Asymetric Mic Headbaskets?

[BudgetMC]

OK, I am a total noob at mic mods, so if this sounds dopy, feel free to mock me.

I've been working up my nerve to start modding mics. Since lots of folks have mentioned getting and improvement in tone just from pulling out the inner layer of the mic basket, I decided to try this with one of my older mics... a Nady SCM 900 that usually serves as a paperweight.

Just my luck... the inner grill on this thing was heavy freakin' duty and welded down tight. I eventually managed to get the front side out, but efforts at getting the back out were clearly going to deform the assembly beyond recognition... maybe I could get it if I first removed the welds with a dremmel or some such.

But, it at least looked cooler when I put it back together. Then I hooked it up and... well, it seemed to sound better. Noticably. Anybody ever heard of having different densities of the front and back of a cardiod mic headbasket? Is this having the effect of tightening up the pattern even more, since it is opening up the front and keeping the back damped a bit?

 

[mshilarious]

Grilles create a diffraction effect; the frequency response of the microphone can change in a complex manner. They can create boosts and cuts. I don't think that will affect the overall polar response, since that is based upon timing of arrivals at the front diaphragm and backplate. However, if you change the frequency response at the backplate with respect to the frontplate, you could alter the polar response at those frequencies. But you shouldn't conceive that as a tightening of the pattern, because directional microphones don't work by absorbing sounds from the rear, but rather delaying them.

 

[BudgetMC]

Gotcha... that's very interesting. Many thanks.

 

[dgatwood]

I've been working up my nerve to start modding mics. Since lots of folks have mentioned getting and improvement in tone just from pulling out the inner layer of the mic basket, I decided to try this with one of my older mics... a Nady SCM 900 that usually serves as a paperweight.

You know what else would probably help? Better coupling cap between the capsule and the FET.