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Dismantling LDC to use capsules as ORTF in a blimp

 

Hi all.
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I spotted an old youtube video recently, where the guy dismantles a pair of Rode NT1a to capsule and pcb, and fits them in a blimp, and I'd like to do something similar. I have a pair of LDC I bought recently, heavily discounted, that I can use.
The video is here:
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I won't be needing his powering solution, or preamp circuit as I'll just use a Zoom F3 externally to supply a preamp and phantom power.
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I'm curious if anyone has done similar with LDC capsules and experience on protecting and mounting the capsules and circuit boards in a blimp.?
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thanks in advance
Damian
 

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I’ve just sourced a pair of old nt1a’s to run in a stereo field rig also, but I’m making individual blimps for them.

If you’re going to be using the f3, is there a need to dismantle the mics? Obviously it will depend on the length of your blimp or if you will make a diy one.

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From: [email protected] <[email protected]> On Behalf Of damiandrohanphoto via groups.io
Sent: Friday, 28 February 2025 4:02 AM
To: [email protected]
Subject: [MicBuilders] Dismantling LDC to use capsules as ORTF in a blimp

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Hi all.

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I spotted an old youtube video recently, where the guy dismantles a pair of Rode NT1a to capsule and pcb, and fits them in a blimp, and I'd like to do something similar. I have a pair of LDC I bought recently, heavily discounted, that I can use.

The video is here:

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I won't be needing his powering solution, or preamp circuit as I'll just use a Zoom F3 externally to supply a preamp and phantom power.

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I'm curious if anyone has done similar with LDC capsules and experience on protecting and mounting the capsules and circuit boards in a blimp.?

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thanks in advance

Damian

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This email has been scanned for spam and viruses by Proofpoint Essentials. Click to report this email as spam.

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@Cram, I'm dismantling them to make the whole thing a bit more portable. I like the idea of something I can set up fairly quickly- then it will get used and my laziness or procrastination won't put a halt to it. Plus I occasionally record in places with people around and like to try to keep my setup fairly discreet.
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Magnús Bergsson has made some really nice recordings using dismantled NT1As and Lewitt 540S -
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I guess if I had the budget I'd probably get a pair of Sennheiser or DPA sdc for the smaller form factor.
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Really I'm just trying to get more detailed/low noise recordings in a fairly cost effective way but trying also to keep the footprint fairly small.
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I hear you. I’ve got a few omnis (em272 and aom5024) in various configurations, but I’ve been wanting to play with some cardioids also for ambience and nature sounds etc. The self noise specs of the nt1a were hard to pass up, and the price is nice too.

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I’ll definitely concede they’re large mics (180mm long, 50mm dia.) and I can’t see myself hiking with my setup. That link you shared has also been one of my inspirations. For reference, this is the sort of thing I’m building:

I guess you’ll save a bit of room by shucking the mics, but I’m assuming you’ll be basically limited to AB in a blimp with the mic internals end to end or overlapped, unless you tilt the capsules such as in the video you linked. I’ve seen people make an adapter for end to end mics in a blimp from a female to female xlr connector, running the wires out the side of the connector. This would also be less hassle than disassembly, providing of course the blimp was large enough.


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From: [email protected] <[email protected]> On Behalf Of damiandrohanphoto via groups.io
Sent: Friday, 28 February 2025 8:10 AM
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: [MicBuilders] Dismantling LDC to use capsules as ORTF in a blimp

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@Cram, I'm dismantling them to make the whole thing a bit more portable. I like the idea of something I can set up fairly quickly- then it will get used and my laziness or procrastination won't put a halt to it. Plus I occasionally record in places with people around and like to try to keep my setup fairly discreet.

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Magnús Bergsson has made some really nice recordings using dismantled NT1As and Lewitt 540S -

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I guess if I had the budget I'd probably get a pair of Sennheiser or DPA sdc for the smaller form factor.

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Really I'm just trying to get more detailed/low noise recordings in a fairly cost effective way but trying also to keep the footprint fairly small.

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This email has been scanned for spam and viruses by Proofpoint Essentials. Click to report this email as spam.

