The much of the information and the images below are from Recording Hacks web site.  Recording Hacks has reviews on many of the microphones we have at CHS. I have included images for the frequency response for each microphone below. Please read more at there web site.

Mr. Le Duc’s Sample Recording

Microphone Polar Patterns (How the mic ‘hears’)

Polar pattern images from Wikipedia by Wikimedia Commons user Galak76

(Microphones are facing top of blog page)

Omnidirectional (used to pick up ambient, public, natural sound)

Bi-directional or Figure of 8 (used to mimic stereo sound like our ears)

Subcardioid

Cardioid  (from the Greek καρδία “heart”)

Hypercardioid

Supercardioid

Shotgun (used in primarily in film)

Recording Tips

“A common problem when recording vocalists, particularly if they are more familiar with live performance than studio work, is of that they can get much too close to the microphone, causing popping, sibilance, excessive bass boost, and creating humidity problems. Very large foam windshields might help, but a separate pop shield (the nylon stocking on a wire frame idea) mounted four or five inches in front of the mic is better. An alternative technique is to rig a microphone for the vocalist to ‘eat’ with a second mic positioned something like eight inches further back and six inches higher. Normally you would record only the sound of the distant (normally a decent capacitor mic), but if you rig a conventional live-performance dynamic model as the close mic and mix in some of that mic’s signal, you can achieve a more interesting and slightly aggressive sound!”

– from 20 Tips On Using Microphones at SoundonSound.com

Studio Projects C1

• The C1 is a cardioid, large-diaphragm condenser microphone
• Compares with professional microphones costing 10 times more
• Good for many recording situations including voice, instruments, etc.
• Read more: http://recordinghacks.com/microphones/Studio-Projects/C1

Below is a comparison with a Studio Projects C1 priced at $300 and a Neumann U87 Ai legendary microphone that is priced at over $3,000.

Shure SM58

• The SM58 is a cardioid dynamic microphone
• Perhaps the most widely known vocal mic in the world, the SM58 celebrates its 50th anniversary in 2016
• Read more: http://recordinghacks.com/microphones/Shure/SM58
• Check out the SM58 Torture Test

Sennheiser e906

• The e609 is a super-cardioid dynamic microphone
• Designed for miking guitar cabinets face-on and extremely close to the source
• Provides isolation from other onstage signals
• Also suitable for miking drums, especially toms
• Read more: http://recordinghacks.com/microphones/Sennheiser/e906

Rode Procaster

• The Procaster is a cardioid dynamic microphone
• It is designed for the radio and television broadcast market
• It owes a design debt to Electro-Voice  RE-20; both are end-address dynamics tailored for close-miked vocals
• Read more: http://recordinghacks.com/microphones/Rode/Procaster

AKG C1000S

• The C1000S is a cardioid small-diaphragm condenser microphone
• It has been used for live music, broadcast vocals, podcasting, and instrument miking
• It is called the Swiss army knife of recording
• Read more: http://recordinghacks.com/microphones/AKG-Acoustics/C-1000-S

Blue Baby Bottle

• The The Baby Bottle is a pressure-gradient cardioid condenser
• Has smooth and natural midrange and doesn’t have excessive high-end sizzle
• Read more: http://recordinghacks.com/microphones/Blue-Microphones/Baby-Bottle

Rode VideoMicro and Canon DSLR Microphone Tutorial

Rode VideoMicro DSLR Video Microphone

• The VideoMicro is a cardioid condenser microphone
• A good microphone for recording audio for video
• It mounts on top of the camera and does not need a separate power source
• Read more: http://www.rode.com/microphones/videomicro

Zoom H4N Digital Multi-track Recorder

• The Zoom H4N is a stereo condenser microphone recorder
• It has two microphones at 90 degree angles from each other to reproduce stereo sound
• It can be mounted on top of a camera or used separately to record sound effects, Foley, etc.

Olympus PCM LS-11 Video Tutorial

Olympus PCM LS-11

 Resources for the Microphone Audition

• The Script (PDF)
• The Script (Word)