The Microphone Museum
From carbon granules to MEMS chips — how we learned to capture sound. Visualize polar patterns, explore 34 microphones, and compare pickup types.
Polar Pattern Visualizer
Every microphone capsule's spatial response is its polar pattern — the shape of where it picks up sound and where it rejects it. Cardioid hears one direction; figure-8 hears the front and back but kills the sides; omni hears everything equally.
The Collection
34 artifacts spanning 165 years of microphone innovation — from liquid transmitters to MEMS chips. Click any card to copy its description.
No artifacts in this category.
165 Years of Listening
From 1861 (Reis's "Make-and-Break") to the 2020s (MEMS chips in every smartphone) — capturing sound got smaller, cheaper, and better.
Hands-on Instruments
Compare frequency response curves across mic types, convert sound pressure (Pa) to dB SPL with reference levels, and check whether your mic and preamp impedance are matched.