Researcher and eco-acoustic composer David Monacchi has been using DPA
Microphones’ 4060 miniature microphones to capture the sounds of the rainforest as
part of his long-term environmental sound-art project entitled Fragments of
Extinction.
Monacchi, who is professor of Electroacoustic Music at the Conservatorio G.Rossini in
Pesaro, Italy, is collaborating with various institutions on this project, which involves
traveling to some of the world’s most remote areas of intact rainforest to record
complex soundscape portraits.
“I use several microphone techniques in the field, most of which involve quite heavy
and complex systems,’ Monacchi explains. “DPA miniature microphones are extremely
lightweight and this makes them highly suitable to field work where I may have to
hike long distances in extreme terrain.
“The DPA 4060 microphones are so small that, if appropriately arranged in a
handmade stand, they can be used for self-worn binaural recordings,’ he explains.
“When used in this way they give optimum results because their dimensions are
perfectly suited to being placed at the entrance of the ear canal.’
Originally designed for use with wireless systems in theatre, television and close-
miked instrument applications, DPA’s 4060 miniature microphones exhibit a highly
accurate omnidirectional pattern and therefore do not need to be aimed directly at the
sound source to achieve quality pickup.
“This feature is especially useful for binaural recordings,’ says Monacchi, “where, in
order to collect the three-dimensional information, it is important that all the sound
reflections from the pinna are picked up in a linear way.
He adds that the sound quality delivered by his DPA 4060 miniature microphones is
excellent. “They have very good tonal quality, linear behaviour and immunity to
infrasound vibration-driven noises – all of which are very positive characteristics in
the field,’ he says. “Considering their dimensions, the signal to noise ratio of these
capsules is extremely high, making them suitable for low intensity biophonies and
distant sound sources. In addition, their extended high frequency response to around
40khz make them suitable for recording non-audible biophonies like some species of
insects and bats.’
