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This is probably a really stupid question but I'm just getting started with this and I have a pretty tight budget. I was curious as to weather I could get away with using a cheap lavalier microphone from Amazon to mic a sax, trumpet, or trombone. Could one of these mics handle this or would it overload the mic as it's not exactly made for that?

Like this mic for example: https://www.amazon…

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Boswell Thu, 07/20/2017 - 05:01

Ben, post: 451387, member: 50713 wrote: This is probably a really stupid question but I'm just getting started with this and I have a pretty tight budget. I was curious as to weather I could get away with using a cheap lavalier microphone from Amazon to mic a sax, trumpet, or trombone. Could one of these mics handle this or would it overload the mic as it's not exactly made for that? Like this mic for example: https://www.amazon…

A critical question before we can say whether a microphone of that type would work: what are you intending to plug it into?

Ben Thu, 07/20/2017 - 11:08

Boswell, post: 451397, member: 29034 wrote: Hmm... Your awareness needs to extend to knowing that there is no easy way to connect an unbalanced microphone requiring plug-in power (around 5V) to an interface that has balanced microphone inputs supplying 48V phantom power. What did you have in mind when you said you knew how to adapt it?

To be totally honest, now that you say that, I don't think I actually do know how.

Boswell Thu, 07/20/2017 - 11:28

Adaptors do exist: here is an example which does the voltage change and the signal balancing that would be needed, but you would still have to make up a connector lead from the 4-pin TA4F to the 3-pin minijack.

My feeling is that if you wanted to try these lavs, get the pack of 3 for $6.50 and plug one of them into the microphone minijack input on your computer (not via the ProFire). The sound will not be great and there will be extraneous electrical noise, but you should be able to judge whether the lav will cope with being clipped on to a brass instrument.

John Willett Fri, 07/28/2017 - 08:22

Ben, post: 451387, member: 50713 wrote: This is probably a really stupid question but I'm just getting started with this and I have a pretty tight budget. I was curious as to weather I could get away with using a cheap lavalier microphone from Amazon to mic a sax, trumpet, or trombone. Could one of these mics handle this or would it overload the mic as it's not exactly made for that?

Like this mic for example: https://www.amazon…

I wouldn't.

Mainly because instruments like these need a bit of air to sound good and clipping a mic. to the bell is not a good idea.

With Sax especially, a lot of the sound comes fromthe body and only the high frequencies from the bell - thisis why a Sax mic. is normally on a short gooseneck so it can be positioned to receive sound from the body *and* the bell.

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