Mic Archive

Woodwinds

Clarinet

Woodwinds: Flute, piccolo, clarinet, oboe and bassoon (the saxophones are their own family). Most of the sound comes from the tone holes along the body, not the bell, so sources aim at the holes.

Part of the Woodwinds family; that family's advice shows here too.

Range
D3–Bb6
Overtones to
about 5.4 kHz
Peaks up close
up to 127 dB SPL
Sources
9 (7 independent)

Recommended mics

Mics sources recommend

16 setups from 9 sources, 7 of them independent of any mic maker. Each mic shows how many sources name it for that role, and how many of those are independent. Listed alphabetically: there is no ranking.

Studio

Spot

  • DPA 4006A maker's advice1 source, 0 independent
  • DPA 4006C (variant of the DPA 4006A) maker's advice1 source, 0 independent
  • DPA 4011A maker's advice1 source, 0 independent
  • DPA 4015A maker's advice1 source, 0 independent
  • Royer ribbon microphone1 independent source

Close

  • beyerdynamic M 1601 independent source
  • Neumann U 871 independent source
  • RODE NT11 independent source
  • condenser (type only)1 independent source
  • condenser or ribbon (type only)1 independent source
  • large-diaphragm cardioid condenser (type only)1 independent source
  • small-diaphragm condenser (type only)1 independent source

Contact

The 11 setups behind this: placement and quotes
  • Spot DPA 4006A
    spot, 15-20 cm, at the fingering holes a third of the way up from the bell
    Aim the mic at the fingering holes, a third of the length up from the bell, at a distance of 15-20 cm; omni when possible.1
  • Spot DPA 4006C (variant of the DPA 4006A)
    spot, 15-20 cm, at the fingering holes
    4006C compact omni listed beside the 4006A for the same spot position.1
  • Spot DPA 4011A
    spot, when more separation is needed
    If more separation is needed, a 4011A cardioid or 4015A wide cardioid can be used (paraphrase).1
  • Spot DPA 4015A
    spot, when more separation is needed; also orchestral off-axis between two players
    4015A wide cardioid named for separation and for an off-axis position between two players at head height.1
  • Close Neumann U 87 or RODE NT1 or beyerdynamic M 160
    distance, perpendicular to the instrument, about 1 ft from the midpoint
    Clarinet: U 87, RODE NT1 or beyerdynamic M160 ribbon, a foot from the midpoint (paraphrase).2
  • Close large-diaphragm cardioid condenser (type only)
    distance, about 1 ft, pointing between the player's hands
    Soprano sax and clarinet: point at the holes, not the bell, about a foot away, between the player's left and right hands (paraphrase).3
  • Close condenser (type only)
    distance, about 18 in, half to two-thirds down the body
    Condenser typically gives best results; about 18 inches away, half way down, so the mic can see the whole instrument (paraphrase).4
  • Close small-diaphragm condenser (type only)
    distance, about 1 ft, aimed at the lower hand position
    Most of the sound comes from the unstopped finger holes, so focus on the bell and you miss 70 percent of the harmonic range (paraphrase).5
  • Close condenser or ribbon (type only)
    distance, about 18 in, aimed at the middle of the keys
    Both condenser and ribbon mics do a good job (said for sax and clarinet); about 18 inches, aimed at the keys (paraphrase).6
  • Spot Woodwinds advice Royer ribbon microphone
    spot, close mics on the woodwinds
    Royer ribbon mics on the woodwinds and low brass7
  • Contact Woodwinds advice 2 × Schoeps MK 4
    pair, stereo pair as overall woodwind pickup
    the woodwinds had a stereo pair of Schoeps MK4s as an overall pickup8

On stage

Clip-on

  • DPA 4099 CORE+ maker's advice1 source, 0 independent
  • Shure PGA98H maker's advice1 source, 0 independent
  • clip-on instrument mic (type only)1 independent source

Close

The 4 setups behind this: placement and quotes
  • Clip-on DPA 4099 CORE+
    clip-on near the bell, aimed at the keys
    Use the 4099 with its clip near the bell but point it toward the keys for a blend of bell and tone-hole sound (paraphrase).1
  • Clip-on Shure PGA98H
    clip-on, about 1 ft from the sound holes
    Listed under woodwinds, clip-on; avoid miking the finger holes too closely to reduce key noise (paraphrase).9
  • Close Shure SM137
    close, about 1 ft from the sound holes
    Listed under woodwinds: a flat-response cardioid probe microphone with an ultra-thin diaphragm.9
  • Clip-on clip-on instrument mic (type only)
    clip-on, keeps position when the player moves
    For feedback or spill problems, clip-on instrument microphones keep a consistent position whatever the player does (paraphrase).5

Studio and stage

Close

  • condenser (type only)1 source, 0 independent
The 1 setup behind this: placement and quotes
  • Close Woodwinds advice condenser (type only)
    close, about 30 cm from the sound holes
    A mic placed about 1 foot from sound holes will produce a natural, well-balanced sound.9

Range

D3 to about Bb610147 Hz – 1.86 kHz

B-flat clarinet; sounds a major second below written (written E3-C7). VSL: orchestral top about G6.

ChalumeauD3–E4dark, full, warm; strong odd harmonics
ThroatF4–Ab4weaker, duller; few overtones
ClarionA4–Bb5bright, lustrous, compact
AltissimoB5–Bb6piercing and shrill toward the top

Traditional written boundaries (chalumeau to F#4, throat G4-Bb4, clarion B4-C6, altissimo from C#6) shifted down a major second. VSL groups the clarion and lower altissimo as one "upper register" A4-F6 and calls Gb6-Bb6 the highest register.

Overtones reach about 5.4 kHz (the highest harmonic within 40 dB of the strongest, at a moderate level; louder playing reaches higher)11.

