Fact · Dictation
180degrees off-axis
A cardioid microphone is least sensitive to sound arriving from directly behind it, at 180 degrees off-axis.
Checked against its source on October 16, 2026
In the source's own words
“While a cardioid polar pattern is least sensitive at the rear (180 degrees off-axis)”
Specialist polar patterns: hypercardioid and subcardioid, Shure Incorporated, Shure, Performance and Production insights, n.d., Section on cardioid and other polar patterns.
Open the original- What it measures
- Shure's explanation of how a cardioid pattern rejects sound from behind, with the supercardioid and hypercardioid nulls for comparison.
- What it does not show
- The rear null is a design property of the pattern, measured on axis. Sound from the side is not rejected as strongly as sound from behind, and room reflections still reach the microphone.