recordinghacks

Blue Microphones Yeti

Multi-Pattern Condenser Stereo Microphone

Blue’s Yeti is a 16-bit USB microphone with an unusual array of three small-diaphragm capsules.

One capsule faces forward. The other two form a 90° XY-stereo array pointing 180° from the front capsule.

Presumably all three capsules produce a cardioid pattern. The front of the mic (single capsule) would then provide a cardioid pattern; the rear (capsule pair) would provide an XY-stereo pattern. Summing the stereo signal to mono cardioid would allow it to be combined to form omni (back-to-back cardioid in phase) or figure-8 (back-to-back cardioid out of phase) patterns.

Blue’s literature gives a capsule diameter of 14mm. No other details about the capsules are available at this time.

The microphone body has five switches:

1. Headphone volume
2. Pattern selection - cardioid, stereo, omni, figure-of-8
3. Mute - instantly silence the mic output
4. Mic gain

The Yeti is the world’s first THX Certified Microphone.

Matthew Chrispen, THX

THX testing and certification ensure [that] the fidelity of the recording always remains true to its source,

The mini phone jack on the microphone can be used for zero-latency monitoring of the mic’s signal, or for monitoring tracks played back from the computer. Note, however, that the mic provides no means of adjusting the relative volumes of these two sources.

The mic’s published specs quote a frequency response of 20 - 20,000 Hz, but the response graphs for the mic show that both the low and high-frequency -3dB points happen well inside the edges of the graph. The ranges noted in the specs table below represent our best read of the published graphs.

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The mic was released in 2009.

Specifications

Frequency Response - OmnidirectionalClick Graph to Compare!
Frequency Response - CardioidClick Graph to Compare!
Frequency Response - BidirectionalClick Graph to Compare!
Frequency Response - X/Y StereoClick Graph to Compare!

Pickup Patterns	Pads & Filters
Omnidirectional (4.5 mV/Pa; 180 - 20,000 Hz) Cardioid (4.5 mV/Pa; 150 - 15,000 Hz) Bidirectional (4.5 mV/Pa; 100 - 15,000 Hz) X/Y Stereo (4.5 mV/Pa; 80 - 15,000 Hz)

Capsule Dimensions	Impedance	SPL/Noise
Capsule diameter: 14mm	n/a	Max SPL: 120 dB

Weight	Length	Max Diameter	Interface(s)
550g (19.40oz)	n/a	n/a	USB (1)

Power Specifications

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