not-so-ghetto ribbon mic UPDATE!!

johnny7 · Post by **johnny7** » Thu Feb 19, 2009 9:24 pm

Yes, regular old "tin foil" works. Our drummer built a ribbon mic with parts " scientifically chosen to be the cheapest". He used some foil and corrugated it with a couple of gears. We were recording a garage tune and employed this mic for the guitar. Low output and dark but, damnit, it works. He has now moved onto using mylar...

ubertar · Post by **ubertar** » Thu Feb 19, 2009 9:47 pm

johnny7 wrote:Yes, regular old "tin foil" works. Our drummer built a ribbon mic with parts " scientifically chosen to be the cheapest". He used some foil and corrugated it with a couple of gears. We were recording a garage tune and employed this mic for the guitar. Low output and dark but, damnit, it works. He has now moved onto using mylar...

I've tried mylar too, with mixed results. It's hard to find stuff that is thin enough. Pop tart wrappers work pretty well. They can be inconsistent as far as conductivity goes though. The foil from old caps is much thinner than store aluminum foil. Marik mentioned it a while back... that's where I got the idea to use it.

ubertar · Post by **ubertar** » Thu Feb 19, 2009 9:52 pm

Snarl 12/8 wrote:Can someone explain to me how/why that works? Is there something special about using foil from a capacitor? Or would this work with aluminum foil?

The foil from caps is thinner, like a "real" ribbon, so it's much more sensitive than store-bought aluminum foil, and probably purer and a better conductor. Gum wrappers are pretty good too... soak 'em to remove the paper.

Scodiddly · Post by **Scodiddly** » Fri Feb 20, 2009 5:05 am

bendymusic wrote:Cool, but man the new popsicle sticks suck compared to the old Neumann ones. So much more vibe. Too bad the prices are all pegged on the 'bay, you could get some and have yourself a really cool mic.

I've been buying old Martin guitars and cutting them up to make better popsicle sticks. It's expensive, but you get a lot of sticks out of the deal.

lyman · Post by **lyman** » Fri Feb 20, 2009 5:55 am

that's some MacGyver shit, right there. awesome!

BENDYmusic · Post by **BENDYmusic** » Fri Feb 20, 2009 5:24 pm

Scodiddly wrote:I've been buying old Martin guitars and cutting them up to make better popsicle sticks. It's expensive, but you get a lot of sticks out of the deal.

Good idea, I was thinking a Stradivarius might work for this? Not sure if the impedance is right. But then anything old should work better even if its totally the wrong thing.

&e

RefD · Post by **RefD** » Fri Feb 20, 2009 9:21 pm

Impressive...

qball · Post by **qball** » Fri Feb 27, 2009 12:08 pm

SWEET!!! Let's see a stereo version!

EvMicTech · Post by **EvMicTech** » Fri Feb 27, 2009 11:10 pm

I can't believe the tone coming out of that ribbon

Message Board

not-so-ghetto ribbon mic UPDATE!!

Who is online