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Constructional Project
Build a low-cost, calibrated
Measurement Microphone
If you have ever wanted to characterise or build loudspeakers but couldn’t
justify the cost of a fancy microphone, or you want several microphones
you can tailor for performance or recording, this project is for you. It’s a
phantom-powered, balanced, calibrated microphone you can build for
much less money than a commercial equivalent.
Project by Phil Prosser
T
his project aims to build a lowcost measurement microphone
using an inexpensive electret condenser microphone (ECM) and a few
other bits and pieces. The WM61A
and alternative ECM capsules listed
below are only a few dollars each.
If you recycle parts for the housing,
you can make a good microphone
for under £20, which is ideal for getting started.
With the calibration files we provide, it will let you measure frequency
response to within about ±2dB from
20Hz to 20kHz.
This Microphone uses phantom
power, where the power for the microphone is provided over the signal
lines from your microphone preamplifier or mixer. Most commercial microphone preamps can provide this,
along with many similar DIY designs
(including my Loudspeaker Testing
Jig, published in the June 2024 issue).
This avoids the need for batteries and
is widely supported.
If you want to build this as a measurement microphone, plenty of ECM
capsules with calibration files are
available from the Silicon Chip Online
Shop at a modest cost. The capsules
are numbered and you just need to
match up your number with the downloaded file to get accurate calibration
data for that capsule.
We also have instructions to tailor
the frequency response of a microphone for vocal or instrumental use.
Aiming for a flat response
How well does it work? Fig.1 compares the raw performance of two £1
WM61A capsules to our reference
Dayton EMM-6 microphone. This is
before the application of the calibration file. The curves’ 10-12dB offset
is simply due to these capsules being
more efficient than the EMM-6; note
how the responses barely go outside
the 9-11dB/11-13dB ranges that represent ±1dB from the average.
To achieve this comparison, we
placed the microphones within a
couple of millimetres of the same
point as the reference microphone.
We feel the performance shown is
pretty good for such a simple and
low-cost design.
As mentioned earlier, the capsules
we’re offering come with calibration
data that allows the 1-2dB error to be
corrected. The calibration accuracy is
limited by our Dayton reference microphone, although we are confident
that above 50Hz, it is flat within a
couple of decibels.
A Behringer ECM8000 runs about
£40, while the Dayton EMM-6 starts
at around £70. As mentioned earlier,
you can probably build the Microphone described here for around £20,
possibly a bit less.
Note that the ECM8000 doesn’t come
with a calibration file, while this one
does, making it even better value. So
you can achieve pretty good performance at a very competitive cost with
this project.
To get the best from your Microphone, the design incorporates a phantom-powered preamp and a balanced
output buffer based on an industrystandard design, the ‘Schoeps transformerless design’. This harks back to
Here’s a collection of the types of Measurement Microphones you can build.
The Panasonic WM-61A microphone.
14
Practical Electronics | September | 2024
Calibrated Measurement Microphones
Fig.1: a comparison of the performance of two of the £1 WM61A
microphones capsules to our reference Dayton EMM-6. This is uncalibrated
performance; we can supply ECM capsules with calibration files that will
reduce these errors. The offset of about 10dB/12dB for the two samples
means those capsules are significantly more sensitive than the Dayton EMM6, which is rated at -40.3dBV/Pa.
the 1960s and is used in a vast range
of professional and measurement microphones. We have added an input
and filtering section to suit the ECM
capsules we present here.
The design is quite conventional,
so you can make a general purpose
phantom powered electret condenser microphone using this project. As
you will see later, we have included
the ability to tune the Microphone’s
response.
In our application, this is to get
a flat response, but nothing is stopping you from using that capability
to adjust the microphone response to
suit vocals or instruments.
So, how can you really get a good
electret microphone for two bucks?
ECMs are very simple devices and are
made in huge volumes. As shown in
Fig.2, they work by sound moving a
very thin diaphragm relative to a backplate that is connected (typically) to
the gate of a FET. A charge is created
between these, and the capacitance
between the diaphragm and backplate changes as the sound moves the
diaphragm.
The formula is C = ε0 × A ÷ d, where
d is the separation between the diaphragm and the backplate, A is the
area of the plate and ε0 is a mathematical constant. The charge between the
plates Q is constant, and since C = Q
÷ V, as the capacitance changes due
to the sound, so does the voltage between them (V). This drives the FET.
Practical Electronics | September | 2024
As the capsules are tiny, and the
diaphragm extremely light, these devices can have excellent frequency response to very high frequencies with
little resonance.
The Panasonic WM-60A and
WM-61A microphones are legendary examples and have an exceptionally usable frequency response from
20Hz to 20kHz. In the past, they were
the mainstay of DIY measurement microphones. They were a workhorse
component used in a wide range of
devices, including telephones, which
meant they were made by the million
and thus cheap.
Panasonic stopped making these in
the early 2000s, which some ascribe
to the demise of the old-fashioned
‘phone. Panasonic capsules can still
be found, but many sellers list generic
6mm capsules as WM-61As. We bought
a large quantity of real ‘new old stock’
(NOS) parts, all from a single batch,
measured their response, and are offering them for sale – see Table 1.
