Parabolic reflector

How did you find the focal point for the microphone position? Did you know a good way is to shine a light on the dish and watch for the point where the light reflects to. It gives a rough idea of where to put the tip of the mic' so it actually picks up more accurately from the dish reflection.

Great idea though, and, at that price, you can't complain. :-)

Good hunting.

Fantastic idea. I'm currently looking to do the same thing. I will implement and get back to you with any results.

Groovy

It's normal to have it clamped in rubber so you just listen to the output and slide it in or out for maximum level.

But shining a light on to a reflective surface will give a rough idea of where the focal point is. It is not exact, but it gives a good round'a'bout area to place the mic' in the first place.

For none shiny surfaces you can use a speaker on low and then set the mic' to the point where is picks up the best sound level. Place the speaker around two or three metres away from the dish, put a very low level sound on to it, then set the dish to point at it.

It's a long time since I played with a pro one, but IIRC it's best adjusted for the distance it's going to be used at.