; Peak Hold LED; The reference microphone for almost all comparative microphone tests.






20. Sensitive in a narrower pattern in the front than a cardioid and has a prominent/pronounced lobe at rear; Rejects most signals from 110






21. An electrical device characterized by its capacity to store an electric charge;






22. Raises the body of the microphone increasing height.






23. Demonstrated the first stereophonic transmissions via the Theatrophone in 1881.






24. Omnidirectional: N/ - Cardioid: 180






25. Sounds that arrive at the 0






26. Built by AKG for Telefunken and regarded as one of the best vintage condenser microphones ever.






27. Allows all high frequencies to pass; Blocks the lower frequencies from being processed.






28. Increasing magnetic field strength is the only practical means of increasing output voltage; Conductor movement is limited due to tension of the ribbon; and ribbon length increases lead to a loss of high frequency response.






29. Big + & - (More front with less opposite rear)






30. Proportional to: Magnetic field strength; Length of the conductor; Velocity of conductor moving through the magnetic field.






31. Coincident pairing angled between 90






32. Tough & rugged microphone that contains an element consisting of a dome- shaped diaphragm and a moving 'voice coil'; Operates on principles of magnetic induction.






33. Magnetic field opposite to that which presently exists; Do this on the bottom mic when miking a snare with two mics.






34. The moving plate of a condenser capacitor; Constructed of a thin piece of metal or thin plastic - such as Mylar - coated with gold or nickel; .05 - 10 microns thick.






35. Overall measurement close to the overall sound level in frequency response charts.






36. The world's first single element cardioid mics.






37. Mics in which sound waves vibrate a piezoelectric crystal that generates a varying voltage.






38. French broadcasting stereo mic technique; An X-Y type with the mics 17cm apart and at a 110






39. Often look like large diaphragm studio mics; Talk or sing into the side of the microphone.






40. Vintage Tube Mics hold voltage after being unplugged; Be sure grounds are connected to power cord and that the charge has left microphone prior to striking.






41. Allow sound to reach the rear of the capsule/diaphragm - to create cardioid - supercardioid - and hypercardioid patterns In single capsule pressure gradient microphones.






42. Shows the total range of the mic's internal pre- amp; Measured in dB (decibels).






43. Electro- acoustic device attached to a transducer that vibrates to receive or produce sound waves which put the device into motion.






44. An instrument for detecting sound transmitted through water commonly manufactured using ceramic piezoelectric material.






45. Changes in air pressure from the front or the back can cause polarity cancellation; Sides have good rejection; Natural polar pattern is bidirectional.






46. Flat plate that controls or directs the flow of sound energy in a crystal/ceramic mic.






47. Measurement similar to how our hearing works in frequency response charts.






48. DC Voltage Req'd for capsule polarizing voltage and internal mic preamps; 3 sources: External Power Supply Unit (PSU); Phantom Power; Battery.






49. Shure's newer ribbon studio mics; KSM 353 & 313 (Roswellite); KSM 44 - 32 - & 27.






50. Use coincident or near coincident pairings; Too many microphones will cause phasing issues.