Before we found a batch of old stock
WM61As, we bought and tested a huge
number of microphone capsules. Our
experience has been that ECM capsules that are ‘flat’ to 20kHz tend to be
6mm diameter units; they are pretty
small. The larger 10mm ones generally exhibit a significant peak in the
response between 5kHz and 10kHz,
making them less than ideal for measurement applications.
Therefore, all our recommend-
Fig.2: the structure of an electret
condenser microphone (ECM). The
internal FET amplifies the small AC
voltage generated by the diaphragm
moving in relation to the charged
backplate.
ed ECM capsules are 6mm. We also
learned that the majority of capsules
available cannot be used in this project
as they exhibit peaks or dips, many
over 10dB, that we are not comfortable addressing by calibration.
Virtually all the satisfactory mics
we found will be available from the
Silicon Chip Online Shop, including
the required SMD calibration components, all for similar prices.
Another thing we learned is that
there is no ideal ECM capsule that will
give acceptable performance without
calibration or at least some equalisation of the native response of the
capsule. The old Panasonic WM61A
capsules tend to be more consistent
than most modern alternatives, but
there can still be significant differences in frequency response from
batch to batch.
Manufacturers present typical frequency response plots for their ECMs,
but there is significant variability in
their response above 10kHz between
batches.
The Primo EM258 capsules are excellent, but at £6.10 plus shipping,
they are starting to defeat our goal of
a low-cost design.
We eventually concluded that calibration of each ECM capsule is essential. So we have done a couple
of things:
● We designed a circuit that allows
you to add a peak or dip and either
a ramp up or down to the frequency
15
Constructional Project
response. We have determined the
required combination for each type
of ECM we tested to get a reasonably
flat response.
● Each ECM capsule we supply
has a serial number matching a set
of calibration corrections to make it
perform even better than just with
the frequency response adjustment.
The calibration file can be loaded
into the Room Equalisation Wizard
(REW) or Speaker Workshop software
to get your measurements as close as
possible to ideal.
For those who want to build a vocal
or instrument microphone, we will
show you how to tune the circuit’s
response to get the ‘colour’ you want
in the microphone you build. If you
are making a vocal microphone, you
don’t need one of the calibrated ECM
capsules from our store; you can save
money by buying a similar one from
an internet vendor.
Which capsule do we prefer? The
NOS Panasonic devices still stand
out. The best still-officially-available
type is the Primo device. The CMC2742PBJ-A is pretty good with compensation (and still available). With
compensation, all the types we’re
selling are within a decibel or so of
our reference mic to at least 10kHz,
and with calibration, will be within
±2dB (or better) of our reference mic.
Performance
We are proud of the performance
achieved, especially in a low-cost
project. Fig.3 shows the compensated (but not calibrated) frequency response of 10 of the ECM capsules we
tested. Some things we noticed are:
● The CMC6027-24T family of devices are very sensitive. That could
be beneficial under certain circumstances, but using these for very close
measurements or in very loud settings
will result in potential compression
and distortion.
● All microphones are within ±3dB
of their average before the application of calibration over the range of
50Hz-20kHz
● All are pretty flat through the
region where you would put a bassmid and midrange-tweeter crossover (although the JLI61A has a bit
of a bump). So you could use these
mics for such purposes even without
calibration.
● The WM61A lot 4A14 microphones are brilliant. The great news
16
is that we have lots of these available
for constructors!
Circuit description
The electronics to drive the microphone capsule is not complex, as
shown in Fig.4.
The circuit has three main parts:
buffers for driving the balanced output
lines, a gain stage which includes some
cunning frequency compensation and
a power supply for the gain stage.
The first thing to keep in mind when
looking at this circuit is that pins 2 &
3 of CON1, the XLR socket, act as both
48V DC power inputs and AC signal
outputs. The 48V DC is ‘phantom
power’ from the upstream equipment
like a mixer or microphone preamplifier. It is dropped across the 6.8kW resistors in the phantom power source,
allowing the Microphone to vary the
voltages on these pins to feed the signals back.
PNP transistors Q1 and Q2 are
emitter-f ollower buffers with 6.8V
zener diode clamps between their
collectors and emitters.
The DC bias point for Q1 and Q2 is
established by the 150kW resistors between their bases and collectors. The
current flowing from their emitters to
their collectors provide the supply current to the rest of the circuit via R12.
Once power is applied, as the collector voltages of Q1 and Q2 increase,
the base current through the 150kW
resistors falls until DC equilibrium is
established. For AC signals, Q1 and Q2
act as emitter-followers with the AC
signals being coupled to their bases
through 1μF electrolytic capacitors.
Is this really balanced audio? By
driving the hot pin with the microphone output and the cold pin from
ground, we provide a differential
output from the Microphone. The
balanced line receiver for the Microphone will subtract any signal on the
cold line from the hot, providing the
immunity from noise pickup in the
cable we seek.
The 48V DC phantom supply is
dropped across the 6.8kW series resistors in the microphone preamplifier and 5.6kW resistor R12 to the 6.8V
limit set by zener diode ZD2.
