Ahuja Pro 3200 Microphone

Ahuja Pro 3200 Microphone

The Ahuja Pro 3200 is the PRO+3200, Ahuja’s professional supercardioid dynamic microphone in its Professional Performance series. It is a wired handheld microphone built for the work that series name describes: live vocals, musical instruments, studio recording and broadcasting, where the microphone is handled, switched and worked close to loudspeakers night after night. Its specification is a working specification rather than a laboratory one: a 50 Hz to 18,000 Hz frequency response, 2.5 mV/Pa sensitivity, 300 ohm impedance, and a kit that arrives ready to connect, with a quick detachable holder, a 3-pin professional XLR connector and a 10 metre twin-core shielded low-noise cable.

Ahuja describes the PRO+3200’s sound as exceptionally warm and articulate, which is the balance a live vocal microphone needs: enough body to carry a voice over a band or through a PA, with the clarity that keeps words intelligible in a reverberant hall.

Key features

• Supercardioid dynamic microphone for live vocal, instrument, studio and broadcast use
• Frequency response of 50 Hz to 18,000 Hz
• Sensitivity of 2.5 mV/Pa with 300 ohm impedance
• Superior double shock-mount system to reduce handling noise
• Noiseless on/off switch
• Quick detachable microphone holder supplied
• 3-pin professional XLR connector
• 10 m twin-core shielded low-noise cable supplied

Why supercardioid, and why dynamic

A supercardioid pattern picks up sound most strongly from directly in front of the microphone and rejects more of the room and the stage from the sides than a broader cardioid does. On a live stage that rejection is feedback margin: the microphone can be worked louder before the monitors or house speakers start to ring, provided it is positioned sensibly behind the loudspeaker line. The dynamic design suits the same environment. It needs no phantom power, tolerates high sound pressure from drums, guitar cabinets and loud singers without complaint, and shrugs off the handling that would end a delicate condenser.

Handling noise and the noiseless switch

Two details separate a stage microphone from a merely adequate one. The first is handling noise: every grip adjustment travels up a rigid microphone as a thump. The PRO+3200’s double shock-mount system suspends the cartridge so that hand movement is absorbed instead of amplified. The second is the switch. Singers and presenters mute and unmute between songs and segments, and a cheap switch announces each change with a click or pop through the PA. Ahuja fits a noiseless switch so those changes happen silently, which is also what makes the microphone practical for announcements and compering, where it is switched constantly.

The supplied cable and holder

The 10 metre twin-core shielded cable is long enough to cross a small stage from the mixer position without extensions, and its shielding and low-noise construction matter at that length, where a poor cable picks up hum and crackle from lighting and mains runs. The 3-pin XLR connector is the professional standard, locking into mixers, stage boxes and interfaces. The quick detachable holder lets the microphone move between hand and stand in seconds, which suits shared microphones in schools, houses of worship and function bands.

Using it well

Work the microphone close, a few centimetres from the mouth, slightly off-axis to soften breath pops, and keep it behind the loudspeakers with its rear rejection aimed at the nearest monitor. Set the mixer’s gain with the loudest passage the performer will actually deliver. Coil the cable loosely after use, keep the connector clean and dry, and store the microphone out of dust between events. On a stand, the same placement rules apply, with the holder carrying the microphone at the set angle.

The package is the microphone with its detachable holder, XLR connector and the supplied 10 metre cable. A microphone stand, where one is wanted, is a separate item; the microphone connects to any mixer, amplifier or interface input that accepts a low-impedance dynamic microphone over XLR.