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Lewitt Audio LCT 540

Cardioid Condenser Microphone

The Lewitt Audio Authentica LCT 540 is large-diaphragm FET condenser microphone with a fixed cardioid pickup pattern.

It shares a body design and much of its feature set with Lewitt’s LCT 640, a multipattern mic with additional pad and filter options.

The capsule in the LCT 540 and LCT 640 is a large-diaphragm design whose backplate drilling pattern closely resembles the Neumann K67. Both mics employ 4-micron, gold-sputtered Mylar membranes measuring 25.4mm within a capsule whose diameter is 33mm. The fixed-cardioid LCT 540 uses a “dummy” rear membrane of blank Mylar.

Two pushbutton switches on the body of the microphone provide a 3-way pad (0dB, -10dB, -20dB) and a 3-way high-pass filter (-12dB/octave @ 40Hz, -6dB/octave @ 300Hz, or flat).

The pushbutton switches operate silently. The current pad and filter selection are indicated by LED backlighting, behind the faceplate.

The mic’s PCB employs surface-mount components.

The transformerless amplifier circuit is very low-noise, rated at 8dBA. Note that the multipattern version of this mic, the LCT 640, has slightly lower noise (7dBA).

The unusually open mesh grille is made of “ruthenium-galvanized” steel, backed by a fine-gauge screen.

The LCT 540 is packaged identically to the multipattern LCT 640 (pictured at right); both ship with a shockmount (Lewitt p/n LCT 40 SHx), foam windscreen (p/n LCT 40 Wx), leather storage pouch (p/n DTP 40 Lb), and a foam-lined black aluminum flightcase.

As of early 2015, the LCT-540 is being replaced within the Authentica product line, by two newer products:

• the LCT-550 is an improved/upgraded Cardioid mic, with a modified capsule, 0dB self-noise electronics (3dB self-noise from the capsule).
• the LCT-450 is a lower-cost 540, with the same capsule and circuit as the 540, but built into a smaller body, with fewer switchable features.

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The mic was released in 2010.

Specifications

Frequency Response - CardioidClick Graph to Compare!

Pickup Patterns	Pads & Filters
Cardioid (16 mV/Pa; 20 - 20,000 Hz)	Pad: -10dB (Via Switch) Pad: -20dB (Via Switch) Filter: -12dB/octave @ 40Hz (Via Switch) Filter: -6 dB/octave @ 300Hz (Via Switch)

Capsule Dimensions	Impedance	SPL/Noise
Diaphragm diameter: 25.4mm Capsule diameter: 33mm Diaphragm gauge: 4 microns	150 Ohms (Low)	Max SPL: 163 dB Self-noise: 8.0 dB(A)

Weight	Length	Max Diameter	Interface(s)
425g (14.99oz)	158mm (6.22'')	n/a	3-pin XLR male (1)

Power Specifications
Requires phantom power Phantom voltage: 48 ± 4v

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