Evaluation of Glockenspiel Recording

Key Terms 

Transducer - A device that converts one form of energy to another type of energy. These energy types include; electrical, mechanical, electromagnetic, chemical, acoustic and thermal energy. 

Diaphragm - A thin piece of metal which vibrates when it is hit with sound waves. Diaphragms are usually located in the head of the microphone. 

Electromagnetic Induction - A production of an electromotive force across a conductor when it is exposed to a time varying magnetic field.

Capacitor plate - Creates a stronger signal by causing a current  when the plates are close together.

Pre-amp - An electronic amplifier that prepares a small electrical signal for further amplification or processing. Often placed close to the sensor to reduce the effects of noise and interference. 

Sound Pressure Levels - How loud something sounds (the sound of the sound waves).

Polar Patterns 

There are four different polar patterns; Cardioid, Omnidirectional, Figure of 8 and Supercardioid.

This is the Cardioid polar pattern. A microphone that has this polar pattern is able to pick up sound within 120 degrees of the direction the microphone is facing. This kind of polar pattern helps in reducing the amount of feedback.

This is the Omnidirectional polar pattern. This means that a microphone that has this polar pattern has the ability to pick up sound that is surrounding the microphone (within a 360 degree radius). Microphones with this kind of polar pattern are ideal if the recorder is wanting to pan from left to right. This is because, if a person moved around the microphone, when playing back the recording, you will be able to hear the sound moving from left to right. 

This is the Figure of 8 polar pattern. This polar pattern allow a microphone to pick up sound only from the front and the back, but cannot pick up sound from the sides of the microphone. A microphone with this polar pattern would be good for recording two instruments, or voices, as a duet and it would pick up the sound of the two musicians and nothing else.

This is the Supercardioid polar pattern. This polar pattern only allows the microphone to pick up sound from the front and the back of the microphone, and small amounts of sound from the sides of the microphone. This polar pattern is very similar to the cardioid pattern, although the supercardioid patter have a smaller 100 degree pick up range. Compared to the cardioid pattern, the supercardioid patter have better side rejection the cardioid pattern.

Different Types of Microphone 

There are four different types of microphone; dynamic, condenser, ribbon and boundary. All of these microphone are used in different situation in order to get the best quality recording. 

The dynamic microphone is a very multi purpose microphone, which includes very few moving parts. Dynamic microphone also tend to be rather sturdy, robust microphones, so are very hard to damage. This type of microphone is very good at picking up high volume sounds, so there for a very good at recording amplified instruments, such as electric guitars. These kind of microphones also do not require power in order to work, so there for use to power from the mixing deck so that they are able to work and record. 

The word condenser mean capacitor ( a device used to store an electric charge). The Condenser microphone has an electronic component  inside of the microphone which stores energy in the form of an electrostatic field. This type of microphone requires power in order for it to work, either from batteries or another external source. The condenser microphone is a much more sensitive and responsive that a dynamic microphone. This means that these microphones are best at picking up much quieter sounds. It is important to not use a condenser microphone to record high volume sounds, e.g. to record an amplified guitar, as the sensitivity of the microphone is prone to distort the sound quality. 

The Ribbon microphone is also know as the ribbon velocity microphone. This type of microphone has a thin piece of metal inside of electrically conducted plates that are between magnetic poles that produce voltage by electromagnetic induction. These microphones tend to be bidirectional, meaning that they have the ability to pick up sound from either side of the microphone, equally as good. 

Finally, the boundary microphone, or pressure zone microphone, is a omnidirectional condenser microphone positioned near or flush with a boundary.

Shure SM58 

This i the Shure SM58 microphone, which is a dynamic microphone. This microphone is typically used in recording vocals, this is because this microphone is capable of picking up both high and low pitched, so there for this microphone will be able to suit everyone's vocal range.  The frequency response of this microphone is 50 - 15,000 Hz. The polar pattern of this microphone is a cardioid pattern.

AKG D112

This is the AKG D112 microphone, which is a dynamic microphone. This microphone is commonly used to record instruments of a low pitch, such as kick drums in a drum kit. This microphone has a large diaphragm which helps deliver really deep frequencies. The frequency response is 20 - 17,000 Hz. The polar pattern is cardioid. 

