Samson VR88 Owner's Manual - Operating The Vr88

8

Operating the VR88

Powering the VR88 

The VR88 features an active head amplifier and therefore needs to be operated by 

connecting a phantom power supply. Phantom power is standard on most quality 

mixers, outboard mic preamps and hard disk recorders. If necessary, an external 

phantom supply can also be used. The VR88 receives the phantom power directly 

from a mic cable when connected to a mixer or other microphone input that 

includes a phantom supply. Most mixers have a switch to engage the phantom 

power so be sure to check that the phantom power is on.

Polar Pattern 

The most important characteristic of any microphone is its directionality or “pick-

up pattern”. There are three basic categories of pick up patterns; omnidirectional, 

unidirectional and bidirectional. Omnidirectional mics pick up sound from all 

directions while unidirectional, or cardioid, mics pick up the sound from the front 

and reject the sound from the rear. Bidirectional, or figure-8, mics pick up the 

sound directly in front and back of the microphone while rejecting the sound on 

the left and right sides.

While omni and unidirectional microphones are very useful for a variety of appli-

cations, the VR88’s bidirectional pick up pattern is very desirable and performs 

well in many recording situations. You can use the bidirectional pattern to capture 

room ambiance by carefully placing the microphone between the sound source 

and studio walls. You can also capture the simultaneous performance of two 

instruments or vocalists by positioning the microphone directly between them, so 

one is addressing the front of the microphone and the other the rear.

Microphone Placement 

In order to maximize the sound quality, you must pay careful attention to the 

placement of your VR88 and how it is positioned for the instrument or vocal-

ist that you are miking. The VR88 is a side address microphone employing a 

bidirectional pick up pattern, so it picks up sound from the front and rear. All 

microphones, especially unidirectional and bidirectional microphones, exhibit a 

phenomenon known as “proximity effect.” Very simply put, proximity effect is a 

resulting change in the microphone’s frequency response based on the distance 

of the mic capsule relative to the sound source. Generally, you will get a bass 

boost when miking in close. It is also important to pay attention to the direction 

of the microphone’s element. When you point a unidirectional or bidirectional mic 

directly at the sound source (on axis) you will get the best frequency response, 

however when you start pointing the microphone slightly away (off axis) you will 

notice the high frequency response dropping off and the microphone will start to 

sound like it has more bass.