FUQ (eff -yu - cue) - FAQ's with an EDGE

Tagged As: Rode Microphone

Question:
I have read that there are resistors in the Rode NT4 microphone cable with the minijack, and that it's best to take these out. I bought my NT4 used on ebay, and I unscrewed the minijack to look for the resistors but couldn't find any. I'm wondering if the previous owner already removed them or if they are somewhere else in the cable I didn't look (such as in the XLR plug part?). Can anyone who knows about these tell me where they're supposed to be, as well as what they're supposed to look like (what I read described them as 'pad resistors', and I don't know if that means they look any different from a regular resistor or not)

Answer:
The resistors in the minijack housing seem unlikely to be attenuators although I cannot confirm or deny that at this stage. They are more likely some kind of load resistors that are an attempt to provide good conditions for the microphone output stage. This microphone has a solid state output stage (not a transformer) and it's not ideal to just short one of the phases to ground. Thus, the unused phase might be tied to ground via some load resistance. As I said, awaiting information from Rode on this one. - http://forums.minidisc.org/lofiversion/index.php/t15724.html and here's something else I just found in the same thread: Took the earlier advice and got the side cutters out and redid the 5 pin connector to remove the pad. Ran off the mic internal 9V and straight into line in. That sounds like the resistors are in the XLR plug, not the minijack. ahh here we go, I found the goods. Here's the instructions to remove the pads: http://www.uwm.edu/~type/audio-reports/Rode_NT-4_Cable_Mod/NT-4_Cable.... htm Haighton of the Hi-MD Forum noticed a -12dB pad built into the XL5F ->3.5mm stereo plug cable that came with his recent model Rode NT-4 mic, With help from the micbulders list and eventual confirmation from Rode, we determined it was safe to by-pass the pad to enable the specified 12mV/Pa sensitivity. You can either remove the entire pcb inside the XLR5 connector (and resolder the cable leads) or the much easier method pictured on the left: Heat and remove the four black rectangular resistors from the pcb and jump the red and clear leads to pins 4 and 2 of the XLR5 respectively. We modified 30 NT-4's this simple way without repercussion. We never found out why or when Rode starting adding this pad. Older units may not have it.