David's Tip of the Day: Flashlight for Checking Tightness of Bullet Mic Cupping

Fellow student SmokeJS has the following tip for you. The special mic he refers to is the bullet mic I had made for teaching mic cupping technique that has a halogen bulb in place of a mic cartridge.

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I recently watched the Intermediate Student Ryan Walker video with the special mic. Not having one, I looked around and found an inexpensive Garrity flashlight in the basement. It's 2 1/2 inches in diameter at the light end. It's a good-sized flashlight, as it takes large D cell batteries, but just two, so it's not crazy long or heavy. While the light only goes forward, it's possible to see issues in the cup on the front end as the light hits my face or chest. Light reflecting off my face can be enough to show other cupping issues. At 2 1/2 inches it's definitely great cupping practice, as it feels larger than a JT30 so it's muscle-building, and it doesn't get too hot too quickly. Note that like your video, a fairly dark room is necessary for the light to work.

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Thanks SmokeJS!