TOP 5 MICROPHONE HANDLING TIPS
by Marc Lesonsky, LSC Microphone Technician

1. DO NOT disassemble your mic in the field. Microphone parts are incredibly delicate, so unless you know what you're doing, leave it to service technicians to inspect it. You'll appreciate the savings.

2. Shotgun mics are aptly named because of their design, not because they can pick-up gun shot sounds. High sound pressure levels, unless recorded from a distance of at least 25' away, can damage a microphone's diaphragm, distort its membranes, and wreak havoc with its frequency response.

3. And while we're on the subject, shotgun mishaps aren't limited to the artillery kind. When removing a shotgun mic (namely Neumann KMR 81 types) from a suspension mount clip, lift the mic vertically. DO NOT slide the mic from the clip or you could pull out the mic's internal screen asembly… it can happen to the best of us!

4. Microphones, not just humans, need readings too. Okay, we're not talking about what the future holds for your mic but rather precise readings of frequency response and dB levels. This can be done thanks to our Audio Precision audio analyzer and anechoic microphone chamber.

5. For some mics, phantom power works even when batteries are removed. Try this with the Sennheiser K6 preamp, Sony ECM lavs 55 through 77, and Sonotrim power supplies.

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