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@Cram, thanks for the links. The rig you're making looks cool. I hadn't thought about being limited with the capsules in a blimp, I guess I just assumed I could manage an ORTF arrangement. The mics were so heavily discounted that I figure I have nothing to lose. They're not actually NT1as, they're "Neat King Bee II" which are even bigger and heavier. I'll throw a link below.?
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I think I'll just have to get my hands dirty with some DIY efforts, just have so little experience of it. I admire people like Dr Bad Phil- who you linked to, who can just turn out designs.
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Here's the mic link: .?
It's so big and unwieldy that it's hard to see how it could be used any other way in the field, than dismantling it.
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I did buy a pair of the baby brother to that mic (worker Bee II), which are signficantly smaller (but noisier- 11db versus 6.5db) They might be more amenable to using as-is in the field.
 

On Thu, Feb 27, 2025 at 04:09 PM, <damiandrohanphoto@...> wrote:
I occasionally record in places with people around and like to try to keep my setup fairly discreet
With mic capsules that size... for wind protection? you're going to end up housing them in a standard zeppelin, sideways. That's hardly discreet ;-)
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Anyway, I don't think there's much "off-the-shelf" stuff you can find for mounting the capsules and electronics. Perhaps some Rycote lyres can be modified to be shock-absorbing mounts for the capsules. You could buy some inexpensive shockmounts with elastics for sdc mics, and cut those down and modify. Or bits of rubber hose. Etc. It'll be a fun challenge.
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Hi Damian
Magnus Bergsson shared a photo album about his NT1a approach.
You'll find it here:
Heinz
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On Fri, Feb 28, 2025 at 03:09 AM, <damiandrohanphoto@...> wrote:

I spotted an old youtube video recently, where the guy dismantles a pair of Rode NT1a to capsule and pcb, and fits them in a blimp, and I'd like to do something similar. I have a pair of LDC I bought recently, heavily discounted, that I can use.
 

On Sat, Mar 1, 2025 at 09:50 AM, Heinz wrote:
Hi Damian
Magnus Bergsson shared a photo album about his NT1a approach.
You'll find it here:
Heinz
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I forgot to mention that if you scroll through the photos of the album and click once on the little "i" (information) circle in the top right corner of the screen, you will get useful descriptions for some of Magnús Bergsson's photos.
 

@Kennjava good suggestions thanks.?
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@Heinz, thank you. His approach is interesting.? Didn't realise the photos had detailed captions.
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I think overall I'll be fine if I take my time. The mics were cheap, so there's only so much damage I can do :)
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As I like ORTF a lot I was cunningly planning to make myself a handy, self-contained unit, mostly for the reasons you stated above.
I came upon Magnusson's and DIY Perks' solutions long time ago but they seem too cumbersome to me.
DIY Perks' hack job is painful to watch ? and while Magnussons' work is good and proper (shielding!) the outcome is still large and cumbersome and the amount of work doesn't translate into compactness. It's only my feeling(!).
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Since the mic has to be dismantled then why not enclose the PCBs in a separate box and have the freedom to position capsules exactly as needed?
Here's the illustration of the idea:
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https://drive.google.com/file/d/1aFRbW-710wc8I24SKNS16ffLtLFbQ2kL/view?usp=drivesdk
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The box is obviously too small for NT1's PCB but I deal with OPIC circuit which fits in, I plan to build 2 separate mic at first and have no larger box at the moment. But you get the idea.
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Aluminium Hammond boxes (or their copies) are great for this and come in various sizes.
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https://drive.google.com/file/d/1aR5222DfDs89NxsWGcSC8mYvCznFt6FC/view?usp=drivesdk
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275x70x45 mm. Capsules in soft 3D printed mounts inside original headbaskets mounted at 110 deg at 17 cm distance fit with room to spare.
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Microphones' PCBs sandwiched inside on common motherboard standoffs:
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https://drive.google.com/file/d/1aUM_UPkMXWLYYr8vKYLoxDXVdRcXwy66/view?usp=drivesdk
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And one can use individual furry windshields for moderate winds or build smalker, individual blimps for stronger winds.
Sure, there's a question of elastic suspension (handling noise) but since I use a tripod anyway it wasn't a concern for me. One can fashion a "noise cancelling handle" for this.?
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Edited