The collectors of Q1 & Q2 will sit at
around 32V, as exlained below. This
voltage (and the current that establishes it) supplies power to the amplifying NPN transistor, Q3, and the
ECM itself, in both cases via 5.6kW
resistor R12.
The circuit includes 1nF and 2.2nF
capacitors from pins 2 & 3 of CON1 to
ground, with 47W resistors between
them, to increase the immunity of the
circuit to radio-frequency interference
(RFI). These parts do little to affect the
low-frequency audio signals or phantom power but will heavily attenuate
ultrasonic signals.
Additionally, 470pF ‘Miller’ capacitors across the base resistors of Q1 &
Q2 roll off the frequency response of
these buffer transistors above audible
frequencies.
Fig.3: the frequency responses of a selection of ECM capsules, including their
recommended frequency correction parts, but without calibration corrections.
These curves themselves form the calibration correction files. The vertical
offsets represent differences in sensitivity, but we are mainly interested in the
flatness of each curve (flatter is better from a measurement perspective).
Practical Electronics | September | 2024
Calibrated Measurement Microphones
Power supply
The power supply for the ECM is
very simple but includes plenty of
filtering to get a stable DC supply
from the hot and cold lines carrying
our audio signal. We mentioned the
6.8V derived from the phantom power
across ZD2. This is low-pass filtered to
remove noise by the 100µF capacitor
across ZD2, in combination with the
source resistances (6.8kW & 5.6kW).
It is further filtered by another lowpass filter (330W/10µF) before being
applied to Q3 and the ECM. This is
because the signal from the ECM is so
low in amplitude that any noise getting through could seriously degrade
our signal-to-noise ratio (SNR).
Table 1 – Tested Microphone Capsules
Model
Source
Notes
Panasonic
WM-61A
– AliExpress
1005004118951415
Gives the flattest response overall.
Panasonic
WM-61A
– eBay 164187904055
– Silicon Chip SC6761
“Lot 4A14” – large quantity
available; also gives a very flat
response.
JLI-61A
– www.micbooster.com
– www.jlielectronics.com
– Silicon Chip SC6762
“Lot 3” – needs compensation for
good performance.
JLI-61AY-102
– www.micbooster.com
– www.jlielectronics.com
– Silicon Chip SC6763
Better than the JLI-61A but still
needs compensation.
CUI
CMC-6027-24
– Mouser
– Silicon Chip SC6764
Can have suffixes “T” or “L100”
(they give the same performance).
They are the most sensitive of
the tested types and among
the flattest response with
compensation applied.
Frequency compensation
Finally, we have the ECM interface
and frequency compensation. This
part of the circuit can be as simple
as a bias resistor (R8 or R14) and an
amplifying transistor (Q3).
During our tests, we found several microphones that required either
boosting their output at high frequencies, attenuating at high frequencies, or
a little of both to give a flat response.
Therefore, all our compensation is
targeted at higher frequencies. Boost
is achieved by R10/C12. These parts
are in parallel with the emitter resistor of Q3 and thus increase the gain
of Q3 at higher frequencies. We can
set the corner frequency and the ultimate boost level by choosing the
values of these parts.
– Mouser
CUI
CMC-2742PBJ-A – Silicon Chip SC6765
Requires compensation and
calibration, giving a reasonably
flat response but with roll-off
below 50Hz & above 15kHz.
– element14
Requires compensation for good
performance.
– element14
Kingstate
KECG2742TBL-A
Requires compensation for good
performance.
Kingstate
KECG2740PBJ
Primo
EM258
– www.micbooster.com
High-frequency attenuation is
achieved by R13/C14, which are effectively in parallel with Q3’s 2.2kW
collector resistor. Again, these parts
can set the corner frequency and ultimate attenuation.
This modification of the simple
Excellent performer; expensive, no
compensation required.
transistor amplifier (Q3) provides a
powerful tool to tailor the response
of a capsule. By implementing these
corrections inside the Microphone, we
achieve a respectably flat frequency
response and leave only ‘fine-tuning’
to a calibration file.
Fig.4: pins 2 & 3 of CON1 supply DC power (nominally 48V with source resistances of ~6.8kW) and are also the balanced
audio signal outputs. PNP transistors Q1 & Q2 drive the audio signals onto those pins; their collector-emitter currents
(and any current shunted by parallel zener diodes ZD1 & ZD3) also provide a power supply for amplifier transistor Q3
and the electric mic. The transistors shown are for the SMD version. Note that R8 is only fitted with 3-wire ECMs.
Practical Electronics | September | 2024
17
Constructional Project
Fig.5 shows how the compensation works. The green trace is the frequency response of the circuit using
a JLI61A ECM with no compensation;
note the ~7dB peak at about 7.5kHz.
The red curve shows the compensation achieved with R10 = 220W, C12 =
12nF, R13 = 2.2kW & C14 = 15nF, and
the blue curve is the much-flatter ultimate frequency response achieved.
There is still a small peak of about
+3dB, but we can’t knock it down further without overly attenuating signals at about 2-6kHz and 10-20kHz.
It isn’t much bigger than some other
peaks after compensation, anyway.
