An Affordable DIY Microphone for Immersive Audio
An audiophile built an affordable DIY microphone array for immersive 7.1.4 audio recording that costs far less than commercial options.
Some people’s idea of an excellent audio experience is the Doom soundtrack pumping through a Sound Blaster AWE32. That is good enough for most of us, but then there are the audiophiles of the world. These people really love their audio and will go to some pretty extreme lengths to improve their audio system. They have been known to freeze their CDs before playing them for the best sound quality, and place mysterious jars of “sound pebbles” around a room to enhance the acoustics.
Many of their practices are dubious, but using high-end speakers is certainly going to have a positive impact on sound quality. Instructables user DJJules is a self-proclaimed audiophile that previously built a 7.1.4 speaker setup for immersive audio. He has been enjoying the system, but he wanted to also be able to record audio for playback on those speakers. A traditional microphone cannot capture all of the sound information needed for a 7.1.4 speaker setup, and appropriate commercial options are exceedingly expensive. So DJJules decided to hack one together on his own.
Called Maurice, his creation is a symmetrical ORTF-3D microphone array. It captures sound from a set of eight microphones, covering all directions, including up and down. That allows it to capture immersive audio for high-end speaker setups. DJJules’ microphone is not exactly cheap at $499 in kit form, but it could easily save you thousands of dollars compared to a commercial ORTF-3D microphone array.
The array consists of eight individual directional microphones positioned in pairs that make a stereo ORTF arrangement. The microphones are mounted on a 3D-printed frame, and are wired to cables that terminate at XLR connectors. Optional 3D-printed windscreen frames can slip over the arms of Maurice to accommodate standard windscreens.
Step-by-step instructions for building Maurice are available in the project write-up, and DJJules also gives some tips for using the device after assembly. Whether you are a budding audiophile, or are just looking to save some cash on your own immersive audio setup, this project is one that is well worth checking out.