Data Sheet

Modular Microphone Positioners:
Stereo Microphone Positioners and Decca Tree Arrays

Simple tools to give you a great stereo image.

SMP-17 with
Blumlein Coles
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Our heavy-duty microphone positioners feature the following:

• Supports any coincident or near-coincident, vertical or horizontal array
• Can be stand-mounted, boom-hung, or flown
• Securely supports even the largest microphones
• Center-to-center spacing clearly engraved in centimeters
• Rotation angles indicated at ±30°, 45°, and 55°
• Shown in two sizes: SMP-17 seventeen inch (developed to handle Coles 4038 and other heavy mics) and SMP-1M one meter widths
• The Decca Tree and Mini Tree allow Three-Point configurations. The Super-Tree (2.5x1.25M span) also allows Five-Point surround-sound configurations

The AEA Stereo Microphone Positioner (SMP) was designed specifically as a device for mounting a stereo pair of Coles 4038 ribbon microphones, but the bar will support microphones for virtually any manufacturer – even the heavy large diaphragm condensers that ordinarily will not fit on a conventional stereo bar.

SMP-17 Bar in Diagram
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The SMP consists of a sturdy one-inch wide hard-anodized aluminum bar with a non-reflective matte black finish and three microphone sliders. The bar is available in three sizes, the SMP-17 (17 inches), the SMP-1M (one meter) and the SMP-1.25M (1.25 meters). The bar is engraved across its length in 2.5-cm increments. With zero at the center, these markings designate the distance between the sliders, with special markings to indicate the 17-cm spacing unique to the ORTF stereo system. The sliders are marked around the circumference at 0 , ±30°, 45°, and 55°. These represent included angles of 60°, 90° and 110° respectively between the microphones, and may be used to facilitate exact and repeatable positioning of any conventional stereo perspective. Each slider is fitted with two thumb-screws to secure it onto the bar. Extra-wide locking microphone positioning rings are provided for each slider, and one female threaded coupler is included to allow the SMP to be mounted on a microphone stand or boom.

For more complex microphone arrays, additional sliders may be ordered separately (AEA part no. SMP-S). Multiple SMP bars can be combined to create the AEA Mini Tree, "Decca Tree" & Super Tree arrays, or even other arrays of your own design.