Most ECM capsules within a batch
behave similarly. During our calibration process, we set aside any parts
that were outliers. Thus, you are guaranteed to get a pretty good response
without the compensation file, and a
very flat response with it.
If you source your own ECM capsules, you will need to optimise the
response and generate a calibration
file. This project provides everything
you need to do that, except a calibrated microphone against which to make
the required measurements.
Two PCB options
If possible, we recommend you build
the SMD version where all parts are on
the top side. However, we have also
laid out a through-hole version and
managed to squeeze it into a 13mm
wide PCB, but it is 99mm long rather
Why bother with analog frequency compensation?
If we are supplying a calibration file, why not just leave all the corrections to
that file, and omit R10/C12 and R13/C14 from the circuit?
If the microphone would only be used in a measurement system with a calibration file installed, there would be no reason to care that the Microphone
itself had significant errors in its inherent frequency response.
However, we wanted to make a microphone that, in itself, was quite respectable, leaving calibration via the associated file for fine-tuning. That means you
could use it with other software without calibration support and still get reasonable performance.
We also wanted to make a microphone that could be used for recording,
with the possibility of tailoring it for vocal and instrumental use. By including
these parts, we can do both.
Because our calibration files are generated with the specified frequency
compensation parts installed, if you use one of our ECM capsules and calibration file, you must load the recommended parts to get optimal performance.
than the 64mm of the SMD version.
The two versions are shown in Figs.6
and 7.
Both these boards have been made
thin enough to fit in a ‘skinny’ microphone case. Neither is hard to assemble, but we reckon the SMD one
is less fiddly than the through-hole
version due to all the parts mounting on one side.
The smallest parts on the SMD board
are the SOT-23 transistors and zener
diodes, which are not that hard to
solder. We hand-built about 20 prototypes and, without a doubt, soldering the ECM capsule pins is fiddlier
than anything on the SMD PCB. So,
unless you have plenty of room to
house the through-hole PCB, we rec-
Fig.5: the frequency compensation for a JLI61A microphone. Here we have
set the compensation (red curve) to push down the peak in its response (green
curve) while limiting attenuation at high frequencies. This is not perfect, as
we need to match a batch of microphone elements with these parts, but we
reckon ±2dB across most of the band is a good result for a microphone.
18
ommend you make the effort to build
the surface mount version.
SMD board assembly
The SMD version of the board is
coded 01108231 and measures 64 ×
13mm.
Start by fitting the resistors and
ceramic ‘chip’ capacitors. There are
variations depending on whether you
have a 2-pin or 3-pin ECM and what
compensation components are required. If you have a 2-pin ECM, fit
R14 (2.2kW, near CON2) and leave off
R8 (10kW). If you have a 3-pin ECM,
fit R8 (10kW) and leave off R14 (2.2kW,
near CON2).
The compensation components are
R10, R13, C12 and C14; they are all
between Q3 and ZD2. Refer to Table
2 to determine which of these you
need to fit for your ECM (if you purchased it from our shop, it will come
with these components).
Next, mount the three transistors
(one NPN, two PNP) and three zener
diodes. Watch out as these are all in
SOT-23 cases. If you get them mixed
up, you will find a code engraved
on the top of the devices that identifies each.
Unfortunately, this can vary depending on the manufacturer, so you
might need to check the data sheet.
Still, they will probably be one of
these (a question mark ‘?’ represents
any letter or number):
BC849C: 2C?, 49C or 8DC
BC860: 9EA/B/C, 4F? or 4G?
BZX84C6V8: Z5, ?61, D4P, WC or KB
Failing this, you can use a DMM on
diode test mode or our SMD Test Tweezers (from the February 2022 & 2023
issues) to find the base/emitter pins
Practical Electronics | September | 2024
Calibrated Measurement Microphones
Fig.6 (left): this is the SMD version of the PCB. Note that the values (and presence) of R10, R13, C12 and C14 are
varied to match your ECM capsule. Either R8 (10kW) or R14 (2.2kW) is fitted depending on whether you have modified
your capsule; for an unmodified (2-pin) capsule, leave off R8 but fit R14.
Fig.7 (right): to avoid making it too much bigger than the SMD version, the through-hole (TH) PCB has parts mounted
on both sides. In most cases, the solder joints are still accessible should you need to make changes or repairs. It is the
same width as the SMD version but about 50% longer, meaning it won’t fit in the inexpensive plastic case described in
the article.
of the devices. With the single pin at
the top, the base will be at lower left
and the emitter at lower right.
If you get a ~0.65V reading with
the red probe on the left, it’s an NPN
transistor (BC849), or on the right, it’s
a PNP transistor (BC860). If you get
neither, it’s likely a zener diode. They
will give a similar reading with the
red probe on the lower left pin and
the black probe on the top pin (that
forward-biases the zener diode).
The three remaining SMDs are the
three non-polarised 1µF electrolytic capacitors. These come in metal
cans mounted on plastic bases. Like
polarised electros, the bases have
chamfered edges on two corners that
normally indicate the positive end.
Because they are not polarised here,
it doesn’t matter which way around
you mount them.
Since two of these capacitors could
be polarised types, we’ve left polarity markings on the PCB, but we’ve
specified all three as NP caps to make
things a bit easier.
