Making your Pop Filter

[M. Chris]

Newb question, but wut the hell. I hear a few people saying to make a pop filter from scratch (ie buying a crochetnig hoop thingy for 50 cents, and get some stockings). Is this sarcastic, or does that actually work to an extent?
And one other questoin, I am a little new to what a pop filter does. It stops spit going into the mic and damaging it, and also spreads out the blast of air, damaging the condenser mic.

 

[allensco]

It works fine...but it's not quite as nice as a store-bought pop filter. I made mine with a wire clothes hanger and a couple of knee-high stockings from the local dollar store. Worked just fine...just hard to deal with as far as getting it situated on the mic boom. Finally bought one made to clamp to the mic stand. Much easier When funds are tight, do what you must to get it taken care of. It may not look great, but that's not what we're after now is it?

 

[dtb]

dang right it works.........I put my coat hanger/stocking filter on one of those flexable goose necks, I think 18", and it made a world of difference in being able to place it.

 

[daav]

Since i was going ultra-budget, instead of a gooseneck, i used a plastic coated heavy wire, twisted it utnil it was about three strands thick, and bent that around, it holds pretty well, and can be adjusted by hand.

Dave

 

[timboZ]

This works for when I record punk bands and hip-hop.

 

[mikeh]

I used wire coat hangers & nylon stocking for a long time, then I upgraded to the wood hoop (looked much nicer than a coat hanger).

Finally I decided to buy a couple of the actual "store bought" wind screens (I got tired of the jokes about "are these used, I can smell your girlfriends crotch, etc, etc.) The store bought certainly are more user friendly and without a doubt look much more professional (a consideration for people who actually charge clients) but I'm not convinced that work "better" than nylons on a coat hanger.

 

[MadAudio]

This works for when I record punk bands and hip-hop.

It can also come in handy for those late-night gas station heists!

 

[reshp1]

In a serious pinch, you can even tape a pencil directly in front of the diaphram. It does a surprising job of taming the plosives.