A bit of digging suggests this is a Samson C01U, which has a supercardioid pattern centered on the bar, so it will pickup the largest spectrum pointed right at the source as OP has it, though it would also pickup on the sides fairly well.
Sorry, but this is just wrong. All mics of this type I know of are oriented towards the grill, not towards the bar, I don’t know where you got that info from.
Just to really make sure, you can check on this disassembly video (around the 6 minute mark) that the capsule is oriented towards the grill, and you’ll get the least pickup from the bar (which is the side).
Well, technically the least pickup is behind the bar and not straight, but you’ll get very muddy sound from the side anyways, since you lose most high frequencies.
I don’t think the center line and top bar are the same thing. It’s probably just referring to the center of the front. Hypercardioid mics don’t perform well off-axis. The line after the quoted one is talking about plosives and how you can rotate the mic if they become an issue, assuming the diaphragm is pointing at your mouth.
I think by the “center line” they mean the 0º angle of the polar diagram, but the wording could definitely be better. I’m sure about it though, cause the capsule is oriented towards the front of the mic (where the “samson” logo and the led indicator are).
Sorry, probably oversimplified there. You’re right that the term condenser just refers to the element.
I had a very similar looking Samson condenser with that shape (grill on top with the bar splitting in half) and it had the element parallel to the body of the mic. So assuming it’s similar to mine was, yes it’ll probably work fine as mounted. But I’d bet if OP tilts it “upside down” and rotates 90deg one way or another (speaking into the grill, not the bar) they’d find much better signal/noise.
It may actually help with the balance, but I think you have that mic pointed the wrong way.
Looks to me like a condenser with an element parallel to the body, it’d be better if you talk directly into the side of the mesh not the front:
Condenser mics are just the overall technology used to capture sound. They don’t all have the same polar pattern (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microphone#Polar_patterns).
A bit of digging suggests this is a Samson C01U, which has a supercardioid pattern centered on the bar, so it will pickup the largest spectrum pointed right at the source as OP has it, though it would also pickup on the sides fairly well.
Sorry, but this is just wrong. All mics of this type I know of are oriented towards the grill, not towards the bar, I don’t know where you got that info from.
Just to really make sure, you can check on this disassembly video (around the 6 minute mark) that the capsule is oriented towards the grill, and you’ll get the least pickup from the bar (which is the side).
Well, technically the least pickup is behind the bar and not straight, but you’ll get very muddy sound from the side anyways, since you lose most high frequencies.
Source: I’m an audio technician.
I looked up the user manual (https://samsontech.com/products/microphones/usb-microphones/c01upro/) which says to point the bar at the mouth when recording vocals for best sounds.
Manuals aren’t infallible, though, or maybe I’m misunderstanding the wording. If you’re familiar with the internals, then I’ll take your word for it.
I don’t think the center line and top bar are the same thing. It’s probably just referring to the center of the front. Hypercardioid mics don’t perform well off-axis. The line after the quoted one is talking about plosives and how you can rotate the mic if they become an issue, assuming the diaphragm is pointing at your mouth.
I think by the “center line” they mean the 0º angle of the polar diagram, but the wording could definitely be better. I’m sure about it though, cause the capsule is oriented towards the front of the mic (where the “samson” logo and the led indicator are).
Sorry, probably oversimplified there. You’re right that the term condenser just refers to the element.
I had a very similar looking Samson condenser with that shape (grill on top with the bar splitting in half) and it had the element parallel to the body of the mic. So assuming it’s similar to mine was, yes it’ll probably work fine as mounted. But I’d bet if OP tilts it “upside down” and rotates 90deg one way or another (speaking into the grill, not the bar) they’d find much better signal/noise.
Interesting! I wasn’t aware that’s how these are used!
Yeah so I tried changing the orientation and it did not make a noticeable difference.