Did anyone else laugh out loud after scrolling down the page a bit and seeing the actual device, which is a literal collar? The appearance of the device itself evokes hilarity. Who would willingly put that onto themselves? If your job requires you to attend meetings on-camera, what might your coworkers think if you wore such a device?
Why don't more people use throat mics?
201–210 of 285 posts
Re: Why don't more people use throat mics?
#202I thought this was a satire. It looks like this is not. I like the fact that the author loves experimentation and tried this setup. I'm someone who still thinks Apple has not even solved the design of the AirPods/Pro. So, anything else that makes us like "Batman with a utility belt" is something I would find a more aesthetic alternative. For most of the video call needs, I have tried boom/condenser and XLR microphone…
Who sees a Jabra set as flaunt? Aren't they more blackberry than iphone?
In 2002-2004-ish, weren't we still in the Nokia phone days. This is even before the Motorola Razr!
Re: Why don't more people use throat mics?
#203I'm curious as to why the author even thought that a throat mic would have good audio quality. Throat mics are designed for loud, high intensity situations. For the use case of a throat mic, "good audio quality" means the receiver can actually understand what you're saying, something that is pretty easy to achieve in a home office environment. And I'm sure that it's possible to make a throat mic that has great audio…
> I'm curious as to why the author even thought that a throat mic would have good audio quality. Throat mics are designed for loud, high intensity situations. For the use case of a throat mic, "good audio quality" means the receiver can actually understand what you're saying, something that is pretty easy to achieve in a home office environment. The good audio quality I thought would come from it being viable in a "l…
I don't have much to contribute besides to say that I also run Arch and I also would love to use a high-quality throat mike. My use case is mostly for comms while riding eBikes, not office work. I have a Blue Snowball that I use for voice chat in my quiet, personal home office.
Re: Why don't more people use throat mics?
#204I have a pretty serious audio setup for WFH. I assessed throat mics and bone conduction headphones and IEMs, I then ultimately decided against these options and instead went for a front-address microphone on a boom and open circumaural headphones. In my testing, all of these technologies intended for stealth (primarily) were uncomfortable for long periods of wear/use, and traditional options were massively more comfo…
I love bone conduction headphone. I am currently using the Aftershokz Opencomm. The good thing is that they don't obstruct your ears, and you maintain full awareness of the outside world. Great when you are on the streets.
If that't not what you want, and when you are working from home, it is usually the case, then bone conduction headphones are not for you. When working from home, I am using a more traditional headset (Sennheiser Game One), which has much better sound quality.
For the microphone, I use the built-in headset mic, which is acceptable but not great. Best result I have heard on the receiving end is with a dynamic microphone, namely the Shure SM58, which is by far the most popular microphone for live vocals.
Static mics are great in a studio, but most people don't have studios. Dynamic mics do a great job at rejecting background noise, that's why they are so popular in live performances, and that's why they are also great in a noisy room. One logical constraint that goes with it is that you need to put it very close to your mouth, if you are doing video calls, you can't have it out of the frame, you will look like a rock singer ;)
Re: Why don't more people use throat mics?
#205Look, here's two recordings, spur of the moment, just sitting at a table.
The first is taken on an iPhone in Voice Memos with the built-in mic, as a reference.
The second is taken on the same iPhone in Voice Memos, using a Jabra headset w/ boom over bluetooth.
(The voice quality of the headset is better when the background is quiet)
Re: Why don't more people use throat mics?
#206People don't communicate by listening to each others throats so I would have to imagine that is not the way people expect voice audio to sound.
Re: Why don't more people use throat mics?
#207Sounds like crap and looks uncomfortable to use.
Re: Why don't more people use throat mics?
#208On Bluetooth audio issues: try switching from PulseAudio to PipeWire; it’s better in every way now save perhaps for one or two remaining tiny niches, and pipewire-pulse lets it act as a drop-in replacement for pulseaudio. The usual installation experience is completely uneventful: you install it, restart your session, and everything works at least as well as before. On the throat mic itself: what does it sound like?…
> On Bluetooth audio issues: try switching from PulseAudio to PipeWire; it’s better in every way now save perhaps for one or two remaining tiny niches, and pipewire-pulse lets it act as a drop-in replacement for pulseaudio. The usual installation experience is completely uneventful: you install it, restart your session, and everything works at least as well as before. I did! Pipewire is working awesome -- I'm using p…
Also: pipewire-pulse doesn’t bridge the two in the most likely understanding of the word “bridge”—rather, it implements the PulseAudio protocol on top of PipeWire. In typical Linux package manager terms, it conflicts with and provides pulseaudio and pulseaudio-bluetooth.
Re: Why don't more people use throat mics?
#209Earlier quoted context omitted.
Yes, I have tried both. However the only ANC I have experience with is AirPods Pro, so that's all I have to go on. But I can definitely say that IEMs do a better job than the AirPods.
Which IEM and tip did you get? Do you know why the IEM was better given that the Airpods Pro also plugs the canal?
Shure SE215 and the default tip it comes with. I can only speculate on why the IEM is better, but I suspect it comes down to the tip material creating a better, more substantial seal. The outer shell is also physically larger, and that may also play a role in keeping more sound out.
Re: Why don't more people use throat mics?
#210Earlier quoted context omitted.
I enjoyed your article. I think it is very in the spirit of hacking and science that you asked a question and then meticulously chopped away at it until you had a solution-shaped object. I have also been fascinated by throat-mics from e.g. cyberpunk novels. Have you also thought about bone conduction to replace headphones? That would be very cyberpunk :)
I have not, and now I have a new thing to look into, already firing up the browser tabs. Thanks! :)
I have a pair of bone conducting audio 'headphones', aftershokz, and while I avoid using them for music listening, they handle voice audio really well and you still have full access to the sounds around you. I use them for calls and podcasts when I need to have situational awareness like biking or going for a run. I stress they are not for audiophiles for music though, the sound loses a lot of depth and richness. Caveat, the pair I have are 4+ years old and they likely have made improvements since then.