In terms of components on the board,
that just leaves the two through-hole
capacitors, which are both 100μF parts
but with different voltage ratings.
Solder them laid over on their sides,
as shown in our photos, so that the
assembly will fit in a small-diameter
tube. The striped negative end must
go towards the bottom of the PCB,
with the longer positive leads to the
pads marked with + symbols.
Through-hole assembly
The through-hole version of the
board is coded 01108232 and measures 99 × 13mm. This can be assembled as usual, but it’s easier to fit all the
components on one side (ideally the
top side) before starting on the other.
Fit the axial parts first (resistors
and zener diodes, watching the zener
diode’s cathode stripe orientation),
then the MKT and ceramic capacitors with some laid over, as shown in
Fig.7. Leave the electrolytic capacitor
off initially to provide better access to
the remaining solder joints.
Table 2 – microphone capsule calibration component values
Manufacturer
Part
R10
C12
R13
C14
Panasonic
WM61A (AE)
N/A
N/A
100W
5.6nF
Panasonic
WM61A lot 4A14
N/A
N/A
100W
6.8nF
JLI
JL61A
220W
12nF
2.2kW
15nF
JLI
JL60A-V02
220W
12nF
10kW
6.8nF
CUI Devices
CMC-6027-24T
220W
18nF
3.9kW
18nF
CUI Devices
CMC-6027-24L100
220W
18nF
3.9kW
18nF
CUI Devices
CMC2742PBJ
820W
4.7nF
2.2kW
8.2nF
Kingstate
KECG2740PBJ
10W
12nF
3.9kW
6.8nF
Kingstate
KECG2742TBL-A
100W
8.2nF
3.9kW
6.8nF
Primo
EM258
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
Practical Electronics | September | 2024
Refer to the section above regarding which of the optional resistors
and capacitors to install (R10, R14,
C12 & C14).
Next, fit the transistors as shown,
pushing them fully down before soldering and trimming their leads, then
flip the board over and solder the
axial components (resistors & zener
diode) on that side. Again, see the
section above for what to do about R8
and R13. Follow with the single 1µF
MKT on this side of the board, laid
over, then the two electros, laid over
and orientated as shown.
Note that the 100µF 50V electrolytic capacitor is specified in the parts
list as having a maximum diameter
of 8mm. A 47µF 50V electrolytic capacitor is also fine to use, as long as
its 8mm in diameter.
Finally, flip the board back over
and fit the last electrolytic capacitor
(100µF) on that side.
Capacitor selection
Like the other low-value capacitors
What if your phantom power is <48V?
Phantom power for microphones is an old
standard. Like many standards, it is not
particularly well followed.
Most phantom power systems operate
at 48V. For 48V, your preamplifier/mixer
will have 6.8kW series resistors from the
48V supply. However, if it has a 24V supply instead, they will be 1.2kW, or 680W
for a 12V supply.
R12 should be 5.6kW to suit 48V systems or 1.5kW for systems delivering 24V
DC bias or less. Our calculations show that
the Mic will work with 12V & 24V DC supply
systems with R12 set to 1.5kW.
19
Constructional Project
The SMD (left) and through-hole
(below) versions of the Calibrated
Measurement Microphone shown
enlarged. Both have their XLR
sockets fitted.
(<1μF), the compensation capacitors,
which range from 4.7nF to 18nF (if
present) must be plastic film (eg, MKT)
types for the through-hole board or
NP0/C0G ceramics for the SMD board.
Don’t be tempted to use cheaper X5R,
X7R or Y5V ceramic capacitors. They
have a high voltage coefficient and
thus are highly non-linear; definitely
not what we want as part of a filter
network!
The microphone housing
Regardless of which PCB you’ve
assembled, the remainder of construction proceeds in much the same
manner.
The connection to the XLR socket
will depend a lot on the approach
you have to construction. In many
cases, you can push the PCB between
the XLR pins and simply solder the
PCB to the pins directly. How this fits
depends on your chosen connector
and how you house the PCB. If you
are using a metal housing, add a wire
link from the PCB ground pin on the
XLR to the housing.
We want the ECM insert in ‘free
space’ and with minimal reflections
to get flat performance. All the ECM
inserts we recommend are 6mm in
diameter.
We will present two ways to achieve
the required mounting, one based on
metal pipe hardware and the other
using plastic pen cases.
Photo 1 (below) shows the collection of metal parts we used to build
our Microphone, while Photo 3 (overleaf) shows the parts to make the plastic version. How you go about this
comes down to what you can find
in your shed and parts drawer. The
three key goals are:
● We want the ECM insert mounted
at the end of a 100-150mm tube that
it just fits inside.
● We want a section that can house
the PCB. Both PCBs are just under
13mm wide, but the electros are quite
thick, so a tube with an inner diameter of 18-20mm is ideal.
● We want an XLR connector at
the other end.
If you have a vocal or musical instrument application, you might take an
alternative approach to the housing.
Copper housing
We used a K&S #9825 brass tube for
the ECM, which is 7mm outer diameter with 0.45mm wall thickness. An
alternative is K&S #8132 brass tube,
which is 9/32 inches (7.14mm) in
diameter with 0.014-inch (0.36mm)
wall thickness. These are available
from hobby shops in 305mm lengths
for about £4, enough to make two or
three microphones.
