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Microphone Help

Hi guys. Waiting for my machine heads to arrive before I can carry on with my first build so with christmas coming up I thought I'd make some presents. Seen the beer can mic's some people make and thought I'd give it a bash. My cousin is in to beatboxing so thought it would be the perfect gift. I'd read somewhere that headphone speakers can be used as the element and I had a working but tatty pair of old school phillips headphones lying about, ones with a volume pot on each side and a stero/mono switch. I figured I could just take one side leave it all wired up to the volume pot, rewire the ground in to the jack lead and all would be well so I soldered it up and plugged it in and got nothing, tried wiring it up without the volume pot and got nothing, well I think there was something coming through when it was turned up really loud but nowhere near microphone output.

Electronics aren't my strong point. I did a bit of circuitry at high school and I can follow a wiring diagram but I don't understand a lot of the advanced stuff and I'm useless at troubleshooting.

Would the volume pot need to be wired up opposite to how it was in the headphones as the current is going the other way or would this make no difference? the volume pot says 300ohms on it, is this enough? Does anyone have a wiring diagram or a simple explanation for these things. I don't know what this type of microphone would be called and as there are so many diferent types its a nightmare trawling through google for relevant stuff.

So I thought I'd ask the wise heads on here as you lot have already given me so much help without even trying, I've read back to 90 pages ago on here for info on my first build and a lot of you have given me help in your previous posts without me even having to ask!

Thanks in advance guys

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Permalink Reply by Skeesix on November 12, 2012 at 11:55am

I think the headphones aren't going to be loud enough because they're on the small side with the windings and the magnet. I did a quick search on beer can microphones and one used an old telephone mic and another used a piezo.

There is a diagram in Bart Hopkin's book , Getting a Bigger Sound, for a condensor mic, using a few dollars of parts from Radio Shack and a 9V battery. I made one and it sounds quite good.

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Permalink Reply by Old Fingers Green on November 14, 2012 at 2:55am

cheers for the reply Skeesix, was going to give up, ripped an alarm clock apart for the piezo disc which worked but i thought i'd give it another go. took everything apart cleaned all the contacts and rewired it to a new jack without the volume pot and it works like a charm! So headphones do work, not sure how well until i rig it all up to a pre-amp. I'll post up how it goes.

Thanks again

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Permalink Reply by Randy Freschlin on August 12, 2014 at 6:48am

Hey Skeesix,

I saw your response and was wondering if you had the diagram available for that mic. I am looking to install it in a cigar box so i would need an on off switch and vol pot. Cant find any real good designs out there....

Thanks!

-Randy

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Permalink Reply by Skeesix on August 12, 2014 at 12:40pm

If you mean the condensor mic, I think that would fall under Bart's copyright, so I can't give it away - you would have to buy the book to get it. However, you can't go wrong with this book - all kinds of neat info on pickups and microphones for various musical instruments, with direct applications for cigar box guitars.

http://windworld.com/products-page/books-cds/

http://www.amazon.com/Getting-Bigger-Sound-Microphones-Instrument/d...

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Permalink Reply by DeltaglowBoy on August 12, 2014 at 3:15pm

Actually, using an old telephone "earpiece" is what mic builders use. The mouth piece is less effective if it works at all. I have posted one that I made a while back. It might be in my gallery. It works great and emulates the old mics used with harmonicas. I'll try to find the pic.

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Permalink Reply by Randy Freschlin on August 14, 2014 at 6:05am

Thanks Brother! I have seen a few desgins useing the Mic portion of the handset I noticed in this case that the mic would require a battery in order to work properly I wanted to use this on a "cigar" box guitar I am toying with

Thanks again!

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Permalink Reply by Muddy Creek Guitars on August 12, 2014 at 11:14am

I build soup can microphones all the time. I glue a piezo to the bottom end of the can and wire it to an out put jack.

*Warning* don't let the piezo or the jack touch the metal or there will be a short. I put tape on the bottom of the can. Others use enough glue that the piezo doesn't touch. I use rubber grommets from a hardware store so the jack won't touch the can. You can cover the open end of the can any way you like. Some use drain covers; I use burlap.

Good luck building!

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Permalink Reply by Reeds Taylor on August 14, 2014 at 12:53pm

I made this out of an old hose you hold too shower with...and the transmitter element from a old phone...and never had any issues. Although it sounded a bit like an old radio....I liked it.....so did someone else..so I sold it....lol.

I had too hot glue a wooden plug inside...with a pre drilled hole for the lack plug...and ,and a wooden washer on the outside too mount the jack plug....worked out ok.

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Permalink Reply by Randy Freschlin on August 15, 2014 at 3:47pm

Interesting so this was just hard wired to a 1/4 output jack? Everything I have seen indicates that can be done with the earpiece but not the Mic..I really dig the design you came up with man it is very cool I am looking for a design that incorporates a telephone Mic a vol controller and out put jack got anything like that? Thanks again!

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Permalink Reply by Randy S. Bretz on August 15, 2014 at 5:32pm

Old rotary telephone receivers make great mic elements...just wire it direct to a 1/4" input jack..also C.B handset elements work great.....http://www.cigarboxnation.com/photo/albums/custom-harmonica-mic-s