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What Is An Omnidirectional Microphone? The Universal Microphone
ByAnna Bonilla- Read Time5 mins
What Is An Omnidirectional Microphone?
Omnidirectional microphones pick up sounds from all directions and are most often used for live sound, film/video, and podcasting. They’re also great when you need to pick up a sound source that’s far away.
Omnidirectional mics are also good at capturing sound from a wide range of directions. In fact, omnidirectional microphones can pick up sounds from all directions, including the front and back as well as above and below them. This is because they don’t have directional filters built in to block out unwanted noise from certain angles or frequencies, so they’re more sensitive than other kinds of microphones.
This makes them especially handy for capturing a wide range of sounds, such as everything coming from the stage in a live venue or all the people talking at once in an interview. Omnidirectional mics pick up audio better than directional mics, but they also tend to pick up more unwanted noise because they have no specific directionality.
How Does An Omnidirectional Microphone Work?
When it comes to audio equipment, the term “omnidirectional” describes a microphone that’s meant to pick up sound from all directions. You’ll notice that omnidirectional mics have large diaphragms to capture more of the room around them. They’re also not very sensitive — they can’t pick up very faint sounds and are usually not great for live performances.
Omnidirectional microphones work by picking up sound waves from every direction at once, so they don’t have any directionality (like cardioid or hypercardioid). Omnidirectional microphones are great for recording concerts because they capture some ambient noise from the crowd as well as onstage details. In general, this type of microphone won’t be used in professional studios but are pretty standard among musicians who want a more natural sound than what is produced by other kinds of directional microphones.
Features Of An Omnidirectional Microphone
Omnidirectional microphones are generally used in situations where it’s not required to isolate the source of a sound. Omnidirectional microphones are ideal for recording ambient sounds, like nature and wildlife, as well as capturing the atmosphere of a performance or event.
Omnidirectional microphones also excel at recording instruments and vocals but typically require close proximity to the instrument or vocalist. While omnidirectional mics can record sounds from all directions, this means that they’ll also pick up more ambient noise than directional mics do (such as people talking).
Because of their comprehensive pickup patterns feature, omnidirectional mics work well when you want to capture multiple sources simultaneously (such as an ensemble performance). Still, their hypercardioid predecessors perform better at isolating individual sources so that you can focus on one performer at a time.
This means that you’ll get less distortion when recording live music or an instrument like drums, but it also means that you’ll be able to hear every cough during a performance with crystal clarity.
Uses Of An Omnidirectional Microphone
The omnidirectional microphone is used for ambient sound recording and live sound reinforcement. It’s also great for recording instruments and vocals. They are used in most situations where audio quality isn’t as important as simply capturing every sound in the room, such as recording ambient noise at a concert or capturing the sounds of wildlife.
For instance, if you want to record a band playing in concert or have someone record an interview with multiple people in the room at once (like four people around one table), using an omnidirectional mic will help prevent you from having to worry about the source being too close. You can just put it on the table and get good audio quality no matter where they sit!
Omnidirectional mics are also helpful if you’re filming something outdoors because there’s no way of knowing where exactly a particular noise will come from. For example: imagine shooting outside on an airplane runway near take-off time; there are going to be lots of planes taking off nearby and landing nearby — and each plane is going to make different noises as it does this. If your camera operator were using directional microphones instead of omnidirectional ones for these scenes, then he’d only hear what was coming from directly behind him (or whatever direction his mics were pointed).
Average Price For An Omnidirectional Microphone
The average price of an omnidirectional microphone is $100. But, like all devices you can purchase, it will depend on the brand and its features and parts.
There are also different types of omnidirectional microphones to choose from, so you can find one that fits your needs. For example, small diaphragm omnidirectional microphones tend to cost around $80, while large-diaphragm ones usually go for about $120.
Frequently Asked Questions
Wrap Up
At the end of the day, omnidirectional microphones are an excellent choice for any situation. They’re easy to use, affordable, and have such a wide range of applications that they can be used in any sound recording scenario imaginable. If you’re looking for a cheap microphone that will get the job done right every time, then an omnidirectional mic should definitely be one of your top picks!
