Want to so some frequency analysis on speakers I'm playing with. What's a good choice for a cost effective frequency analyzer? I won't do a lot of it, so I don't want to invest in a $500 microphone, so I'm looking for something that will allow me to use my existing laptop, and if needed a cheap mic, for basic readings. Any suggestions?
The basic setup is a USB audio interface with phantom power for the mic, and cheap measurement mic from Dayton, Behringer, Nady, etc. This will set you back about $100-150 bucks.
There are at least a couple different free applications for measuring. I use holm impulse, but many folks use REW.
You do need a special measurement mic. All mics are not flat, and in fact most do not have flat response.
There's a cheaper way if you've got a smartphone. PE sells this calibrated mic. Add the cost of a decent RTA app and you'll be set up for under $30. Haven't tried the mic yet myself, though I do have audiotool for android, just for fun.
There are at least a couple different free applications for measuring. I use holm impulse, but many folks use REW.
You do need a special measurement mic. All mics are not flat, and in fact most do not have flat response.
There's a cheaper way if you've got a smartphone. PE sells this calibrated mic. Add the cost of a decent RTA app and you'll be set up for under $30. Haven't tried the mic yet myself, though I do have audiotool for android, just for fun.
That is why I suggested the UMM-6 it combines the mic preamp and USB ADC into the mic head so you don't have to calibrate your preamp. Plus it saves on one less piece of equipment.
I got the idea for the Panasonic WM-61A capsule from Siegfried Linkwitz's website. He in fact uses it and said it was quite flat from the factory. He had simple circuits you build to make a usable mic for measurement.
I personally like the convenience of the UMM-6. It is always plugged in and ready to measure.
The little $15 mic from PE for the smartphone looks interesting.
This is the $2 Panasonic mic capsule that is probably used in many commercial measurement mics.
http://industrial.panasonic.com/lecs/www-data/pdf/ABA5000/ABA5000CE22.pdf
Here are some very useful sites for essentially zero cost measurement setups:
John Conover: Using the Panasonic WM61A as a Measurement Microphone
This is what I initially used - very simple:
Here is SL's site for measurement:
[url=http://www.linkwitzlab.com/sys_test.htm]System Test[/URL]
This is a fancier one by SL with 10dB gain:
He also suggests surgery on the capsule to relieve it of the 105dB saturation - needed for near field tests.
http://industrial.panasonic.com/lecs/www-data/pdf/ABA5000/ABA5000CE22.pdf
Here are some very useful sites for essentially zero cost measurement setups:
John Conover: Using the Panasonic WM61A as a Measurement Microphone
This is what I initially used - very simple:
Here is SL's site for measurement:
[url=http://www.linkwitzlab.com/sys_test.htm]System Test[/URL]
This is a fancier one by SL with 10dB gain:
He also suggests surgery on the capsule to relieve it of the 105dB saturation - needed for near field tests.
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There is a third party company that buys the Dayton UMM-6 and resells it for $100 with what they claim to be a better calibration. Not sure if you are interested but I can dig that up. There are some on this forum who worry that Dayton's calibration. I have had good success with mine as it is free from erratic data points in cal file.
mic options
I tried the Dayton mic + phone option and the dsp mic + REW option. The phone one is fine but limited, eg to compare response before and after a tweak, you have to export the file to a computer, and graph them together. Anything like smoothing has to be done yourself, and is pretty time consuming.
I see it best used for something like guiding the use of third octave eq for setting up live (eg rock) music, where speed and portability would be most important. Otherwise, the USB REW option is just better and <$100
I tried the Dayton mic + phone option and the dsp mic + REW option. The phone one is fine but limited, eg to compare response before and after a tweak, you have to export the file to a computer, and graph them together. Anything like smoothing has to be done yourself, and is pretty time consuming.
I see it best used for something like guiding the use of third octave eq for setting up live (eg rock) music, where speed and portability would be most important. Otherwise, the USB REW option is just better and <$100
Be aware that this model hasn't been made for a couple of years, and the ones you get on ebay are "New Old Stock." This was the go-to model for a decade
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/parts/230336-panasonic-wm-61a-mic-capsule-discontinued.html
The original "linkwitz mod" page suggested this capsule as a replacement for an older Panasonic model that went obsolete at the time:
System Test
Panasonic appears to have stopped manufacture of electret condenser microphone elements, but if you want to buy a "real" new one, Digikey and Mouser show several other manufacturers. The WM-61A was well regarded due to having a flatter frequency response than other models, but I suspect most other models would be acceptable.
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