The Blue Snowball is a USB powered condenser microphone used for computer recording. The proper positioning of a Snowball microphone will depend on the application you are using it for and the settings you have selected on the microphone. The Snowball has both cardioid and omni pickup modes, which makes it a versatile microphone for capturing sound in a variety of applications.
Place the microphone on its tripod to safely mount it for use. The microphone has a swivel base, which makes positioning it with the tripod very straightforward. For extra isolation from low frequency noises, mount the microphone in the Blue Ringer shock mount before attaching it to the tripod.
Select position “1” on the back of the Snowball microphone if you are recording a single sound source, such as a voice or instrument. Position “1” puts the microphone in cardioid mode, which means that it picks up sound from the front of the microphone while rejecting sound from the sides and back. Point the front of the microphone (where the Blue logo is located) toward the sound source you want to capture to pick up the most direct sound possible.
Select position “2” on the back of the Snowball microphone if you are recording a loud sound source. Position “2” also puts the microphone in cardioid mode, which picks up sound from the front while rejecting sound from the sides and back of the microphone. However, it also engages a -10 decibel pad, which prevents the microphone from overloading and distorting when capturing loud sound sources, such as drums, brass instruments or loud vocals. Point the front of the microphone toward the sound source when using this setting to capture the most direct sound possible.
Select position “3” on the back of the Snowball microphone if you are recording multiple sound sources at the same time. Position “3” puts the microphone in omni mode, which picks up sound from all sides of the microphone. This setting is useful for recording events, such as conference room meetings and interviews. To pick up similar sound levels from each sound source you are trying to capture, place the microphone equidistantly between each sound source.
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Wesley DeBoy has been a writer since 2004. He has a variety of arts and entertainment articles published on various websites. DeBoy specializes in writing about professional audio, music and computer technology. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in telecommunications production from Ball State University.
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