How do I make a headset mic line level?

  • Thread starter Thread starter dumnone
  • Start date Start date
bouldersoundguy said:
I mean a molded plastic surround to the connector that can't be disassembled and reassembled.
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Its housed in metal and the three pins stick out of some plastic. I tried to take all the screws out of it but one wouldn't come out so I couldn't open it entirely to see what exactly was going on.

I was able to open it enough to snip the 3rd pin wire inside the housing though and after I did that when I turned the mic input and mic gain up on the pm60 instead of quiet distortion I heard nothing. So not sure what to think, whether I improved it or broke it more.
 
Im thinking about just buying an Audio-Technica BPHS1 Broadcast Stereo Headset just cause its got the right connectors.
 
The reason the rolls preamp didn’t work is that it does not provide power for the mic. You really also cannot expect a chain of small adaptors to work. They’re incredibly finicky and unreliable. You have a headset which I assume you like? You have four conductors to manage, so with a 4 circuit jack socket and a soldering iron, the wiring is really, really simple. It’s is NOT with adaptors, just an unreliable mess. If you need a preamp that can power condensers then forget the usual studio types, they only do phantom power. Look for the inline types that are designed to allow a lav mic to have a balanced XLR output. They usually have a small connector like radio mic packs use. So you need a cable to go between the items. A custom built one wired properly. These preamps will do the job and a one-off cable. You’ve not said what kind of use you have, so this probably means about the same cost as the headphones you have, but your headset isnt of course that good audio wise, if you want to record yourself singing it’s probably not on a recording forums list of nice mics, and headset wise it’s built for good comms, not music. If you have to pay somebody to wire this up and make the cables, is that actually worth it. Great if you can do it yourself. I could get the parts and end up with a cable with a 3.5mm plug for the headphones and and xlr for plugging the mic into something, with a preamp for about forty pounds, but can you? That’s the problem you have. Add in somebodies time and the price escalates!
 
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The mic is probably electret so you'll need to feed it a couple of V's for it to work. Laptop mic inputs normally do that.
 
I don't understand what a TRS connector would be doing with that mic - it's not a condensor, there is no power, what's the third ring for? Why would it be just 'fake stereo', very few (any?) computer mic jacks are set up for stereo.
 
dumnone said:
with my headset mic?
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I may have misread. I was under the impression that your current adapter situation had already split the signal out, and you were just trying to get the signal to the right level.
 
mjbphotos said:
I don't understand what a TRS connector would be doing with that mic - it's not a condensor, there is no power, what's the third ring for? Why would it be just 'fake stereo', very few (any?) computer mic jacks are set up for stereo.
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It's a headset, so two of the connections are for the stereo headphones.
 
Right, I forgot about "plug-in power," which is perhaps 5 VDC.
 
dumnone said:
Im thinking about just buying an Audio-Technica BPHS1 Broadcast Stereo Headset just cause its got the right connectors.
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I've used the AT broadcast headset along with the Shure. Both are dynamic mics and will work for you but keep in mind, if this is for gaming or game streaming over OBS, you may not be that happy with how heavy and hot it will get. I use these in boardrooms as a headset for a tech to set up an analog phone bridge for earnings calls when board members don't want to hear dial and touch tones in the room. The AT is a nice headset.

Behringer makes a cheap version but the mic is crap and requires phantom power. $35 vs $220 though.
 
I do wonder what he wants it for? It seems a rather odd choice. It mentions noise cancelling, but it’s not clear if it’s a nulling noise cancelling system, or just a filter in the usb converter part we don’t think he is using.
 
rob aylestone said:
I do wonder what he wants it for? It seems a rather odd choice. It mentions noise cancelling, but it’s not clear if it’s a nulling noise cancelling system, or just a filter in the usb converter part we don’t think he is using.
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A lot going on in this thread. This headset model is for desktop conferencing and the noise cancelling is not of the type you are thinking. The Polycom, now Poly has a lot of experience with DSP and their technologies such as acoustic fencing is pretty impressive. They have DSP and software that can remove room noises like air handling, paper rustling or noise from someone fumbling with a bag a chips for instance. This is all done in this case mostly through the Poly software. The headset itself is pretty ordinary.
 
mjbphotos said:
4 connections -left ear, right ear, common ground and mic. What is the mic 3rd connector (when split off) doing?
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A mystery indeed. So much so, I decided to leverage my vast resources (went to the van and grabbed an adaptor and meter) to see if we can't solve just that.

I have the opposite setup. I have a desktop PC for my home office that I have to do the occasional Zoom or Teams meeting. It has a separate headphone and a multipurpose input/output jack. Both are TRS. I use a TRRS Y cable to dual TRS. So what does the meter tell me. I have tip and first ring as left and right. The second ring is common ground and the sleeve is mic +. The headphone side follows Tip Ring, Sleeve. The Mic side however is Mic + = Tip and Ring with Ground being sleeve. The two are junctioned together. If you use a TRS adaptor to a balanced input, you are going to have the same input, in phase to both plus and minus which will cancel out. This is why the OP is getting hardly anything. It is similar to plugging a stereo input to a balanced Plus and Minus. This is likely the issue and not the mic needing 5volts. The solution most likley is to remove the minus input to the input of the Rolls.

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I stopped looking for a solution and just bought a BPHS-1 headset. I may have had success if I had followed through in splitting the channels as boulder had suggested with the way folkcafe labrynthed the lines. Though I did in fact disconnect the minus input in the 1/4f to xlrm connector, iirc somebody suggested the adapters could still have interfered.
 
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