The Great Australian Bight 
- a microphone clip for flutes

 

 

If, like me, you play long dance gigs, you might find standing up to a microphone stand all night very restricting.  A tiny lavallier mic on your flute gives you freedom to sit or stand where you want, or even walk around.  But how to hold it on?  Here's one suggestion:
The Great Australian Bight mic clip securing an Audio Technica mic to a thinned flute head
You can see from the image below how the clip is made.  I used black delrin rod, but nylon or another plastic might be better, being a little more flexible.  A hole is bored for both head and mic, leaving a small amount of material between the holes.  Both holes are made a tiny bit too tight, requiring the material to spring slightly when the clip is attached.  Hence the need for flexibility.

After the holes are bored, excess material is removed from the sides of each opening until the clip snaps neatly onto the relevant part.  Remove any sharp edges so as not to scuff the mic or head.

The Great Australian Bight mic clip
And why is it called the Great Australian Bight?  Check out a map of Australia!

I'm not intending to make these clips - they need to be made to fit both head and mic.  But your local friendly machinist should be able to make one for you, armed with the items and a copy of this page.

Some options:

  • some of the excess material on either side could be milled away to reduce weight and increase flexibility
  • or some holes could be drilled in it for the same purpose
  • one or more slits could be cut leading from the holes to increase flexibility if needed
  • you could even have a slot or two to provide strain relief for the cable

Hope it works for you!

The future is now!

The clip below was made by flute player William Bajzek using a 3D printer!  William comments:

They fit nicely! I just received them so only time will tell if they’re gigworthy. They seem stronger than I expected, and are flexible enough.

William is making these available via: William Bajzek

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Created Sept 2001; Updated March 2013