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Definition: microphone from Philip's Encyclopedia

Device for converting sound into varying electric currents of the same frequency. Live music performers often use a moving coil microphone, in which a coil attached to a diaphragm vibrates in a stationary magnetic field. The recording industry prefers the condenser microphone, which employs a capacitor to store charge. Crystal microphones employ the piezoelectric effect that creates voltage between opposite faces of a crystal. See also sound recording

microphone

From The Columbia Encyclopedia
device for converting sound into electrical energy, used in radio broadcasting, recording, and sound amplifying systems. Its basic component is a diaphragm that responds to the pressure or particle velocity of sound waves. The microphone, various forms of which were developed independently c.1877 by inventors Emile Berliner, David E. Hughes, and Thomas A. Edison, was first used as a telephone transmitter. The carbon microphone, which was used in the first telephones and was very popular in telephones until about 1970, contains loosely packed carbon grains. Sound makes the diaphragm vibrate, causing the grains to be compressed and released, thus changing the resistance of the microphone. That can be exploited by an associated electric circuit. Electrostatic microphones, also called condenser microphones, consist of a fixed electrode (the backplate) and a movable electrode (the diaphragm), with an air gap between them. Sound waves impinge on the diaphragm, making it vibrate, and changing…
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Full text Article microphone

From The Penguin Dictionary of Physics
A device for converting an acoustic signal into an electric signal. It forms the first element of the telephone, the broadcast transmitter, and all forms of electrical sound recorders. The types of microphone most generally used are the CARBON , CRYSTAL , MOVING-COIL , CAPACITOR , and RIBBON…
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Full text Article microphone

From The Hutchinson Unabridged Encyclopedia with Atlas and Weather Guide
Primary component in a sound-reproducing system, whereby the mechanical energy of sound waves is converted into electrical signals by means of a transducer . In one type, a diaphragm is attached to a coil of wire placed between two poles of a permanent magnet. Sound waves cause the diaphragm to…
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Full text Article microphone

From The Columbia Encyclopedia
device for converting sound into electrical energy, used in radio broadcasting, recording, and sound amplifying systems. Its basic component is a diaphragm that responds to the pressure or particle velocity of sound waves. The microphone, various forms of which were developed independently c.1877 by…
| 250 words
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Full text Article cardioid microphone

From A/V A to Z: An Encyclopedic Dictionary of Media, Entertainment and Other Audiovisual Terms
A directional microphone that is most sensitive to sound from the front and sides, while rejecting most sounds from behind. As with all directional microphones, cardioid mics exhibit a proximity effect where close sounds have an exaggerated low-frequency response. Most boom mics are cardioid since…
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Full text Article condenser microphone

From A/V A to Z: An Encyclopedic Dictionary of Media, Entertainment and Other Audiovisual Terms
A type of microphone that converts sound to electricity using a capacitor. In general, condenser microphones are more expensive and fragile than dynamic microphones, but produce a smooth, detailed sound with a wide, flat frequency response — usually up to 15 to 20 kHz. They are very well suited to…
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Full text Article ribbon microphone

From The Penguin Dictionary of Physics
A type of MICROPHONE that makes use of the simple dynamo principle that when a conductor moves perpendicular to a magnetic field, an e.m.f. is induced in it. The conductor in this case is a very thin strip of aluminium alloy a few millimetres wide, loosely fixed in a strong magnetic field parallel…
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Full text Article microphone

From Britannica Concise Encyclopedia
In a moving-coil microphone, sound waves cause...
Device for converting sound waves into electric power that has wave characteristics essentially similar to those of the sound. By proper design, a microphone may be given directional characteristics so that it will pick up sound primarily from a single direction, from two directions, or more or less…
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Full text Article microphone; mic; mike

From A/V A to Z: An Encyclopedic Dictionary of Media, Entertainment and Other Audiovisual Terms
An electroacoustic device that converts sound waves into electrical impulses, either analog or digital. A microphone consists of an acoustic system that supplies mechanical (acoustic) energy to a transducer, which then converts the mechanical energy into comparable electrical energy. The resulting…
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Full text Article dynamic microphone

From A/V A to Z: An Encyclopedic Dictionary of Media, Entertainment and Other Audiovisual Terms
A microphone where sound waves are converted into electrical impulses by a wire coil or ribbon attached to a diaphragm. The sound waves vibrate the diaphragm, which moves the coil or ribbon through a magnetic field. This creates small electric impulses that match the frequency and relative volume of…
| 138 words
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Full text Article SoundField microphone

From A/V A to Z: An Encyclopedic Dictionary of Media, Entertainment and Other Audiovisual Terms
A SoundField microphone, left, and the...
The trade name for a range of microphone systems manufactured by SoundField Ltd in Britain for stereo, surround sound, and ambisonic recording. Each microphone incorporates a proprietary four-capsule array, which, in conjunction with SoundField's signal processing, will accurately reproduce true…
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