Microphones Calculators
Polar pattern analysis, placement, sensitivity and microphone selection calculators.
Microphone Polar Pattern Calculator
Calculate off-axis rejection, pickup area and null points for cardioid, supercardioid, hypercardioid, figure-8 and omnidirectional patterns.
Microphone Proximity Calculator
Calculate signal level at the mic, proximity effect bass boost, recommended preamp gain and noise floor margin from source SPL, mic sensitivity, distance and polar pattern.
2 free calculators in Microphones
Microphone Polar Patterns and Placement
A microphone's polar pattern describes its sensitivity to sound arriving from different directions. Understanding polar patterns is essential for microphone selection, placement and feedback management in both studio and live sound environments.
The microphone polar pattern calculator computes off-axis rejection in dB, identifies null points and estimates the effective pickup area for cardioid, supercardioid, hypercardioid, figure-8 and omnidirectional patterns.
Cardioid microphones reject sound from the rear (180 degrees) and are the most common choice for vocals and instruments. Supercardioid and hypercardioid patterns offer tighter front pickup with narrower rejection angles, making them useful in noisy environments. The trade-off is that their null points are not directly behind the microphone, which affects monitor placement on stage.