Want to build a retro looking stage mic for vocals...ideas needed please

I have a nice shell for this a NJD SH55 copy nice chrome......the dynamic mic thats in it is suprisingly good at only 30 pounds inc case......

However as good as capsule is its not good enough, I thought I could just buy best dynamic mic I can find and put the capsule in there....prob is a great mic would cost couple hundred pound and id wanna audition them all and then I usually find they dont match up to my fav live mic that is electret Beta 87

I have some electret & condensor capsules laying around.....I have a AKG CK1 a AKG solid tube capsule electret and a sennheiser electret from a radio mic head that costs over 500 pounds a ME5005 that sounded great when it worked

My plan I is think to build a circuit on vero board for the sennheiser ME5005 electret capsule....

Main question is what circuit do I build ?? dont want it complicated .....I thought about the Octava MK012 but thats a true condenser .....Can the circuit be changed ??  I guess theres power going to the capsule that the electret wont like ??

Or is there a more suited circuit out there ?...I could buy a cheap T bone electret 22 pounds and rip the guts out....

Or any ideas on the retro great sounding mic would be greatly recieved thanks for reading.

Hi,



I would say that an electret is not really your best bet, since it has an omni pick-up pattern, which will not be your friend on stage . . .


    save you pennies and get the proper shure version.


    Kindest regards,


      ANdyP

http://sound.westhost.com/project93.htm

Thanks guys very interesting link cant wait to read that after my gig tonight the electret I have is hypercardoid  the CK1 is cardoid, Im looking for a better sound than the shures the sennheiser was better than my beloved Beta 87 electret and way better than a Beta 58 which i think they have in the shure sh55s....I think the only dynamic capsule I would like to try is a heil PR35 but its 200 smackers thanks for yr thoughts chaps ....more thoughts welcome ....thanks

> my fav live mic that is electret Beta 87

"The Beta 87A has consistently been a top choice of performers and audio technicians around the world due to its superb...." blah-blah....

It isn't a dumb thing to get a B87, yank the guts, and jam it into a '55-clone case.

It won't be "exactly the same". The shape of the '87's tube (and hand) causes diffraction which is allowed-for in Shure's designs. Also of course the performer will work it differently.

> Im looking for a better sound than the shures the sennheiser was better than my beloved Beta 87 electret

Uh..... the '87 is your "fav" but the Senn was better, and you are looking at "a cheap T bone".... if you can't say what you like, then it may be hard for anybody to tell you what you should like.

The capsule is the main thing. The electronics can make it worse. $59 mike electronics can be better. But they do amazingly well; it may take a heap of try-and-change to do better. Do you want to sniff solder or make music? And which are you better at?

> like to try is a heil PR35

That has a VERY odd response and pattern which make me suspect it is a large headphone or small speaker driver in a large case. Yup, half of a half-dead headphone can be a dynamic mike. But you really want some control of diaphragm damping, and probably a close-fitting front resonator. Unless you have a good sense of small electro-acoustics (or use an element and housing JUST like Heil's), this is probably a "novelty" mike not a "fav" mike.

> electret .... has an omni pick-up

There are cardioid electrets. There's $1 omnis, $2 close-talk and soft-cardioids, $20 decent cardioids, and there have been $200 cardioids comparable to hard-bias capsules in a similar price range. The way you bias the diaphragm doesn't much affect the acoustic possibilities. All the basic patterns are possible and response can be very good. When you need that last bit of performance, non-electret films can be a little lighter and tighter, but to take full advantage of that you need production methods beyond what you get for 200 smackers. And with electrets flooding the $2-$200 shelf, a >$200 model "has" to claim non-electret to stand-out and ask a higher price.

Hi PRR thanks for yr input il explain myself Beta 87 is my fav I have radio version and wired....but once upon a time I grafted the Sennheiser radio mic capsule ME5005 onto my shure radio mic naughty I know but the sound was amazing better yes better the the beta & all its great bah blah ness.....the ME5005 electroncs bloke sadly and I went back to the beta 87 head.

So....I thought I could use the capsule from the ME5005 electret hyper cardiod with either a DIY circuit or maybe even a cheap T bone electret electronics, MB78 is cheap seems to be there version of beta 87....

Im curous about the Heil PR35 because I keep reading good stuff & they also making a head to screw onto my shure radio system and people preffering them to my second fav beta 87 blah blah head..

PS I have had the Beta 87 crammed into the SH55 shell sounds good but it is tight....and as I say I have the spare sennheiser capsule already so I can still have my wired 87 as intended and a great sounding retro mic if my plan works

thanks chaps

Put a backup on your input list...

Babyhead sorry I dont understand what your saying ? thanks

Hi Gary,
Can you PM me your email? Your pm inbox is full, and I'd like to talk about some altec compressors with you,
Thanks.

gary o said:

Babyhead sorry I dont understand what your saying ? thanks

Click to expand...

Mics get banged around and the lead vocal mic is just too important not to have a ready plan. I also don't like condensers for lead vocals live unless it doesn't get touched. A loose connection and 48v are just bad.

Yeah bad leads and phantom power can make nasty cracking pops and all .....yeah I love the sound of my 87s tho....my mics get looked after only me who uses and i pay the bills...

RE retro mic Im thinking of putting a Ribbon motor from beyerdynamic m260 one of my fav mics for vocals into the SH55 Elvis mic shell....maybe

Update My sennheiser capsule is bit dodgy loose connection within I think .....how ever I grafted the AKG CK1 capsule onto my Octava MK012 & its sounds great thru the phones at home so Im gonna take and sing with it at a gig to make sure I like the sound thru my PA....if so Im gonna build a MK012 circuit ot 2 & put it in the retro SH55.....also gonna try a Violet VIN 67 lollipop head on the MK012 and prob build another...

Update.......I took apart my MK012 put the board and a AKG CK1 capsule in the SH55 type body...............its sounds bloody good ! sensitive as expected gonna see how it does on stage at gig this weekend....

Photos please..... ;D

Oo its a mess Ive crammed it in the pretty mic shell with sponge its not permanant incase it doesnt work well on stage .....I can take pics of octava guts if i take it apart soon.....the components in my Oktava looked good quality to me tho....il see wot i can do about pics.....