 | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Audio electronics |
| Founded | June 1948 |
| Headquarters | Karlsruhe, Deutschland |
| Products | Audio equipment |
| Website | schoeps |
Schalltechnik Dr.-Ing. Schoeps GmbH, known as Schoeps or Schoeps Mikrofone, is a German manufacturer of professional studio condenser microphones for recording and broadcast. The privately owned company is based in Karlsruhe, south-west Germany, and was founded in 1948.
All microphones made by Schoeps employ traditional (i.e. externally polarized, not electret) condenser transducers, and use small-diaphragm, single-diaphragm capsules, even in microphones which offer two or three different directional patterns. All models introduced since 1973, as well as some models from even earlier, have featured transformerless output circuitry.
Though a lesser-known brand in the Americas, Schoeps microphones are highly regarded in the classical sound recording and electronics industries of European broadcasting industry. [1] Media organisations such as the German Tagesschau and heute new programmes, as well as the German Bundestag, the Bundesrat and some state parliaments have all used Schoeps products. [2] [3] [4] Since 2005, the Harald Schmidt Show in Germany has utilised their microphones for facilitating guest appearances. This was followed in 2012 by Schoeps equipping the Berlin Phillharmonie with microphones for the live stream of the Digital Concert Hall. Most recently in 2014, the brand provided the main surround sound microphones, together with stereo and individual microphones for the 2014 Brazil World Cup. [5] [6]
In 1973 the Schoeps "Colette" (CMC) series came out, a modular system of microphones that allowed the amplifier to be separated from the sound capsule. The microphone consisted of four amplifiers, for different powering schemes, and about 20 capsules, for different directional patterns and/or frequency response characteristics (any capsule of the series is compatible with any of the amplifiers). This was the first type of microphone to let the user separate the capsule from the amplifier (body) of the microphone, via "active" accessories, e.g. thin, flexible cables, or "goosenecks", for the sake of a less obtrusive microphone setup. In this type of arrangement, the initial amplification stage of the microphone is located in the accessory, at the point where the capsule is connected; this helps to prevent interference or signal losses.
Most capsules of the CMC series are also available as one-piece compact microphones ("CCM series"). The CCM compact microphone series was introduced by Schoeps in 1994. The circuitry is miniaturized so that each complete microphone is only a few millimeters longer than the corresponding "Colette" capsule would be. This simplifies installation and reduces the risk of interference in situations which would ordinarily require the use of Colette active accessories. However, since these microphones lack the modular construction of the CMC series, their capsules are not interchangeable.
In the vacuum-tube era, Schoeps M 221-series microphones, especially the model M 221 B, were widely used in studios and for live orchestral recording. Their circuitry is based on the Telefunken AC 701k vacuum tube. They were introduced in 1954 and manufactured until the 1970s; many are still in use today.
One particular model of Schoeps microphone created for French radio (the CMT 20 series, 1964) has the historical distinction of being the first phantom-powered condenser microphone on the studio market. [7] [8]
In telecommunication and electrical engineering, a phantom circuit is an electrical circuit derived from suitably arranged wires with one or more conductive paths being a circuit in itself and at the same time acting as one conductor of another circuit.
A microphone, colloquially called a mic, or mike, is a transducer that converts sound into an electrical signal. Microphones are used in many applications such as telephones, hearing aids, public address systems for concert halls and public events, motion picture production, live and recorded audio engineering, sound recording, two-way radios, megaphones, and radio and television broadcasting. They are also used in computers and other electronic devices, such as mobile phones, for recording sounds, speech recognition, VoIP, and other purposes, such as ultrasonic sensors or knock sensors.
Phantom power, in the context of professional audio equipment, is DC electric power equally applied to both signal wires in balanced microphone cables, forming a phantom circuit, to operate microphones that contain active electronic circuitry. It is best known as a convenient power source for condenser microphones, though many active direct boxes also use it. The technique is also used in other applications where power supply and signal communication take place over the same wires.
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Shure Incorporated is an audio products corporation headquartered in the USA. It was founded by Sidney N. Shure in Chicago, Illinois, in 1925 as a supplier of radio parts kits. The company became a consumer and professional audio-electronics manufacturer of microphones, wireless microphone systems, phonograph cartridges, discussion systems, mixers, and digital signal processing. The company also manufactures listening products, including headphones, high-end earphones, and personal monitor systems.
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Blumlein pair is a stereo recording technique invented by Alan Blumlein for the creation of recordings that, upon replaying through headphones or loudspeakers, recreate the spatial characteristics of the recorded signal.
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Røde Microphones is an Australian-based audio technology company specializing in the design and manufacture of microphones, headphones, audio interfaces, and audio software. The company's product range focuses on applications such as music recording, location sound recordings, broadcast and podcasting, filmmaking, and content creation, for the consumer, producer, and professional markets.
Gauge Precision Instruments is a U.S.-based designer and importer of audio electronics and accessories for professional and consumer markets. The company was founded by Chandler R. Bridges, Jr. and Robert C. Chiarelli in Beverly Hills, CA in 2008. Gauge Precision Instruments' most prevalent product categories are microphones and audio accessories. In January 2012, the company expanded and opened new offices in Tallahassee, Florida. In early 2017, Chiarelli sold his shares to Jeffry Piergeorge.
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