Topic: Cold (freezing) Weather Taping??

[yug du nord]

^That's good stuff Steve!!.... thanks to all for the input!
I can't seem to find weather related specs for any mikes.....
I'll probably leave the "A" rig at home. 

[stevetoney]

^ To be clear, I have no practical field experience with audio gear suggesting that any of the 'analysis' I provided is reality...everything I wrote is I suppose theoretical based more on a materials science type view, which may or may be reality.  I think chances are good that you'd be OK based on what other people have experienced, so leaving everything home is probably the WAY conservative call.  But at the same time, I don't think the issues I mentioned are out of the realm of possibility either...and at minimum if you can anticipate the situations where freezing condensation might come into play, plan accordingly (use hand warmers like Chuck suggested, or allow warm up and cool down periods).

As far as not finding operating specs, it's probably no surprise on mics, but I swear I've seen some operating temp range specs on some higher end gear, though doesn't seem like the norm for audio gear, perhaps because manufacturers never contemplated how insane tapers are that we'd tape in rain or snow. 

[2manyrocks]

http://www.dpamicrophones.com/en/Mic-University/Technology-Guide/Microphone-Stability.aspx

DPA says these mics continued to meet specifications after being exposed to extreme conditions, but they also say that the materials in these mics were chosen for their similarity in expansion and contraction. 

Not sure I want to dunk any of my microphones in a glass of water like their photo.   

[MIQ]

Hi Tonedeaf,

The reason to be concerned going from cold to hot would be condensation inside the gear. With the inside of the gear being already cold and going from a likely cold and dry environment into a warmer and likely much more humid environment, you have the perfect conditions for forming condensation in/on the gear.  Even small amounts of condensation on a circuit board can cause unexpected results since the condensation causes unintended conductive paths between circuit elements.

Miq