The challenge is to expand from
the 7mm tube to the 20mm or 3/4-inch
(19mm) tube that houses the PCB
and XLR connector. You will likely
find your own approach by looking
through your parts bin.
We adapted between the two different diameter pipes by first using the
backshell from an Altronics P0192
RCA socket, which the brass tube
just squeezes into, then fitting this
to the small end of a 15mm to 20mm
copper capillary adaptor. This might
sound complicated, but it is not hard;
Fig.9 and the photos show how it
came together.
The SMD version of the PCB fits into
the 20mm tube easily; the throughhole version is no wider, but it is
quite a bit longer.
In more detail, the 7mm tube was
a tight push-fit into the RCA backshell. We then wrapped the backshell
in 1mm bare copper wire, making it
a tight fit into the 15mm to 20mm
reducer. Because these parts are all
copper and brass, we simply soldered
them together.
There are many ways to do this, but
after some thought, we assembled the
parts using liberal amounts of solder
paste (see Photo 2) and baked it in
our reflow oven at 230°C for a few
minutes. You could use any oven you
don’t cook food in.
We also successfully made microphones using a butane torch to heat
the parts and literally soldered them
using regular solder wire.
We won’t present exact instructions
here, as your parts will likely vary.
Some ingenuity and finding surplus
or recycled parts from your shed will
save you a lot of money and hopefully
be a fun challenge. The key parameter is that you adapt the XLR section
to the 7mm tube 100-150mm long.
Photo 1: we made our ‘high-end’ microphone housing from a 150mm length of 7mm brass tubing with a collection of
copper pipe fittings, 3/4-inch (19mm) copper pipe and an XLR male-to-male adaptor.
20
Practical Electronics | September | 2024
Calibrated Measurement Microphones
Tuning your microphone response
Photo 2: we pushed the 7mm tube
through the RCA backshell, which
was a tight fit. We then wrapped
1mm copper wire around this, which
makes this a close fit to the 20mm to
15mm capillary reducer. The grey
substance is solder paste.
The assembly process was to pull
the microphone wiring through the
7mm tube, with the ground and output
wires soldered to the ECM capsule (see
Fig.8). We felt confident nothing would
short, so we simply tacked the tips of
the hookup wire to the pads/pins on
the ECM capsule.
At the plug end, we snipped the microphone wires off about 30mm past
the opening and connected them to the
PCB. The green (ground) wire goes to
the ground pin, and the black wire (microphone output) to the middle pin.
We then wrangled the wires into the
microphone housing, and once everything was lined up, we fixed the plug
to the housing.
If you are using the Altronics XLR
male-male adaptor, it is a simple matter
of pushing the board in until the screw
Fig.8: how to wire up a regular
two-wire ECM (left) and modified
'Linkwitz' three-wire ECM (right);
note the differences in R8 & R14.
The arrangement is the same for
the through-hole board.
Our goal with a measurement microphone is a reasonably flat response before
calibration and a flat response after calibration. If you purchase a calibrated
ECM capsule from the Silicon Chip Online Shop, we will provide the necessary
parts to load for response tuning. You will also get a calibration file, giving as
close to a flat response as we can achieve with our equipment.
Alternatively, you may want to tailor the response of your Microphone. In
that case, you can download an LTspice model from the Silicon Chip website
(associated with this article). This can be used to model your response while
varying the tuning components. The following is a general guide to tweaking
the response:
● C12 and R10 provide control over high frequency gain, with C12 setting
the corner frequency. C12 increases the gain with frequency by reducing the
emitter resistance, which is initially 1kW. R10 allows the ultimate gain of this
combination to be set. Conceptually, if R10 is set to 1kW, then, at very high
frequencies, this results in two 1kW resistors in parallel for a final gain of two
times or 6dB.
● R13 and C14 set the gain roll-off at high frequencies. While these go to
ground, they are effectively in parallel with the 2.2kW collector resistance. This
is reduced by R13, which directly reduces the gain of this stage. R13 sets the
ultimate attenuation of this stage, and C14 the corner frequency.
You will also find the gain model in our “Analysis.odt” spreadsheet. While
this is simpler to work with than LTspice, this spreadsheet is very much an
engineering tool, so use it with caution. While the concept of how R10, R13,
C12 and C14 interact is simple, getting the response you want can be tricky.
The values shown in Table 2 are what we found to be effective with batches
of capsules we purchased. These will be a good starting point for you to experiment if you have the ability to check your calibration.
Reflowing the solder on the enclosure can be done with any regular oven by
baking at 230°C. However, you shouldn’t use an oven that you cook food with.
The final result is shown in the photo on the right.
Fig.9: we used an Altronics XLR adaptor for the plug, which is a decent fit into a 20mm diameter copper pipe. We
then used a capillary reducer and RCA socket shell to adapt that to the 7mm brass tube for the ECM. They came
together very well with a few shims and some solder.
Practical Electronics | September | 2024
21
Constructional Project
A close-up of the interior wiring
required for the microphone.
