Using a PZM mic for IRs?

[Repartee41]

I've recently discovered the world of Pressure Zone Microphones, and was able to aquire one for dirt cheap. I haven't been able to test it out yet, but from what I've gathered, it sounds like the perfect thing for micing a cab.

"The main advantage of this technology is the elimination of interference from reflected sound waves. A normal microphone will pick up sound waves from the primary source and also any reverberations, which can result in unnatural sound reproduction. In the pressure zone microphone, sound waves are always in phase and there is no interference."

This sounds like exactly the kind of advantage that micing a cab would use. No more worrying about early reflections or phasing issues, just one or more of these.

So what's the catch?

 

[h.c.e.]

I believe @dr bonkers include a PZM mic option in all of his cab packs, I'm sure he can drop some knowledge on the topic...

 

[dr bonkers]

I've recently discovered the world of Pressure Zone Microphones, and was able to aquire one for dirt cheap. I haven't been able to test it out yet, but from what I've gathered, it sounds like the perfect thing for micing a cab.

"The main advantage of this technology is the elimination of interference from reflected sound waves. A normal microphone will pick up sound waves from the primary source and also any reverberations, which can result in unnatural sound reproduction. In the pressure zone microphone, sound waves are always in phase and there is no interference."

This sounds like exactly the kind of advantage that micing a cab would use. No more worrying about early reflections or phasing issues, just one or more of these.

So what's the catch?

The catch is you need to decide what your goals are with PZM captures.

They are great for capturing the cab resonance that escapes being recorded with traditional close mic techniques.

Just sticking the PZM to the front of the cab in front of the speaker is rather underwhelming in most use cases as it gets a little boxy sounding.

Using it for amp in the room ambience is really dependent upon the quality of your room. If your room has unpleasant resonances or cancellations, the PZM is going to capture those in all its detail.

I offer PZM IR files in all my cab packs. From my experience, the PZM really shines when it is used in combination with close mics due to the fact that the PZM will be phase coherent with a close mic.

Like most techniques for capturing ambience or depth, the amount that you mix in determines something that sounds realistic versus something that sounds like a bad demo recording.

YMMV