• WARNING: Tube/Valve amplifiers use potentially LETHAL HIGH VOLTAGES.
    Building, troubleshooting and testing of these amplifiers should only be
    performed by someone who is thoroughly familiar with
    the safety precautions around high voltages.

what does a valve in a microphone do

Hi,
Well more or less.. yes but it depends on what you call 'amplify': a voltage amplification? A current amplification?

If you think about the 'classic' ( u47,67,...) circuits most of them are common grounded amplifier ( with or without global feedback, most of the time with local feedback/ degeneration) so they give a bit of voltage gain, often downsized by the circuit output transformer. Sony C37, C800, C12a ( Akg) are cathode follower circuits so they don't give any voltage gain but current gain: the voltage of caspule is what you get as output level ( more or less, a transformer in step up could give some gain though).

Other circuits merging both are or have been used too ( Groove Tube microphone often used both a common ground and a cathode follower, most chinese mics are based around a CCDA circuit, ...)

http://www.foxaudioresearch.ca/CCDA.htm

Rather than seeing the 'amplifying' of things both circuits share a common goal: change the impedance of the capsule ( very high) to a compatible one to drive lines to the preamp... which will take the voltage amplification to adapt to next circuit's needs ( console, eq, comp, ad,..).
 
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Ejp: it looked like an older C414 ( silverish)? C12a. I liked the one we had in studio, great for ambience/distant mic for cabinets.
I like cathode follower mics. If the capsule allow you can really close mic with these circuits ( you might even have to use a pad on percussive instruments!).
The real downside is the need for high gain preamp if you plan room/ambience use. Nothing more problematic than some ribbons mics though. But it can be deceiptive for users: they are usually clean sounding ( depends on out transformer imo) and as they have low output people underate their potential imo.
 
Same issue same answer with different technology ( miniaturisation).
Often you'll see jfet frontend: they have low noise and very high input z. I had access to a Josephson which used jfet in source follower. Not an electret capsule.

Thank you for precision ejp.