naturerecordists
[Top] [All Lists]

desiccating AT3032 mics

Subject: desiccating AT3032 mics
From: "Dan Dugan" dandugan_1999
Date: Tue Jan 3, 2012 10:42 pm ((PST))
My small fleet of AT3032s has become increasingly unreliable after several =
years of use. Typically one of a set of four will start popping when they'r=
e put out in the cold at night or in the early morning.

I've tested them by putting them into a freezer and listening for pops. In =
my recent test run six of nine capsules started popping within 20-30 minute=
s. Admittedly this test may be extreme, but I'm trying to accelerate the ef=
fect of internal condensation.

My attempt to save them is to try storing them with desiccant -- perhaps ov=
er the years moisture has diffused into the capsules, and perhaps a good lo=
ng drying-out will restore them.

I got a set of little ventilated plastic boxes containing color-indicating =
desiccant beads. I activated the desiccant modules in a food dryer for a fe=
w hours at around 160 degrees F. They turned blue.

I've packed each mic in a quart ziploc bag with a desiccant box. They've be=
en that way several days now, and I'm experimenting with measuring the humi=
dity in the bags by sealing in my Kestrel 3000 weather station and taking a=
 reading a couple of hours later. The minimum humidity I observe is around =
15%. I was expecting it to go lower.

Has anybody else tried something like this?

-Dan





<Prev in Thread] Current Thread [Next in Thread>
Admin

The University of NSW School of Computer and Engineering takes no responsibility for the contents of this archive. It is purely a compilation of material sent by many people to the naturerecordists mailing list. It has not been checked for accuracy nor its content verified in any way. If you wish to get material removed from the archive or have other queries about the archive e-mail Andrew Taylor at this address: andrewt@cse.unsw.EDU.AU