Category Archives: Hints and Tips

Quick tips to make the recording process and use of microphones easier. General tips for the studio.

Caring for Your Microphones

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In most studios, microphones represent a significant investment. Microphones can also be somewhat delicate instruments, so to protect your investment, proper care is important. Microphones have a very thin diaphragm or a ribbon that moves with the audio vibrations in the air and converts those vibrations into electrical signals. The lighter the diaphragm or ribbon, the better it translates the air vibrations that are sound. Anything that impedes the motion of the diaphragm or ribbon will negatively affect the sound produced by the microphone.

In most studios, microphones represent a significant investment. Microphones can also be somewhat delicate instruments, so to protect your investment, proper care is essential. Microphones have a very thin diaphragm or a ribbon that moves with the audio vibrations in the air and converts those vibrations into electrical signals. The lighter the diaphragm or ribbon, the better it translates the air vibrations that are sound. Anything that impedes the motion of the diaphragm or ribbon negatively affects the sound produced by the microphone.

For the diaphragm or ribbon to do its job correctly, it must be open to the air to sense the pressure variations caused by sound waves. This means that the diaphragm is open to moisture, dust, and other contaminants in the air. Dust and residue from moisture that builds up on a diaphragm increase its mass and makes it harder for the diaphragm to respond to higher frequencies. In ribbon microphones, particles of dust can lodge in the narrow space between the ribbon and the magnets, impeding the motion of the ribbon. Fine iron particles are attracted to the magnets and be very difficult to remove.

Note the green corrosion on the capsule edge and the missing gold deposit on the diaphragm.

Operating a microphone without a pop filter when recording voice can allow moisture to build up on the diaphragm and permanently fuse the dust and impurities in the air to the diaphragm.

Here is a picture of a microphone capsule from a RØDE NTK microphone that has a heavy coating built up on the diaphragm, as well as corrosion of the capsule body from exposure to moisture. This microphone was likely used for voice recording and was operated without a pop filter for a long time. I tried to clean the capsule, but the corrosion had loosened the gold layer, and it took just a touch with a brush and some distilled water to remove part of the gold layer. This isn’t normal, and the capsule is beyond repair.

The late Lou Burroughs, co-founder of Electro-Voice Inc. was a well-known lecturer on the use of microphones. In his 1973 book Microphones: Design and Application he wrote about microphone maintenance:

Burroughs talks about the time he was touring a recording studio and saw several microphones lying on a dusty table waiting to be mounted on stands. He offered to the owner the opportunity of having all of the microphones serviced and cleaned so that he could research what happened to microphones in a typical studio. These were microphones with an average age of two years. When the studio closed for vacation a few weeks later, 28 microphones were sent to Burroughs, here’s what he found:

“First, curves were run; then all diaphragms and grilles were cleaned. Eight condenser microphones were received and the response of each was degraded. After cleaning, the two containing metal diaphragms returned to normal response.

The six metalized plastic diaphragm units improved considerably after cleaning, but the responses of no two were alike and none were equal to a new microphone of the same make and model.

Eleven dynamic microphones were examined and all were degraded. After the dust filters protecting the diaphragm were cleaned, eight of them returned to normal response. Three of another make had permanently warped diaphragms due to ferric dust accumulation on the diaphragm above the voice coil gap.

Of the nine ribbon microphones, all were found loaded with ferric dust and the ribbons stretched beyond repair. Here is a professional recording studio depending on a degraded microphone to reproduce quality sound.”

So what to do?

  1. ALWAYS use a pop filter when recording vocals of any type.

  2. No smoking in the studio. This isn’t the problem it was 20 or 30 years ago, but it is the quickest way to destroy a microphone.

  3. Cover microphones when not in use between sessions. When a session is done, replace the microphones in their cases. If you leave microphones set up, cover them.

  4. Always store your microphones in their cases when not in use.

  5. Most ribbon mikes should be stored with the ribbon vertical to prevent sagging.

  6. Make sure mike stands are heavy enough to support a given microphone without easily tipping over.

  7. Use desiccant packs in the microphone cases.

  8. Pack microphones properly for shipping and travel.

  9. Vacuum and dust regularly.

  10. If you need to do and remodeling or maintenance, put all microphones safely away in their cases and thoroughly clean the room before you bring them back out.

  11. Change your furnace filters regularly.

RØDE NT1000 Corrosion
Corrosion and pitting on RØDE NT1000 housing.

It is amazing the number of microphones that come across my workbench with large dents in the grill. I have repaired multiple microphones where the condenser capsule was snapped of its mounting post. This takes an immense amount of force to do and I can’t understand how it happened without trashing the outside of the microphone. And the most mystifying damage was a RØDE NT1000 that worked fine but the case was deeply pitted and appeared to have been splashed with molten metal. The only reasonable explanation was that someone was trying to record the sound of an electric welding arc and positioned the microphone a few inches from it.

