Microphone Choices:

Oddball Connectors And Spaghetti!

There’s a cardboard produce box stashed in a secret compartment under the trunk of the HARPMOBILE. Although its label reads “SWISS ARMY KNIVES” not a blade, compass, or corkscrew is to be found within it. The Victorinox Corp. had nothing to do with producing the myriad of “tools” you would see assembled there. This box holds a vast array of SONIC Swiss army knives, and as with its namesake has the task of being the multi-tool called upon for solving a number of CONTINUITY-related tasks. It’s a collection of the audio connectors, adaptors, and cables that are necessary for interfacing between the inputs of popular amplifier systems and the various forms LORD MICROPHONE has taken throughout his many incarnations. The contents of this box is a history of a developing industry struggling with standardization. Just have a look…

 It would be nearly impossible to offer up a complete (and accurate) history of the couplers and connectors that have found their way into the service of LORD MICROPHONE. Suffice it to say that many different manufacturers came up with many different solutions to the problem of connectivity between their MICS and the rest of the audio chain—and those solutions have had a way of shifting like desert sands over time. We’ve arrived at a point where it has become as common to refer to audio connectors by their manufacturer’s names (AMPHENOL, SWITCHCRAFT, CANNON) as it is to call them by their part number or model designation (MC1F, 2501MP, XLR). This can be cause for confusion on an elemental level. In a business where “communication” is fundamental, it pays to get the info correct…

Many devotees of the TIN SANDWICH will refer to the single-contact “coupling ring connectors” found on old ASTATIC mics as “AMPHENOL CONNECTORS.” Well, Amphenol did produce these connectors (the MC1), but they also produced a wide variety of multi-pin units that found their way into audio use as well—such as the ones found on the popular SHURE UNIDYNE series mics (AMPHENOL Series 80 and Series 91 connectors). What were once referred to as “PROFESSIONAL AUDIO” or “CANNON PLUGS” and have come to be known as the XLR series, are produced by Cannon, Switchcraft, Amphenol, Neutrik, and others.

One of the simplest and most common generic designations in audio is the “PHONE PLUG” which came into use with the growing telecommunications industry of the early 20th century. BEWARE! Even this common coin of the realm has its peculiarities: The switchboard and patch bay PHONE PLUGS are NOT all quarter-inch or standard length, and many TIP-RING-SLEEVE plug configurations found on communications microphones are NOT wired “standard” audio (TIP “HOT”/SLEEVE “GROUND”).

One of the best multi-purpose connectivity tools to keep handy in your SWISS ARMY KNIFE box is a 6’ length of audio cable that sports a standard ¼” PHONE PLUG (let’s say a Switchcraft 280) wired to one end and two “ALLIGATOR CLIP” connectors soldered to the bare leads at the other end.  This little piece of spaghetti can be a real problem solver when testing a variety of audio components (MIC ELEMENTS) and for trouble-shooting mics you might come across that have bare-end cables—OR those non-standard TIP-RING-SLEEVE PHONE PLUGS! There’s always a solution…

SPAGHETTI –AND SAUCE! NEXT TIME WE VISIT…
THE MIC BENCH!

For pictures and descriptions of most of the microphones listed visit http://www.harmonicamasterclass.com/vintage_collection.htm