Quality Microphone Audio

David Holmgren

I think most people are lured into a Flex based upon how great they sound on the air.  I was in that camp so when I couldn't get mine to sound good I did some digging through the Flex forums.  I learned that it's best to use as little DSP inside the radio as possible and to rather process your audio before it hits the Flex mic jack.  With that in mind I stopped by Guitar Center to pick up a tube mic pre-amp and I came home with the PreSonus TubePre V2 $129.00.  I then connected that with a "y" cable to an old RANE ME-15 10 band stereo EQ from my former DJ days.  I use one channel of the EQ for the Flex and the other channel for my VHF / UHF radio.  My goal was to share my ElectroVoice EV320 with both radios.  Everything is working great and finally my Flex sounds like a Flex.  While on the air another Flex owner I was talking to suggested to change the low cut from 0 to 100 and that took away the echoy, bassey, hollow sound to my audio.  My amp was also happier to not have to work extra hard amplifying sound we can't hear.  So my advice is to skip the internal EQ keeping it disabled and go outboard with your sound contouring because it works much better.   I know the Flex veterans know this already but the newbies like me should find this useful.

Best 73,
Ruffers K9RUF

Jim K4JAF

As a long time Flex owner, I totally disagree.  The Flex with internal EQ can be made to sound great.  You just have to adjust a bit for your voice.. No need for external EQ.  

Steven WA8Y

None of the other Flex users with great audio have such a system as yours. How do you explain that they have great audio? I 100% disagree with your approach.

Bill -VA3WTB

Good sound can be realized using out board gear, but many of the best audio I have heard is using the Flex EQ,,,mine is a good example...

David Holmgren

Bill -VA3WTB

Ken - NM9P

Ken - NM9P

David Holmgren

Thanks Ken and Bill for your comments.

Ken - NM9P

For more information, check out my audio tutorials on Youtube.com/nm9p   

They are a slight bit dated regarding the names for the Mic Profiles, but they might help you understand the need for different profiles for different purposes.

David Decoons, wo2x

Using Ken’s method with full duplex is a good way to hear exactly what you sound like. To go a step further I use a DAX channel on the receiving slice to feed Audacity record. That way I can speak, record a clip, then play it back to hear what it sounds like. Trying to monitor your own audio real time is difficult. Dave wo2x

Steven WA8Y

I disagree with your smile eq approach.

Lawrence Gray

N8SDR

Michael Coslo

Ken - your Youtube video should be required viewing! I was sold after how good you got the Flex hand mic to sound. No small feat!

Seriously Dave - give it a try. It's FB if you use your setup, but Ken's video shows how to get great sound with only the mic and SSDR's EQ.

Ken - NM9P

Thanks.  That was with the FHM-1.  
I wish it was a FHM-2.  I am sure I could really get that one to shine!

Perhaps I will borrow one some day so I can do an update on adjusting the Flex Hand Mic.

I have been tempted to replace the dynamic cartridge in my FHM-1 with an electret cartridge and a resistor and a couple of caps and convert it to a pseudo FHM-2.
But since I use the PR-22 all the time, I would rather spend my time doing other things.  

My next Mic project will probably be bodging an old military aviation noise-cancelling boom mic onto my Sony MDR7506 Headphones to create a contest headset.  

I did this years ago with a simple electret element & stiff wire on another headset and had a very respectable contest mic.  But I haven't done any of these experiments in years, since I got the PR22 and broadcast boom.

Ken - NM9P

Neal Pollack, N6YFM

I don't disagree with anything.  As both an engineer and a user, I can tell you there is more than one way to get great results.   Far more than one way.   Many people use the internal processing, and many use the external processing.  And guess what;  They both work great.
Try to keep an open mind.   It's not "Your way, or the highway"...

Cheers,

Neal

Neal Pollack, N6YFM

Ken, if you choose to try that mic conversion, ebay has very inexpensive electret mic cartridges, typically a 10 pack for less than $5.  A lot of people use those to fix up old mics.
ref:
https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_&_nkw=electret+microphone+capsule&_sacat=0

Cheers,

Neal

Neal Pollack, N6YFM

re: "...like to keep my station simple"

Well, that is fine, BUT;
I actually prefer to make mine complicated, looking more like the flight deck of the space shuttle.  It is, after-all, a hobby, and my Man-Cave :-)
I am even starting to think about adding a fourth display monitor, and maybe the GeoChron 4K  :-) :-)

Life is short, have a ton of fun!

Cheers,

Neal

Bill English

Ken - NM9P

Neal Pollack, N6YFM

Neal Pollack, N6YFM

David Decoons, wo2x

Hi Neal Make sure DAX 1is selected in the RX slice then in Audacity go to Edit/Preferences and under Devices make sure recording device is DAX Audio RX1. Then select your computer speakers as playback device. Dave wo2x

Lawrence Gray

I like a rack of mysterious looking black boxes, along with the requisite large monitors.

Jeff W7NEE

David Decoons, wo2x

Did you enable full duplex? Click the FDX in bottom left.

Dave wo2x

Ken - NM9P

You must have a receive antenna different from the tx antenna for FDX to work. And in order to listen to your own Transmit frequency, you cannot be using much power at all or you will overload your receiver. Thus I Transmit on XVTR and listen on ANT1 or RXA. (Or B if you have a rig with 2 SCUs.). Make sure FDX is turned on. Transmit on one slice (A) and receive on the other slice (B). Make sure the DAX channel you are piping over to Audacity is activated on the receive slice (B). And is turned on in the Dax Control Panel. In Audacity, select as the input channel for recording the sound device for the DAX Channel for the receive slice (for example, DAX Audio RX1) When you hit record on audacity, you should see deflections on the Audacity recording level meter and be able to adjust the recording level in Audacity.

Ken - NM9P

What you are doing with this technique is recording the audio that is being heard by your second receiver slice (B) It will record your transmitted signal the way it is heard by the second slice receiver, along with any filtering , RX EQ, AGC time constants, etc...as though you were listening to yourself in a different receiver.

Jeff W7NEE

Ok, Great! For some reason I did not realize that I would want to still do the Full Duplex... I have used that method many of times... but I see... this will make it so I can record the signal and replay it without trying to listen to it live (which can be difficult). Thanks for the clarification... I have it working great using the full duplex mode and tranverter with low power! Thanks!

Mike VE3CKO