Photo 3: the very inexpensive microphone housing is made from a whiteboard
marker and Biro pen case. An epoxy glue (Araldite) was used for the XLR
housing joint.
hole in the plug lines up and inserting
the screw. You are then ready to go.
Plastic pen based housing
As mentioned at the start, a major
driver of this design was to keep the
cost low. Copper pipe is great if you
have off-cuts in the shed, but buying it
is pretty expensive. So we looked for
a cheap and accessible way of mounting the 6mm capsule at the end of a
thin tube, and something suitable for
housing the electronics.
During one of the author’s less lucid
moments, likely due to ingesting an
unhealthy amount of coffee, the seem-
How we generated calibration data for hundreds of ECMs
Our calibration process generates a calibration file for Speaker Workshop
that allows us to measure the error of an ECM capsule from a flat response.
To do this we:
● Measure the SPL of a speaker at an exact location relative to that speaker
using our calibrated Dayton EMM-6 microphone (without its calibration coefficients).
● Subtract the calibration coefficients for our Dayton microphone from the
measured values and export the result as a “CAL file”.
Using this as this synthetic calibration file, we will generate the calibration
correction file for the connected microphone if we measure at the same location. We verified that this worked by running a measurement on the same
Dayton EMM-6 microphone and confirmed that it produced the expected calibration values.
We can then substitute our ECM capsules, and providing we get them
in the exact same spot, generate suitable calibration files for those capsules. By labelling each ECM with a number that matches the file saved,
anyone who purchases that module can find and use the calibration data
we generated.
We made a special spring-loaded jig that allows ECM capsules to be popped
in and measured easily, speeding up this process. We also created a simple
jig to ensure we always made the measurements at the exact same location
relative to the speaker.
22
ingly silly idea of using a mix of plastic
pens popped into his head. He found
some cheap Biros at Officeworks and
some whiteboard markers that, with
a bit of drilling and gluing, made an
inexpensive microphone housing.
If you use whiteboards (eg, at work),
you will likely have a ready supply of
dried-up markers. The SMD version
of the board fits in these perfectly,
although the through-hole version is
too long. Even better, if you take an
Altronics P0823 XLR plug and throw
away all but the plug section, it fits
perfectly into our whiteboard marker
case, as shown in Photo 4.
The assembly process is similar to
that for the copper tubes but quite a
bit easier. First, strip the whiteboard
marker apart and clean it out. Cut the
tab off the XLR connector with side
cutters to allow you to solder to the
PCB. Cut the top of the whiteboard
An example setup of the
Measurement Microphone with our
previous projects, the Super Codec
and Loudspeaker Test Jig.
Practical Electronics | September | 2024
Calibrated Measurement Microphones
Parts List – Calibrated Measurement Microphone
SMD version – electronic module
The XLR socket wiring on the SMD
version of the Microphone.
marker off and drill the end so you
have a tight fit for the Biro tube, then
fix the Biro in place with super glue.
See the first and last pages of this article for the final result.
Testing and using it
Using the Calibrated Microphone
should be as simple as plugging into
a microphone preamplifier that supplies phantom power. We suggest
that you check it out before gluing
the case shut.
If you don’t get a signal on powerup, here are some things to check:
1. Check your solder joints and that
you have the PNP and NPN transistors
and zener diodes in the right places
and with the correct orientations.
2. Apply power by plugging it into
the preamp or providing 24-48V DC
from a power supply with equal
resistors in series with the Hot and
1 double-sided PCB coded 01108231, 64 × 13mm
Semiconductors
2 BC860 45V 100mA low-noise PNP transistors, SOT-23 (Q1, Q2)
1 BC849C 30V 100mA low-noise NPN transistor, SOT-23 (Q3)
3 6.8V ¼W zener diodes, SOT-23 (ZD1-ZD3) [BZX84C6V8]
Capacitors (all SMD M2012/0805 50V X7R unless otherwise noted)
1 100μF 50V radial electrolytic (maximum 8mm diameter)
1 100μF 10V low-ESR radial electrolytic
1 10μF 16V X5R
3 1μF 50V non-polarised SMD electrolytics, 4mm diameter
[Würth Elektronik 865250640005]
2 2.2nF 5% NP0/C0G
2 1nF 5% NP0/C0G
2 470pF 5% NP0/C0G
Resistors (all SMD M2012/0805 size 1%)
1 100kW
1 39kW
1 10kW
1 5.6kW
2 150kW
1 1kW
1 330W
2 47W
2 2.2kW
Through-hole version – electronic module
1 double-sided PCB coded 01108232, 99 × 13mm
Semiconductors
2 BC560 45V 100mA low-noise PNP transistors, TO-92 (Q1, Q2)
1 BC549C 30V 100mA low-noise NPN transistor, TO-92 (Q3)
3 6.8V 400mW or 1W axial zener diodes (ZD1-ZD3) [eg, 1N754]
Capacitors
1 100μF 50V radial electrolytic (maximum 8mm diameter)
1 100μF 10V low-ESR radial electrolytic
1 10μF 35V radial electrolytic
3 1μF 63V/100V MKT
2 2.2nF 63V/100V MKT
2 1nF 63V/100V MKT
2 470pF 50V C0G/NP0 ceramic
Resistors (all axial 1/4W 1%)
1 100kW
1 39kW
1 10kW
2 150kW
1 1kW
1 330W
2 47W
2 2.2kW
1 5.6kW
Copper-housed version
1 assembled electronic module (SMD or through-hole)
1 ECM capsule with calibration components [Silicon Chip SC6761-5]
1 60mm length of 20mm or 3/4-inch diameter copper pipe
1 150mm length of >6mm inner diameter brass tube
(eg, K&S #8132 brass tube) [hobby shop]
1 20mm straight capillary coupler [hardware shop]
1 20-15mm reducing capillary coupler [hardware shop]
1 RCA backshell [Altronics P0192]
1 XLR male-male adaptor [Altronics P0972]
1 200mm length of 1mm diameter bare copper wire
(stripped from some spare solid-core mains wire)
1 300mm length of two-way ribbon cable or light-duty figure-8
Plastic pen-housed version
1 assembled electronic module (SMD version)
1 ECM capsule with calibration components [Silicon Chip SC6761-5]
1 whiteboard marker [stationery shop]
1 ball-point pen with unscrewable ends [stationery shop]
1 XLR plug [Altronics P0823]
1 300mm length of two-way ribbon cable or light-duty figure-8
Practical Electronics | September | 2024
23
Constructional Project
What is this “Linkwitz Mod”?
