On Mon, 29 Mar 2010, Harry Van Haaren wrote: > Ill quote an article by Rane <http://www.rane.com/note148.html> that I've > read recently on Mic Preams etc: > > There is a huge myth circulating that microphones sound better running from > 48 volts, as opposed to, say, 12 volts, or that you can increase the dynamic > range of a microphone by using higher phantom power. *For the overwhelming > majority of microphones both of these beliefs are false. *Most condenser > microphones require phantom power in the range of 12-48 VDC, with many > extending the range to 9-52 VDC, leaving only a very few that actually > require just 48 VDC. The reason is that internally most designs use some > form of current source to drive a low voltage zener (usually 5 volts; > sometimes higher) which determines the polarization voltage and powers the > electronics. The significance is that neither runs off the raw phantom > power, they both are powered from a fixed and regulated low voltage source > inside the mic. Increasing the phantom power voltage is never seen by the > microphone element or electronics, it only increases the voltage across the > current source. *But there are exceptions, so check the manufacturer, and > don't make assumptions based on hearsay.* > > I guess the special mic your using might *really* need the 48V, but who > knows... maybe email them? Don't know about the voltage, but the Earthworks mics are notorious for needing more current than most. Most condensers only need 1-2mA, but the Earthworks really do need 10mA. I suppose it's probably safest just to get Behringer's own cheap mic for this. -- + Brent A. Busby + "We've all heard that a million monkeys + UNIX Systems Admin + banging on a million typewriters will + University of Chicago + eventually reproduce the entire works of + Physical Sciences Div. + Shakespeare. Now, thanks to the Internet, + James Franck Institute + we know this is not true." -Robert Wilensky _______________________________________________ Linux-audio-user mailing list Linux-audio-user@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx http://lists.linuxaudio.org/listinfo/linux-audio-user
