I've been in the recording business for 36 years and have worked in some of the most prestigious facilities in the World... what you're talking about isn't really 'phase' as much as it is 'time-alignment'.
The 'headphone' out-of-phase issue above really has to do with the difference between hearing yourself with your inner ear (as you talk) and the sound from the headphones to your eardrum. The difference is VERY obvious when the phones are incorrect! The 'phase' of a microphone is very much like the phasing of a speaker, where a POSITIVE pressure wave front causes a positive voltage on its output (relative to the 'zero-crossing' in a sine wave). Having two mics close together on the same source and summing to mono, keeping them in phase is absolutely necessary. There are phase-reverse switches on consoles ONLY to be used if an improperly wired cable creeps into the session, or for an obvious effect. Remember that sound travels typically at 1100 feet/second, and the amount of phase shift from two summed mics being 30+ feet apart on the same instrument will NEVER approach a complete 180-degree phase shift. Many 'newer-technology' engineers rarely listen to mic placement, especially in a MONO mix where placement errors/problems will be most apparent. Remember, too, that the shorter wavelengths will degrade sooner than longer ones (higher vs. lower frequencies). Considering most instruments don't have a fundamental frequency above 5kHz, your concern is really minor. Having a mic out-of-phase with the rest of the mics in the room will cause MUCH greater disasters!! -- Eric Seaberg Eric Seaberg - San Diego [EMAIL PROTECTED] ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Eric Seaberg's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=7896 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=35708 _______________________________________________ audiophiles mailing list [email protected] http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/audiophiles