Microphones represent a significant investment in most studios. Take care of them and protect your investment.

Do These 7 Things to Prevent Ruined Recordings

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The recording process is complicated enough when things go right. Do these 7 things to prevent having your session interrupted, or worse ruined.

  1. Turn off HVAC, appliances, office phones, and cell phones that might make noise during your recording.
  2. Move equipment, instrument cases, and other items out of the way so they won’t get kicked or bumped during a session. If you balance an item precariously, it WILL fall during a recording.
  3. Save your work often. Autosave is your friend. Hard drives fail; it is just a matter of when. Back everything up to another hard drive or the cloud during breaks and at the end of the session.
  4. Test the microphones and headphones before the session. Make sure if you have any digital connections, say a mic preamp feeding the DAW through an ADAT or other digital connection, that it is connected correctly, and set the clock to the correct source. Just before you start recording, have everyone be quiet and listen with all of the mics on to make sure that there is no hum, buzz, or other noise that has crept in during the setup.
  5. When you set your levels, give yourself plenty of headroom, because musicians always get louder as they warm up. Six to nine dB headroom helps you from overloading and clipping and forcing you to redo the take.
  6. Remind everyone to be quiet at the beginning of the song and the end. Remind them to keep quiet and not move until the engineer gives them the OK. The most common problem I find during mastering is removing noises that occur as the instruments ring out at the end of a song.
  7. If you are using subscription-based software, make sure several hours ahead of the session, that your subscription is up-to-date, and won’t be trying to renew during your recording. Have your username, passwords, serial numbers, and manufacturer’s phone number ready in case there is a problem.

    Do these things, and your session will run smoother, and your life will become a little more anxiety-free.

5 Things You Need to Make a Great Recording

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Many components come together to produce a great recording. Here are the 5 key steps you need to know.

  1. Performance. You need to start with a good song, performed by great musicians. Legendary Memphis  studio owner, Willie Mitchell, once said, “If you’ve got a hit record, you can cut it in the bathroom on a cassette.” If you are recording spoken word and you have a narrator that can’t read or an unreadable script, there is nothing you can do to fix it.

  2. Engineering. The skill of the recording engineer is of paramount importance. You can give an experienced engineer a box of SM57 microphones and some essential recording gear, and they will make a great recording. Give an inexperienced engineer a closet full of expensive classic German Microphones and the latest equipment, and they’ll make a mess.

  3. Listening Space. If you can’t hear accurately, you won’t be able to mix. Your room needs to be symmetric so you can hear stereo properly and you need to treat it to remove resonances and unwanted reflections. If you don’t have a functional space, you’ll need to use an accurate pair of headphones. Mixing on headphones isn’t ideal, but it is better than an untreated room. In either case, you need to calibrate your ears by listening to well-mixed recordings and know how they sound in your space.

  4. Recording Space. You’ll need a space that is relatively quiet, big enough to hold the musicians you are recording, and having the sound treatment necessary to cancel any resonances and suck up the extra low frequencies. Doing close miking on all instruments can compensate for a non-perfect room.

  5. Recording Equipment. Of course, you’ll need the BASIC equipment, DAW, preamps, and microphones appropriate for the type of recording you are doing. Remember, better equipment is not going to make up for any deficiencies in the four items listed above. Once you have developed your skills as an engineer, have a good listening space and the right recording environment, then you can think about expensive microphones and extra plug-ins to add polish to your already great recordings.

5 Things You Always Need to Have On Hand in the Studio

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Keeping a recording session running smoothly is essential. These are items not recording equipment, but you’ll need them in almost every recording session. Even if you are working in the studio alone, having these things on hand close by allows the flow to keep going and keeps you from having to run out and search for the item somewhere else in the house.

  1. Hydration. Human beings need water, especially ones that are singing or playing music. Always have bottled water on hand. It doesn’t even have to be cold, just wet. Cold liquids are usually not helpful for singing and speaking voices.

  2. Tissue. Everyone always asks for tissue, especially during cold and allergy season. Keep a couple of boxes around not only for their intended use but also for spills and cleaning eyeglasses

  3. Sharp Pencils with erasers. People often need to make notes and corrections on scripts and music. Part of my prep for a recording session is to sharpen a bunch of pencils. I have an electric pencil sharpener within reach in the control room. A few other basic office supplies might come in handy also, especially scotch tape and Post-It notes.

  4. Over-the-counter meds. Pain relief meds such as Acetaminophen are often requested. Cough drops, Claritin, and antacids might be other good things to have in the drawer depending on your own needs and those of your clients.

  5. Clip-on lights for music stands. Lighting in most studios is uneven, especially home studios. I often found myself positioning musicians for adequate lighting rather than the best sound. The advent of clip-on LED battery operated lighting for music stands has been a real boon. Most of them run off of an AC adapter if you don’t want to keep replacing batteries. You can also get them with rechargeable batteries.