Extra exam question E7H02
Subelement E7, PRACTICAL CIRCUITS· Group E7H
What is a microphonic?
- A.An IC used for amplifying microphone signals
- B.Distortion caused by RF pickup on the microphone cable
- C.Changes in oscillator frequency caused by mechanical vibration (correct answer)
- D.Excess loading of the microphone by an oscillator
WhyA microphonic is a change in oscillator frequency caused by mechanical vibration. A microphonic is a change in an oscillator's frequency caused by mechanical vibration physically disturbing its components, particularly problematic in crystal oscillators where even tiny mechanical movement can shift the output frequency audibly, answer C. It isn't an IC for amplifying microphone audio, isn't RF pickup distortion on a mic cable, and isn't a description of an oscillator overloading a microphone, those are unrelated phenomena that happen to share the word "microphone" in their description.
Published 2026-08-28 · Last updated 2026-08-28 · Question text is verbatim from the 2024-2028 NCVEC Element 4 pool (public domain); the explanation above is original writing, see our methodology.