Brauner Microphones VMA - Manual (Page 9)

With the continuously variable pattern control you have full control of the
microphone‘s directivity changing it to whatever is best for your very purpose. I.e., in
an MS configuration you will be able to influence the mid signal very efficiently.
It is even possible to change the directivity during a recording (without any inter-
ferences or noise). It will take about 15 seconds for the directivity to fully transform if
you turn the knob a whole step (from one symbol to the next) as capacitors have to
be charged and discharged. If you only make a little adjustment the pattern adapts
much faster.
The power supply is built as a module to fit into any 19 inch studio rack next to
preamps and effects or to be used as a stand alone device. It also serves as a remote
control unit for the microphone providing you with an adjustment wheel for its di-
rectional pattern and a switch for the 10 dB pad (VM1/VMX) respectively the desired
microphone circuit (VMA) on the front panel. The LED can show two colors: red for
normal mode, green for alternative mode (10 dB pad or 2nd microphone circuit).
As the microphones have an excellent phase and frequency response there are no
integrated filters.
For new users we would like to offer a short description of every pattern and its advantages:
Omni
In omni characteristic the microphone will pick up sonic information about equally from eve-
ry direction. This pattern is perfect for making ambience recordings which are often mixed
with an orchestra or movie recording to give it more space. Two microphones in omni pattern
are a great set up for stereo recordings.
Cardioid
The cardioid pattern is probably used most often with the microphone having its greatest
sensitivity for sound coming from the front. Sound from the sides (90° and 270°) is reduced by
half and sound from the back (180°) to a tenth. It‘s often used for vocals or single instruments
without picking up to much of the room.
Figure of eight
In this pattern the sensitivity for sound coming from the back and the front is equal, but infor-
mation coming from the sides is cancelled out. This is due to the back side diaphragm being
phase reversed to the the front side diaphragm. Main application of the figure of eight pattern
are stereo recordings such as the MS or XY technique which require an MS matrix decoder to
achieve a proper stereo signal. The stereo version of the VM1, the VM1S, is best suited for this
kind of recordings.
Wide cardioid
The wide cardioid pattern lies between cardioid and omni. In comparison to cardioid it has
greater sensitivity for sound coming from the sides and lets recordings gain more ambience
elements without emphasising them too much (like omni).
Hypercardioid
Hypercardioid lies between cardioid and figure of eight. In comparison to cardioid sensitivity
for sound from the sides is less but greater for sound from the back. Thus hypercardioid is
even more directional to the front and is for example used to record brass section or drums to
achieve a good separation between single instruments.
3. 0 Power Supply (Remote Control)
3.1 Pattern Control (not for „pure cardioids“ versions)
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