Microphone Patterns

Mics are defined by their pattern vs their sensitivity.

Omni-directional

Omni-directional

360 degree spherical pattern Sounds the same from any angle Good for handheld interviewing since mic angle is

not critical Good for lavs worn under clothing since mic

angles can shift due to clothing & physical pose

Cardioid

Cardioid

Aka Uni-directional Heart shaped? Frontal facing Sound diminishes as we move around the

mic Most sensitive in the front, reduced at the

side, and almost gone in the back

Cardioid

Good for reducing feedback & background noise

Okay for trained reporters Cardioid lavs often used for live presentations

to reduce feedback Cardioid condenser boom mics used to

reduce echo in tight interiors

Bi-directional

Bi-directional

Figure 8 shaped Picks up from sides, but not front nor back The sides are merged as MONAURAL, not

stereo Left/Right. Cannot control the gain of the two sides

independently. Would require 2 cardioid mics to do that!

M-S Stereo

Mid-Side stereo Allows adjustment of left/right width Achieved by varying mix of a bi-directional

mic overlapped by a cardioid mic Bi-directional mic is + on one side and – on

the other… Cardioid is + on both sides M+S and M—S yield Left/Right

M-S Stereo

Stereo effect is created by matrixing the signals from the two mics

Very dependent on correct phase relationships. Big trouble if phase is not maintained throughout xfer and mixdown.

Requires headphone matrix box to hear stereo in the field.

Great tool if you have control over recording, transfer, edit, and final mix. If not, better to use X-Y stereo technique.

Hypercardioid

Hypercardioid

Aka “short shotgun” Very directional Slight pickup at tail 180 degrees Least sensitive 120 degrees Compresses foreground/background, just like

a telephoto lens Best when deployed above talent. Talent is

on-axis, and background noise is off-axis.

Ultra-directional

aka “long shotgun” Extremely directional Slight tail

About Shotgun Mics

Very directional on-axis Less directional as we work around to the

sides Least directional 120 degrees off-axis Slight increase in sensitivity at tail May not be flat response off-axis: some freq’s

are rejected more than others. Distant, hollow sound

Flat off-axis = lower volume, no loss in quality

About Shotgun Mics

When used horizontally (like a rifle), they pick up talent as well as everything behind talent

Horizontal may be okay for sound effects, but rarely for dialogue

Generally, tighter pattern = more echo Wider pattern = less echo