I sorted the issues with acces to the linked photos. I hope...
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Just in case, properly shared links:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1aR5222DfDs89NxsWGcSC8mYvCznFt6FC/view?usp=drivesdk
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https://drive.google.com/file/d/1aFRbW-710wc8I24SKNS16ffLtLFbQ2kL/view?usp=drivesdk
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https://drive.google.com/file/d/1aUM_UPkMXWLYYr8vKYLoxDXVdRcXwy66/view?usp=drivesdk
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Sorry.
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@pmfalcman - thanks so much, the photos area really useful. I might have to rethink my original idea. I'm not even sure how large the PCBs are. There's nothing to lose really, the mics were heavily discounted, so I can't go too far wrong.
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appreciate it,
Damian
 

I'm not sure mine's better solution but I want a self contained unit. A "brick", well... sort of.
A sturdy piece of gear.
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And it's easier to fashion up some extra wind protection if need be. Couple of bent wires can be relatively easily affixed to the enclosure. The sides are sufficiently thick.
Same goes for a tripod mount.
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@pmfalcman thanks again. Hope it's not asking too much, would you be happy sharing photos of the full rig? It would be very helpful. Damian
 

On Mon, Mar 3, 2025 at 10:07 AM, <damiandrohanphoto@...> wrote:
@pmfalcman thanks again. Hope it's not asking too much, would you be happy sharing photos of the full rig? It would be very helpful. Damian
I'd love to. Unfortunately I don't have it yet. Not even in loose parts.
I said this before - it's an idea at the moment and at first I plan to make two separate mics in these small enclosures from the photos.
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If you provide PCBs dimentions (height as well) I'll gladly help you with preliminary measurments to see if it's even feasible to squeeze everything in this enclosure.
There are also the XLR sockets to take under consideration. How far they'll protroude inside the enclosure.
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I made rough drafts (xlr connectors and "headbaskets" are to scale), top and side view, to facilitate imaging.
Still the PCB dimentions are crucial.
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https://drive.google.com/file/d/18pz4p1at7qr97Um7Ffhj6YhLFSVrt8FO/view?usp=drivesdk
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https://drive.google.com/file/d/1iYOMNjkhv7n4JZZrXlGtK5Msmp8EklxE/view?usp=drivesdk
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Headbaskets are intentionally moved to the front (not centered width wise) to minimise sound reflections from the top of the body.
It would be advisable to 3D print own capsule mounts from rubbery/elastic filament with conical base. In order to help dampen vibrations and minimise noxious sound reflections.
 

@pmfalcman, thanks so much, that's really helpful. I'll take a proper look at the photos.?
 

A couple of final questions about this.
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First- my friend has the mics dismantled (photo attached), the mic capsule is connected to the pcb by two short wires (5cm) and I figure these might have to be extended to allow for mounting on the type of box suggested by @pmfalcman in the thread above. Thoughts and suggestions much appreciated.
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When I bought the pair of mics pictured, i also bought the smaller, cheaper "neat worker bee II". The construction is like a smaller bodied version of the mic above, with a slightly smaller capsule. I would like to do something with those capsules also.
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Here's a pic of the worker bee II:
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If I could ask what might be fairly naive questions- I have googled but didn't find definitive answers
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1. Is it possible to use cardioid capsules in a SASS type array? I know the pickup pattern would be different. My plan would be to have the mics dismantled as with the example above. Has anyone tried it?
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2. I spoke to Curt Olson a little while back, by email, most of you probably know Curt's winged and half-sphere stereo arrays:
Curt kindly answered my questions and indicated that cardioid capsules could be used in the half sphere array, albeit with a more directional stereo field. Looking at the mounting of the capsule in the headbasket of the mic, it's centered and a bit away from the edges, and if I understand how the winged and half sphere arrays work, the edge of the capsule needs to be flush or almost flush to the surface- because of the boundary effect?
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I'm sorry if these questions are a bit naive, it's hard to find information on these things when your test case is so specific. I'm really keen to understand.?
 

Depends how you choose to mount the boards. If there are no components on the other side and you mount them on the same surface as the capsules - say on the lid - it seems these wires should be long enough. But it depends also on stand offs you choose. You will determine it when putting it all together. There's no way to know beforehand. And from the photo alone ?

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