AKG C1000 

   This is the AKG C1000 microphone, which is a condenser microphone. This microphone is commonly used for recording wind or brass instruments or guitars (without an amplifier). This microphone is powered by AA batteries or phantom power (phantom power is DC electric transmitted through microphone cables to operate microphones that contain active electronic circuitry). The frequency response on this microphone is 50 - 20,000 Hz. The polar pattern on this microphone is main cardioid, however, the microphone has a switch allowing the user to change the polar pattern from cardioid to supercardioid. 

https://soundcloud.com/user-69480508/glock-task-audio-akg

Position/Distance: 20cm away from the instrument
Type of Microphone: AKG C1000
Polar Pattern: Cardioid

This microphone managed to record the glockenspiel when well. The microphone didn't pick up any background noise, we can tell this by the quality of the recording (the sound of the glockenspiel is quite clear) and the instrument is the only thing you are able to hear in the recording.

https://soundcloud.com/user-69480508/glock-task-audio-egg

Position/Distance: 20cm away from the instrument
Type of Microphone: AKG D112
Polar Pattern: Cardioid

This microphone recorded the glockenspiel rather clearly. However, you would not usually use this microphone to record a glockenspiel. This is because the AKG D112 microphone is commonly used in recording low pitched instruments, such as kick drums and bass guitars.

https://soundcloud.com/user-69480508/glock-task-audio-shure

Position/Distance: 20cm away from the instrument
Type of Microphone: Shure SM58
Polar Pattern: Cardioid

The quality of the recording by using this microphone made the glockenspiel sound of a high quality and clear. This is because the Shure SM58 is a universal microphone, meaning that this microphone is equally as good at picking up high and low pitches. Compared to the AKG D112, the Shure SM58 performed a lot better. The AKG D112 managed to pick up the lower notes better than the higher notes, whereas the SM58 was better at picking up all the notes, and there for made the recording sound of a much clearer, higher quality.

https://soundcloud.com/user-69480508/glockenspiel-task

Position/Distance: 20cm away from the instrument
Type of Microphone: Zoom H2
Polar Pattern: Figure of 8

The sound quality of the recording is not as good as the other recording I did. This is because the recording area was different to the other recording (the area of the other 3 recording took place in a recording studio and this recording took place outdoors). The quality of this recording wasn't as good because you can hear the sound of wind in the background. You can also hear noises (that are not being made by the instrument) from the surrounding area, making the quality of the recording poor.

Conclusion

From taking several recording from the Glockenspiel, I have found out that recording outside is not the best place to record. This is because, in some aspects, the instrument in the recording can be hard to hear due to background/environment noise. If I was to improve the quality of the recording using the Zoom H2 microphone, I would have placed pop shields at the front and the back of the microphone to reduce some of the background/environment noise. I also found out by taking recordings from various different microphones, that the 'Egg' AKG D112 is also not the best microphone to use when recording a Glockenspiel. This is because a Glockenspiel is usually a high pitched instrument. The AKG D112 microphone is commonly used for recording low pitched instuments, such as bass/kick drums and amplified bass guitars. This is why I wouldn't use this microphone to record the glockenspiel. This is because the AKG D112 wasn't the best for picking up some of the much high notes of the Glockenspiel, so there for the quality of the recording was the best it could be.

If I was to repeat these recording to enable to ensure the quality of a recording was top quality, I would use use either the SM58 or the AKG C1000, I would also make sure that the recording area took place indoors, in a recording studio. I would make sure my recording are in a recording studio as this kind of area rarely has and background/environment noise (apart from the noise made by the instruments or singers). Also, recording studios always has 'Sound Proofing Foam' installed. Sound proofing is important as it  helps reduce sound reflection. This improves the quality of recording as it prevents the 'echoes' sounds that are created by sound bouncing in walls/surfaces.


If I was to choose a microphone that would record the glockenspiel the best, I would choose either the SM58 or the AKG C1000. I would choose the SM58 as this microphone is a universal microphone, meaning it is able to pick up both low and high pitches. Therefor, this microphone would suit the range of the glockenspiel. I would also choose the AKG C1000 as this microphone is as the frequency response of this microphone is high, so therefor the quality of the recording will be a lot better in that aspect.

Shure SM58 Frequency Response Graph 

AKG C1000 Frequency Response Graph

To conclude, if I was to redo the records of the Glockenspiels, I would recording in a studio due to the installation of Sound Proofing Foam to reduce the sound reflection, and I would use  the AKG C1000. This is because this microphone has a higher frequency response, meaning the quality of the recording will be better than if I were to use the Shure SM58. The AKG C1000 is also an extremely versatile microphone, meaning that the microphone has the ability to adapt due to what it is recording, therefor giving the recording a much higher quality.