THREE TO GET EM CHEAPLY, AND FOUR TO BID LOW!

That’s the song that hundreds of thousands of bidders are singing lately with the new single penny auction sensation. 1 penny auctions as they’re often called bring buyers and shoppers from all walks of life. Naturally there are many who are rich and many who are poor, but the one thing they share in common with each other is that they’re out to get a steal of a deal on things that we actually want and in the condition we actually want it. Unlike other online auctions which you bid and don’t know what you’re going to get, with penny auction sites you’ll actually get brand new product sealed from the factory.

Online auctions are not new, Ebay has been doing auctions for over 12 years (which in the internet years is equal to 100 years LOL). Other sites have boasted the ability to bid and win as well but until penny auction sites came along, you had to just hope to get something good without knowing whether it was really new.

These kind of auctions bring the best out in all of us. For the poor among us (I used to be poor till I started bidding, winning, and subsequently selling cheap penny auction products—and by cheap I mean inexpensively priced beautifully new products like Xbox’s and iPods.) So go figure, I guess the poor among us can actually also become the rich . These penny auction sites are da bomb!

Generally, ribbon microphone will give you a warmer sound than any condenser microphone, because it lacks the presence peak in the upper frequency range that condensers often have. The Royer R121, an example of a modern ribbon microphone, is sturdy and can handle high SPLs. Many engineers use the R121 to record brass instruments and guitar amps.

Ribbon microphones revolutionized broadcast audio in the 1930 by offering smooth frequency response and minimizing vocal “popping.” Bing Crosby reportedly owed his career to the ribbon, since it was the only microphone that properly reproduced his classic croon. Today, engineers prize ribbon mics for their open, accurate sound.

A word of caution about ribbon mics They do not require a power source, and if they do receive phantom power, they may be permanently damaged.

Although dynamics and condensers are the most common microphone types, other designs enjoy varying degrees of popularity. The piezoelectric microphone is an early design that utilizes a flexible diaphragm and a crystal element. Sound pressure distorts the crystal, generating a corresponding voltage. Also called crystal or ceramic microphones, piezoelectric are inexpensive and render sound quality that matches their low cost. Piezoelectric contact mics usually are employed on acoustic instruments such as acoustic guitar, and they are designed to capture sound from a solid medium, rather than from the air.

Lavalier microphones, tiny elements designed to attach to clothing, are widely used in television broadcasting. Boundary, or pressure response, microphones are relative newcomers that couple a mic element to a boundary plate. The “pressure zone” principle offers good imaging quality, and the microphone can be mounted to a floor or wall.