On Thu, 1 May 2008 18:47:42 -0700, Mike Scott wrote: >I too have been wanting a new microphone. I only want a desk microphone (I >am absolutely not interested in a mobile mic) and I only want a microphone >that has a flat frequency response.
See the discussion of microphones and transceiver equalization in http://audiosystemsgroup.com/HamInterfacing.pdf and supporting tutorial material in http://audiosystemsgroup.com/RFI-Ham.pdf I work in the world of pro audio, and own a lot of good mics. I use an EV RE-16, because that's the most suitable one that I own. EV RE-10, 11, 15, 18, 20, and 27, Shure SM53 and SM54, AKG D202 and D224 would all work equally well. BUT -- these are hand held professional mics. They come with a stand adapter, and you put them on a stand. I use a floor-mounted boom stand, because I have a lot of them and it works for me. There are many good desk stands to choose from. Atlas/Soundolier is a good brand in the US. In general, communications mics do NOT have anything approaching flat response. See the two weblinks for a discussion of why this is true. I'm a serious contester and occasional DX-chaser, so I tweak my audio for maximum punchiness without distortion. My K3 is set for HIGH mic gain at the front panel input, the RE16 is wired directly between the input and the connector shell, and the mic gain is at 25. I have the EQ set for -6dB on the first four bands. +3dB on the highest band. On-the-air testing with my signal down in the other guy's noise tells me it's nice and punchy. My K3 is only four days old, and I haven't had strong signal reports on the audio yet, so I may tweak those settings before I'm done. I have several RE16s, and I've used used them quite successfully with my K2, FT1000MP, TS850, and Omni V. I had to modify the K2 audio system a bit to get enough gain for the RE16, and I also added a lot of low cut. All of the mics listed above are directional, so they reject at least half of the noise in your shack (like the fans in your power supply). If your shack is quiet, you could do quite well with mics like the EV635A. Note that very few pro mics come with switches, and those that do have a lot of proximity effect (bass boost when used close-up). Bass boost is the LAST thing you want in a ham mic. I own about 40 mics, and none of them have switches. Furthermore, any mic with a PTT switch is going to be a communications mic, and will have the extreme EQ (see the pdf). The K3 has excellent VOX, and it's easy to hook up a foot switch for PTT. Why do you need/want a switch? BTW -- Heil Sound puts cheap electret capsules in pretty packages and sells them for a lot of money (FAR more than they're worth). The only real value-add I've seen from Heil is the excellent physical construction of their headset/boom mics. BUT -- we've experienced RFI problems at N6RO with Heil headsets that have built-in electronics. :) 73, Jim Brown K9YC http://audiosystemsgroup.com _______________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Post to: [email protected] You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
