A sound engineer’s mic locker is the most important tool in his or her arsenal. Microphones are the first and most critical element of your recording chain. Proper care and maintenance are essential. Take care of your mics, and they’ll take care of you. Here are some guidelines that will help ensure you’ll get many years of great recording out of your mics.
- How to Care for Condenser Microphones
- How to Care for Ribbon Microphones
- Additional Ribbon Microphone Care Tips
- How to Care for Dynamic Microphones
How to Care for Condenser Microphones
Condenser mics are the sonic backbone of many studios and have proven themselves to be workhorses in many recording applications. I reached out to Klaus Heyne of German Masterworks to find out the best way to care for condenser mics. Heyne is one of the world’s foremost authorities on microphone repair and modification and restores and customizes recording mics for the Walt Disney Company, Apple, Lucasfilm, and too many other studios, artists, and producers to mention. Here are some pointers that will help keep your condenser mics performing at their prime for years to come:
- Always keep your mic in a plastic bag when not in use. Any plastic bag will stop airborne dust and foam particles from windscreens and storage boxes from settling on the capsule. Put a plastic bag over the mic when you are not working, and always bag the mic before storing it in its case.
- Always use a stocking screen pop filter when recording vocals. It will intercept a singer’s spit/saliva mist from gumming up the diaphragm and keep the electrically charged capsule from turning into an attractive flypaper for airborne particles. A contaminated capsule will eventually affect high frequencies, cause discharge noise, or shut down completely.
- Always keep a minimum distance of six inches between the mouth and mic to prevent plosives from damaging the capsule.
- Always connect the cable from the power supply to the tube condenser mic before turning the power supply on. Voltage shock from a live power supply (hot plugging) can damage or kill a tube.
- Never put your condenser mic where you would not put your ears. Condensers are very sensitive instruments that respond to minute changes in sound pressure. Excessive sound pressure level (SPL) will eventually degrade the capsule’s diaphragm the same way prolonged exposure will damage your hearing.
How to Care for Ribbon Microphones
While modern ribbon mics are more durable than vintage models, they still need to be handled with care. Here are some little-known tips that will keep your microphone working great for years to come:
- Treat your microphone with the respect you would give a fine precision instrument. While not as delicate as a Stradivarius, most ribbon mics won’t tolerate being tossed into a milk crate like dynamic mics. You don’t have to use kid gloves to handle ribbon mics, but treat them like the valuable tools they are.
- Never put your microphone down without covering it first — especially not on the floor. The powerful magnets in a ribbon mic will attract small metallic particles into it that can result in distorted recordings. Don’t underestimate the strength of the magnetic force that extends around your microphone.
- Don’t loan your precious ribbon mic to a ribbon novice. Many people don’t understand the proper methods for handling and caring for ribbon mics. If they treat it like a dynamic mic, then it will likely return in an unusable state. Just one person blowing into the mic to see if it’s on, and it will go back for repair.
- Always position your microphone slightly off-axis when close-miking high-energy sources to protect it from excessively loud sources. Ribbon microphones have a fairly even pickup pattern, so moving one of these mics slightly off-axis won’t have an adverse effect on your recording.
- When using a ribbon on a kick drum or any other instrument with a strong directional blast of air, angle the length of the ribbon at 45 degrees to the source, not parallel to the drumhead. This will lessen the stress on the ribbon, allowing it to pick up the sound without the entire acoustic pulse hitting the ribbon all at the same time.
Additional Ribbon Microphone Care Tips
- Always use a pop filter when you are close-miking loud plosive sound sources. The concentrated blast of air from loud sources is extremely hard on your mic’s delicate ribbon. If you’re capturing guitar or bass cabs, kick drums, or vocalists, then a pop filter is highly recommended.
- While it is possible to connect a ribbon mic to a phantom-powered mic input without damaging it, it’s always advisable to turn off phantom power before connecting a ribbon mic.
- Always loosen the relief valve on your case after getting off an airplane. When your mic is transported in an aircraft, the cargo hold changes pressure with altitude. Thus, when you open a sealed container, a large blast of air will rush into it. This can damage the ribbon. So, before you put your mic in the cargo hold, loosen your case’s relief valve (or create a small vent hole) to equalize the air pressure.
Thanks to Royer Microphones for sharing these tips about keeping your precious ribbon mics in great shape.
How to Care for Dynamic Microphones
Dynamic microphones frequently take a beating (especially onstage), and they don’t mind, which is why they’re so popular. Night after night, spit, sweat, lipstick, dirt, and lots of other nasty stuff get caked onto your microphone’s grille and windscreen.
As the manufacturer of the world’s most iconic dynamic mics (the SM57 and SM58), Shure knows dynamic microphones. That’s why I reached out to them to get some tips about caring for your dynamic mics.
Here are some helpful cleaning tips for keeping your stage mics hygienic and performing at their best:
- Unscrew the grille from your mic, and rinse it off with water. Use a mild detergent to eliminate odors. If it’s really gummed up, then try a toothbrush with soft bristles. You can leave the foam windscreen attached to the grille while you clean it.
- Be sure to let the grille dry before you put it back on the microphone. Air-drying is best, but a hair dryer on low heat also works so long as you’ve removed the internal foam windscreen. Never use a high heat setting — it can melt the windscreen.
- If your microphone doesn’t have a removable grille, then hold the mic upside down and gently scrub it with a damp toothbrush. Holding the mic upside down prevents moisture from leaking into its cartridge. You can clean the foam that covers your SM58’s diaphragm the same way.
- If your microphone smells bad, then gently scrub it with a toothbrush soaked in a diluted solution of mouthwash and water. Again, hold the mic upside down when you do this. Never spray disinfectant or any cleaning agent at the head of the mic since that will penetrate the grille and possibly damage the mic.
- If someone with lipstick was using your mic, then you may find lipstick smeared all over the grille. This stubborn substance is designed to stay on, not come off. Thankfully, there are makeup wipes that are designed to remove lipstick without taking off your lips. These can be used to wipe the outside of the grille and hopefully keep the next person at the mic from getting secondhand lipstick.
Microphone Care Is Incredibly Important
Like anything valuable, it’s important to take care of your investment to last for years on end. The same holds true for microphones and all your music equipment. A long-lasting recording setup includes more than just the mic; pop filters, shockmounts, mic stands, and all other accessories play their roles in keeping your microphone in tip-top shape. If you’re in need of some sensible mic upgrades, then look no further than Sweetwater — give your Sweetwater Sales Engineer a call today at (800) 222-4700!