NTI Newsletter

Phantom Power Testing

Have you ever faced no output from a known-good microphone? Yes? Then you probably are aware that a frequent cause is that the microphone phantom power supply was either turned off or was defective. The Minirator MR-PRO measures the individual phantom voltage at the XLR connector pin 2 and pin 3.

The Minirator MR-PRO measures the actual effective phantom power voltage with or without load. For example you connect the MR-PRO directly to the microphone input of the mixing desk. The Minirator display shows the actual phantom power at pin 2 and pin 3 at no load conditions in the sine wave mode. Full load conditions may be simulated with the help of a special "y" test adapter. Thus in a second measurement, the loaded phantom voltage stability is measured according to the corresponding standard IEC1938. We have summarized technical background information on phantom power and detailed test instructions in the application note “Phantom Power Testing with the MR-PRO”.

Download the application note “Phantom Power Testing with the MR-PRO” here.

Applause Meter decides Song Contest Festival
… the hysterical live show, where "normal" people mutate to shining stars.

The Acoustilyzer AL1 serves as an applause meter for shows, such as the annual Song Contest Festival in Feldkirch, Austria. This event stages daring hobby and leisure-time stars, who truly understand to cheer up their audience. The competition result is based on the sound pressure level of the applause generated by the 600 members of the live audience.

The audience judges the performance of the individual contestants by the level of applause. Indeed, the song contest winner is determined by the average sound pressure level of the applause over 10 seconds. The event manager Thomas Rauch reports: “With the level measurement by the AL1, the competition result accurately matches the spectators' applause level here in the Poolbar in Feldkirch. In the past using older methods, a short loud burst by a single person affected the results heavily. Here meets the Acoustilyzer exactly our requirements for an applause meter.” Thomas Rauch invites all "normal" people to participate at this annual happening, which features two classes of entries – Solo or Group. A professional band supports the artists, who step into roles ranging from KISS to the amazing Smurfs. Thus they provide a pure variety on entertainment. Most of the artists reach an applause of about 100 dB LEQ. This year’s winner however achieved even 106.2 dB LEQ!

The Acoustilyzer measures the applause in the SPL mode with the timer setting SINGLE, 10 seconds.