If The Ear Were A Microphone, What Would It Be?

[soupking]

Your ears, right now, hearing things. What microphone would the represent?

Some kind of stereo paired omni mics?
Maybe a low-powered condenser set to 180?

[Kiwiburger]

A dummy head - no, really.

Dummy head recording - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[nbarts]

That would be a pair of omni EWs, B&K, DPA or Avensons on the cheap side recorded the way mentioned by above poster.

[lofi]

or if youre very old or an old time heavy metal fan put some thick foam on both dummys ears....

[stevep]

The real question is if your ears are Omnis... which preamp would your brain be ?



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[Sui_City]

Originally Posted by stevep

The real question is if your ears are Omnis... which preamp would your brain be ?

.

That depends on what kind of drugs you have taken in your life and for how long.

[nbarts]

Originally Posted by Sui_City

That depends on what kind of drugs you have taken in your life and for how long.

haha - that's a good one!

[bluestarbass]

That depends on what kind of drugs you have taken in your life and for how long.

Whatever preamp my brain would be its in bad need of a recap.

[theblue1]

If a normal human's ears were "a microphone" -- they'd be computer controlled, have local sample/playback memory, sophisticated micro/nano control, continuously adjust themselves to changing physical conditions and audio environments -- and be extremely non-linear for very good reasons...

They'd also be mounted on a flexible gooseneck type of mount that was controlled by a matrix of automated response and operator control... they would also have ancillary analysis systems that would continually analyze and report on the "microphones'" position in the environment as well as providing additional analytical subsystems hard-wired for analyzing physical orientation in the environment, relative motion and directionality of moving environmental sounds...


And yet they still wouldn't be able to peel apart all the conversation of five chatty types in a crowded tile-floored bistro at 1 a.m in Times Square.

[Oroz]

Omni? I don't think that each of our ears would be Omni. I guess a pair Cardioid Polar Pattern would resemble more how each ear captures sound, maybe ORTF. I mean, our left ear doesn't receive sound from its back, do you know what I mean? Also, in Neumann's webpage says that their dummy head has a directional pattern.

[RUSCO]

My ears would be an SM57 !

[Eric Greedy]

an earphone

[Spettitt3]

From my newbie point of view, the construction of our ears seem to be very similar to a pressure transducer rather than a pressure gradient transducer, and the capiliary tube analogous to our eustatian tube? Given this, I would say it would be a pair of Omnis?

*remembers Jecklin disc*...hmm....

[David@MVS]

Originally Posted by Sui_City

That depends on what kind of drugs you have taken in your life and for how long.

HA! LOL.


Your ears would be a ribbon mic.

[soupking]

Thanks for the replys guys (and gals if any).

That gives me some new ideas.

[Old Cane]

A Radio Shcack special with 1/8" plug.

[dropblacksky]

Originally Posted by Oroz

Omni? I don't think that each of our ears would be Omni. I guess a pair Cardioid Polar Pattern would resemble more how each ear captures sound, maybe ORTF. I mean, our left ear doesn't receive sound from its back, do you know what I mean? Also, in Neumann's webpage says that their dummy head has a directional pattern.

You can't hear things coming from behind you? I guess you'd be easy prey in the wild.

[Oroz]

Originally Posted by dropblacksky

You can't hear things coming from behind you? I guess you'd be easy prey in the wild.

Not from behind me, I meant from behind the ear itself (like from your brain). In dual diaphragm mics you can select multiple polar patterns and the way they do it is by adding or subtracting both diaphragms. Add the two cardioid diaphragms from the mic and you'll get Omni and that's how I think our ears work, not two Omnis but two Cardioids (each of our ears) to make one Omni pattern (how humans hear). Subtract them and you'll get Bi-Directional (Figure 8).

[Blast9]

I'm certain our ears are omni --- The binaural systems like the Dummy Head/Fritz use omnis to replicate our binaural system (ears/head/brain) --- pciking up signal sfrom everywhere but arriving at each ear at different times.

Don't forget our ears/head don't have nulls like fig 8s (otherwise we'd be in the shit!)

[Oroz]

Originally Posted by Blast9

Don't forget our ears/head don't have nulls like fig 8s (otherwise we'd be in the shit!)

I didn't say that we hear in Figure 8. It was just an example of how a Dual Diaphragm works, adding and subtracting to obtain Omni and Figure 8.

[aussie_techie]

Neumann KU 100 dummy head
Acoustical operating principle Pressure transducer
Directional pattern Ear

[Blast9]

Yes -- forgot to answer the Q --- Meet Fritz

[grantlandau]

They're definitely a pair of omnis with a skull baffle. We don't have any vents for directional cancellation, except maybe eustacian tubes, but I doubt those really cause much cancellation. but correct me if I'm wrong..

[mixdude1]

Chinese mics....quality control is all over the place.

[whosyourdaddy00]

i'm gonna go against the omni's and say it's it directional due to the proximity effect...ofcourse that could just be the head resonating.

[GuitarRuss]

Originally Posted by theblue1

If a normal human's ears were "a microphone" -- they'd be computer controlled, have local sample/playback memory, sophisticated micro/nano control, continuously adjust themselves to changing physical conditions and audio environments -- and be extremely non-linear for very good reasons...

They'd also be mounted on a flexible gooseneck type of mount that was controlled by a matrix of automated response and operator control... they would also have ancillary analysis systems that would continually analyze and report on the "microphones'" position in the environment as well as providing additional analytical subsystems hard-wired for analyzing physical orientation in the environment, relative motion and directionality of moving environmental sounds...


And yet they still wouldn't be able to peel apart all the conversation of five chatty types in a crowded tile-floored bistro at 1 a.m in Times Square.

It's easy to take for granted what nature has provided. Imagine how much better our ears would have been 10,000 years ago before we domesticated dogs (to hear and smell predators for us) and became dominant enough over our environment that those of us without the ability to hear a twig snap at 30 meters would have gotten eaten. I imagine our sense of hearing and smell was at a much higher level.

[Daniel Antix]

the type that needs 40v of phantom beer

[Chaellus]

the best microphone on earth

[big country]

off and on, I have been thinking of a design to best emulate the
ear
imagine this a hydraulic Mic that has a thin membrane
but has a bunch of small fiber optic hairs
but when bent it recreates the the freq.

my Idea is allot more detailed


thats the basic Idea

it basically copies the the design of an ear drum but with fiber optics ( as the cilia )

[bcgood]

Yea, somebody already beat me to it. Fritz is the closest thing that I've ever heard. Binaural recording and then listening back on high quality headphones can reproduce a really cool experience.

Check out this video, make sure that you are wearing headphones or it won't work.

Revolt on Vimeo