Learning how to make a contact mic

When I was participating in the sound workshop last weekend I was fortunate enough to have a go at using a contact microphone. A contact microphone is a small device that can be used to amplify acoustic instruments. Unlike the more common types of microphone, you do not sing or talk into a contact mic. It works by making contact with a solid object and turning mechanical vibrations into electricity. I would like to experiment with this type of microphone, and today a friend I was taught how to make my own contact mic.

Materials used

Coat the exposed wires with solder (both ends, all wires)

 Solder the exposed wire to the contact microphone

Put the tip onto the wire

Thread the plastic casing over the soldered wires before threading the metal cases over the plastic

The final process was to apply 2 coats of plasti dip (a sealant) onto the contact microphone in order to make the microphone waterproof and therefore turn the contact microphone into a hydrophone. 

I look forward to using this new piece of equipment and discovering what can be heard.

Field recording workshop with Kelvin Brown

This weekend I participated in the field recording workshop organised by NewBridge Projects. The session was Led by Kelvin Brown, one of the artists currently exhibiting work in NewBridge Project Space. The workshop was both a practical introduction to field recording and a chance to collaboratively explore the sonic landscape, and collective memories of the city. Working as a group we produced a set of recordings that document both the sonic characteristics of the city, and the the stories that surround them. These recordings are going to be compiled and a vinyl record pressed and held in the NewBridge archive. The final pressed record will serve as archive of the personal connections to the sonic characteristics within the constantly changing urban landscape.



After a brief introduction to the different types of microphone and sound recorders that we were going to be using, we came up with some ideas of places and sounds within the city that we sonically associated with Newcastle. For example, the sound of standing in the artwork at the Civic Centre and the sound of the Newcastle United fans on a match day. We then walked around the city recording urban sounds and noticing the difference between the microphones.



I was amazed by the way that the binaural microphones create a real sense of movement and positioning of sound in relation to the listener. I was fascinated by the sounds produced by the contact mics, and the variety of sounds made from different points on a generator. I want to explore using contact mics to record insect activity in nature.

http://thenewbridgeproject.com/sound-weekend-walksworkshops/