Most Electret Condenser Microphones use a FET in a common-source configuration. In this arrangement, the source is connected to the capsule case,
and the 2.2kW resistor in series with the drain is the load across which the
output voltage is generated.
Linkwitz realised that if you can cut between the FET source pin and ground (a
track that is accessible on the outside of the capsule), it is possible to rearrange
the circuit as a source follower. This gives less gain but a lot more headroom.
We tested it using our mics and found that all the frequency correction parts
remain valid. This modification is very fiddly indeed, and it is easy to kill a mic
doing this. We feel this is for ‘power users’ and something you might try once
you are confident in making measurements.
There are various references on the internet regarding this. A good place to
start is at Siegfried Linkwitz’s own web page: www.linkwitzlab.com/images/
graphics/microph1.gif
Assembled
Calibrated
Measurement
Microphones
in both the
copper and
plastic-type
housings.
Silicon Chip Kits & Capsules
SC6755 SMD Kit
Includes the PCB and all onboard
parts besides the XLR socket.
Cold (+ and −) lines. Use 6.8kW for
a 48V supply or 1.5kW for 24V. With
this applied:
a. Check the voltage on the microphone side of the resistors. This should
be well over 10V, and the voltages
should be about equal. If not, check
for shorts and correct part locations
on the board.
b. Check the voltage across the
power supply zener diode, ZD2. It
should be close to 6.8V. Check the
voltage at the collectors of Q1 and Q2,
which should be well above 10V. If
not, check the base voltages of these
transistors. Also verify that each has
a 0.6V base-emitter voltage drop.
c. Check that you have installed R14
fitted (or R8 in if you’re using a “Linkwitz Mod” on the ECM) but not both.
d. Check the voltage at pin 2 of
CON2, the ECM output for two-wire
mode. This should be somewhat less
than 6.8V, and if you look with a
‘scope, you should be able to see the
microphone signal. If not, check that
you have the ECM connected the right
way around. Also check for shorts on
the capsule.
e. If you still have no signal, but the
DC voltages at the input and capsule
are OK, check the voltage at the base
of NPN transistor Q3. This should
be about 1.9V, and the voltage on its
emitter about 1.3V. The voltage at its
collector should be around 3.9V. If
these don’t make sense, check that you
have the right transistor in the circuit.
Using the calibration files
Calibration files for all the ECMs
we sell are available for download
from the links in the ECM shop items.
Your ECM will come in a bag with a
number on it. Download the file for
that specific type of ECM, then look
for the files tagged with that number.
The calibration files match specific capsules. You cannot use them
for similar microphones and expect
a great outcome.
The file with the FRD extension,
starting with your ECM serial number,
is in the Speaker Workshop format. You
can import it into Speaker Workshop
and select it as the microphone calibration. This file contains 4096 rows
with Frequency, Gain and Phase figures (the Phases are set to zero). Load
this, and you are all set!
0dB in the calibration files equals
-40.3dBV/Pa. Given that 1Pa is 94dB
SPL, that means that 0dB is 53.7dB
PE
SPL. Happy measuring.
SC6756 Through-Hole Kit
Consists of the PCB and all onboard
parts besides the XLR socket.
SC6761/2/3/4/5 ECMs
See Table 1 for the various options.
Each comes with the required
SMD compensation components,
as shown in Table 2. If building
the through-hole version, you
can source the compensation
components (resistors & MKT or
greencap capacitors) from your
local electronics shop.
24
Photo 4: the SMD board fits a treat into the whiteboard marker case after it
has been stripped apart and cleaned out. The XLR connector will need the
tab cut off with side cutters to allow you to solder to the PCB.
Photo 5: the assembled Biro-cased Microphone, ready to have the ECM
pulled in and glued to the tip.
Practical Electronics | September | 2024
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