DPA Microphones
2011 Twin Diaphragm Microphone

The 2011 Twin Diaphragm Cardioid Mic is a directional microphone. The unique sound of this microphone is well balanced. It bridges the gap between the extremely high sound quality of the pencil microphones and well-known Lavalier microphones from DPA Microphones.

• Blends clarity, richness and dynamics
• Twin Diaphragm Capsule Technology
• Advanced Interference Tube Technology
• Superb stage separation and level control
• Modular flexibility

Named for its "heart-shaped" polar pattern, a cardioid (or directional) microphone has the highest sensitivity at the front and the lowest sensitivity at the sides and back. They come in many variations - with wider or narrower sensitivity angles (supercardioid, hypercardioid, wide cardioid, etc.). Although cardioids also pick up sound coming from the sides, this outer-axial sound is usually more or less colored and attenuated. However, DPA's unique capsule technology avoids the coloring of sound coming from the sides or back of the microphone, and reduces only the sensitivity to these angles, providing perfect sound stages. The amount of attenuation depends on the exact specifications of the microphone.

A microphone with a cardioid characteristic is by definition attenuated by -6 dB at the 90° side input of the microphone, but for many the word cardioid generally encompasses microphones with a directional characteristic as opposed to omn microphones that pick up sound from all directions.

Because of their nature, directional microphones are often used on the live stage - both in concerts and in speech performances to capture the focused sound of an instrument or voice. The narrow sensitivity angle helps keep other noises from becoming too prominent on a busy stage. For microphones with a cardioid pickup pattern, be aware of the proximity effect, which leads to an increase in bass response the closer the microphone is brought to the sound source. Therefore, when evaluating microphone specifications, you should always look for the distance at which the linear frequency response was measured. Also, cardioid microphones are much more sensitive to wind, pop, and handling noise than omnidirectional microphones, so you should take appropriate precautions.