From: Dan Dugan <>
>
> Lang Elliott, you wrote,
>
>
>>They use DPA 4060 series miniature mikes in the pro unit. I just checked and
>>found these little mikes have a whopping A-weighted noise rating of 23dbA,
>>clearly unsuitable for nature applications. You can find specs at
>>www.dpamicrophones.com, under their miniture microphone classification.
>
>
> I don't think 23 dBA is so bad; my little Shure WR183s have a noise
> level rated at 22 dBA, and they're quiet enough to record quiet
> ambiences if you don't crank them up unnaturally high.
It all depends on your definition of quiet ambiences. If they are loud
enough, or have limited dynamic range, then even noisy mics can record
them acceptably. But, as the ambience sound level drops, or you want to
look deeper into it's dynamic range, a 23 dBA mic will intrude lots of
times when a 10 dBA mic won't.
So, what self noise does is set limits of where and for what purpose you
can record. Lower self noise sets less limits if everything else is the
same.
I agree with Lang, 23 dBA is too often too high.
And remember, we are not talking a mic as cheap as the Shure. If it was
that cheap, we would not expect that low noise. But at thousands of
dollars, I do expect the low self noise. Making the holophone a bad deal
for the money.
Walt
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