The sound

A cylindrical bore closed at the reed end behaves like a stopped pipe, so in the low register the even harmonics are weak (here the 2nd is 40 dB down); higher up the even harmonics come back.

Where the sound goes

SOS: most of the sound comes from the unstopped finger holes, so aiming at the bell misses about 70 percent of the harmonic range. DPA says the bass clarinet radiates like a saxophone, with bell and tone holes both contributing. Agrees with the existing entry.5,1

Recording it

On stage

Clip-on mics keep position when the player moves (SOS 2005). DPA's 4099 clipped near the bell and turned toward the keys; Shure's PGA98H and SM137 at about 1 ft from the sound holes, and not too close to the finger holes (key noise).5,1,9

Playing techniques

Estimate: Not found in the sources checked (general practice): Subtone.

Good to know

How loud

Sound pressure level measurements as published. Different kinds of figure (a playing level, a peak, a dose at the player's ear) can't be compared with each other, and neither can figures at different distances.

Playing level
68–82 dBat 3 m; UK Sound Advice table of representative noise levels, row 'Clarinet' (single musician) secondary12
85–114 dBnot stated; hearingconservation.org decibel chart, 'Sound Levels of Music' secondary13
42–99 dB(Z)at 1 m; Modern Bb clarinet, derived from the TU Berlin sound power values estimate14
Peaks
112 dBnot stated (peak column of the same table); UK Sound Advice table of representative noise levels, row 'Clarinet' secondary12
96–105 dB(A)at the player; same study, LASmax (slow) per rehearsal or concert15
113–127 dB(C)at the player; same study, LCpeak per rehearsal or concert15
Dynamic range
57 dB(Z)sound power, whole range; Modern Bb clarinet, Weinzierl et al. 2018, Table I estimate14
Player's exposure (dosimeter)
81–90 dB(A)at the player (meters on tripods with microphones close to the players); Polish opera and symphony orchestras, group rehearsals, concerts and performances; 18 samples15
80.7–88 dB(A)dosimeter on the student; Classical music students (Portugal), classes with instrument practice, dosimeter over two weeks16
Sound power
107 dBmaximum sound power level Lw (re 1 pW), no distance; Sengpielaudio table of maximum possible sound power, row 'Klarinette' secondary17
53–110 dB(Z)sound power level Lw (dB re 1 pW), not a sound pressure at a distance; Modern Bb clarinet, single notes over the whole range played as soft and as loud as possible, anechoic chamber TU Berlin, 32-mic spherical array14
69–102 dB(Z)sound power level Lw (dB re 1 pW), repertoire-weighted average; Modern Bb clarinet, pp and ff sound power averaged over the range, weighted by how often each pitch occurs in Beethoven's symphonies14

The UK Sound Advice table of representative noise levels gives 68-82 dB at 3 m with a peak of 112 dB; an unsourced chart gives 85-114 dB with no distance. These disagree by a wide margin; I trust neither fully. The clarinet dosimeter failed in the RCM student study, so it gives nothing.12,13,18

Sources

  1. DPA Mic University: How to mic a clarinetmanufacturer · dpamicrophones.com
  2. Recording Magazine: Miking Brass and WindsBob Ross · magazine · recordingmag.com
  3. Recording Magazine: Miking the Horn SectionMichael Schulze · magazine · recordingmag.com
  4. Sound On Sound: Q. How do I mike up woodwind instruments? (Hugh Robjohns, Nov 2003)magazine · soundonsound.com
  5. Sound On Sound: Q. What's the best way to mike a clarinet? (Hugh Robjohns, 2005)magazine · soundonsound.com
  6. Yamaha Hub: Recording Acoustic Instruments, Part 3Mike Levine · magazine · 2022 · hub.yamaha.com
  7. Mix: The Changing Landscape of Orchestral Recording (engineer Steve Smith, Music Works Studios)magazine · mixonline.com
  8. Sound On Sound: Jake Jackson: Recording The 2012 Olympic Anthemsmagazine · soundonsound.com
  9. Shure: How to Choose the Best Mics for Brass, Wind, and String Instrumentsmanufacturer · shure.com
  10. Vienna Symphonic Library Academy: Clarinet in Bbeducational · vsl.co.at
  11. SHARC Timbre Database v2 (Gregory Sandell): harmonic analyses of McGill University Master SamplesGregory Sandell · academic · github.com
  12. Representative noise levels table with orchestra noise guidance (UK Sound Advice material)eclass-b.uoa.gr
  13. Decibel (Loudness) Comparison Chart, hearingconservation.orghearingconservation.org
  14. JASA: Sound power and timbre as cues for the dynamic strength of orchestral instruments (Weinzierl, Lepa, Schultz, Detzner, von Coler, Behler)Stefan Weinzierl et al. · academic · 2018-09 · depositonce.tu-berlin.de
  15. JOSE: Evaluation of Sound Exposure and Risk of Hearing Impairment in Orchestral Musicians (Pawlaczyk-Luszczynska, Dudarewicz, Zamojska, Sliwinska-Kowalska)Malgorzata Pawlaczyk-Luszczynska et al. · academic · 2011 · portal.ciop.pl
  16. 3rd International Congress on Environmental Health (Porto 2014), abstract: noise exposure of jazz and classical music studentsacademic · 2014-09 · recipp.ipp.pt
  17. Sengpielaudio (UdK Berlin): Stoerquelle - Musikinstrument? (maximum sound power of instruments)Eberhard Sengpiel · educational · 2006-05 · sengpielaudio.com
  18. Backus, Clark and Williamon: Noise exposure and hearing thresholds among orchestral musicians (ISPS 2007)academic · 2007 · researchonline.rcm.ac.uk