The Coles 4038 is a

ribbon microphone A ribbon microphone, also known as a ribbon velocity microphone, is a type of microphone that uses a thin aluminum, duraluminum or nanofilm of electrically conductive ribbon placed between the poles of a magnet to produce a voltage by electroma ...

produced by Coles Electroacoustics. The microphone was designed and patented by the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

in the 1950s and was originally known as the STC 4038. The sound of the microphone has been described as "British" with a "BBC politeness", and its appearance has been likened to that of a

waffle iron A waffle iron or waffle maker is a kitchen utensil used to cook waffles between two hinged metal plates. Both plates have gridded indentations to shape the waffle from the batter or dough placed between them. The plates are heated and the iron ...

. It is used in both

sound recording Sound recording and reproduction is the electrical, Mechanical system, mechanical, electronic, or digital inscription and re-creation of sound waves, such as spoken voice, singing, instrumental music, or sound effects. The two main classes of ...

and

radio broadcasting Radio broadcasting is the broadcasting of audio signal, audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a lan ...

History

The microphone was designed by the BBC in 1953 and the prototype was assigned the model number BBC PGS/1. It was designed as a result of the BBC's request for a strong and affordable microphone that was smaller than previous models (such as the Type A). The 4038 was an improvement on the Type A's frequency response, and was described as "less obtrusive". The microphone was produced by

Standard Telephones and Cables Standard Telephones and Cables Ltd (later STC public limited company, plc) was a British manufacturer of telephone, telegraph, radio, telecommunications, and related equipment. During its history, STC invented and developed several groundbreakin ...

before their manufacturing was transferred to Coles in the mid-1970s. Since its design in the 1950s, the technical specifications of the 4038 have remained unchanged.

Use

Recording

In recording environments, the 4038 is often used as drum overheads and on

brass instrument A brass instrument is a musical instrument that produces sound by Sympathetic resonance, sympathetic vibration of air in a tubular resonator in sympathy with the vibration of the player's lips. The term ''labrosone'', from Latin elements meani ...

s. The microphone became a favourite of British

recording engineer An audio engineer (also known as a sound engineer or recording engineer) helps to produce a recording or a live performance, balancing and adjusting sound sources using equalization, dynamics processing and audio effects, mixing, reproducti ...

s in the 1950s and 60s, but did not receive widespread use in the United States. The microphone was described as recording sounds "bigger than life" – such as drums or amplified guitars – some

Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

and

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock music, rock band formed in London in 1968. The band comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist-keyboardist John Paul Jones (musician), John Paul Jones and drummer John Bonham. With a he ...

recordings featured 4038s as overhead microphones on the drum kit. In a 1994 interview,

Steve Albini Steven Frank Albini (; July 22, 1962 – May 7, 2024) was an American musician and audio engineer. He founded and fronted the influential post-hardcore and noise rock bands Big Black (1981–1987), Rapeman (1987–1989) and Shellac (band), ...

said that "if eowned one mic, this would be it". Albini has also commented that "really nothing beats them as an overhead on a drum kit".

Broadcast

At one point,

Bush House Bush House is a Grade II listed building at the southern end of Kingsway between Aldwych and the Strand in London, England. It was conceived as a major new trade centre by American industrialist Irving T. Bush, and commissioned, designed, ...

, the former home of the

BBC World Service The BBC World Service is a British Public broadcasting, public service broadcaster owned and operated by the BBC. It is the world's largest external broadcaster in terms of reception area, language selection and audience reach. It broadcas ...

, used the 4038 almost exclusively.

Technical

The 4038's

frequency response In signal processing and electronics, the frequency response of a system is the quantitative measure of the magnitude and Phase (waves), phase of the output as a function of input frequency. The frequency response is widely used in the design and ...

is flat, with a range of approximately 30–15,000 Hz. The attenuation of high frequencies reduces

sibilance Sibilants (from 'hissing') are fricative and affricate consonants of higher amplitude and pitch, made by directing a stream of air with the tongue towards the teeth. Examples of sibilants are the consonants at the beginning of the English word ...

on vocals, but also reduces detail. The microphone uses a bi-directional polar pattern. The microphone is connected using a

Western Electric Western Electric Co., Inc. was an American electrical engineering and manufacturing company that operated from 1869 to 1996. A subsidiary of the AT&T Corporation for most of its lifespan, Western Electric was the primary manufacturer, supplier, ...

jack connector designated 4069, which adapts the microphone's three-pin output to a standard

XLR connector The XLR connector (also Cannon plug and Cannon connector) is a type of electrical connector primarily used in professional audio, video, and stage lighting equipment. XLR connectors are cylindrical, with three to seven connector pins, and are oft ...

. ;Sensitivity (at 1,000 Hz Open Circuit Voltage): -65dB re: 1 Volt/Pa ;Impedance: 300 ohms ;Produced: 1950s–present

Footnotes

Sources

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