Don't fall for these eBay capsules.

[k brown]

They are absolute junk *; super cheaply made and sound even worse than you would expect after examining them. *

All internal parts are poorly-molded plastic except the charged backplate itself.

The saddles are usable (actually have proper LDC mounting holes); worth 8 bucks a pair?

_____

* EDIT!: See retraction/reassessment in post #3 and #4 --

 

[rogs]

Problem is they look very much like these 25mm electrets from Aliexpress ... which really aren't too bad at all.

So - we've now got plastic BM800 bodies, plastic 25mm electrets that look like the brass ones, and horrible 9mm omni electrets dressed up to look like FETless TSB165a style capsules.

Really is like the wild west out there these days!....

 

[k brown]

Rather humiliating adjustment here; turns out these capsules are inverting when put on CM-60 bodies (clearly caused by the Takstar giving them external polarization); I assumed they were electrets for some reason, maybe not), so when auditioning them with my voice on 'phones, their sound was cancelling my own voice. With their outputs un-inverted, they actually sound surprisingly good for something that looks like very crudely molded plastic inside.

 

[k brown]

Update:

These things are actually a real bargain!

Put one in my 'standard electret test head' (yes, they are indeed electrets [w/aluminized diaphragm]), and they're very much on par with the 'KK12' version 2, but with even less tip up at the top. The top sounds nearly flat to me, and a bit more bottom than the 'KK12' v2. When mounted on an SDC body (like a Takstar) that provides polarization voltage, they are inverting, but in an electret circuit they are not.

The off-axis response is also similar to the 'KK12' v2, and way better than the Aseyers mentioned in another thread.

As I said before these are very surprising given the price and the very crude all-plastic internal construction; but hearing is believing.

Given the unhyped top, they invite comparison to the Primo EM200 (though they have no internal FET).

_________

As an aside, the saddle they come with is a two-piece affair; a standard 34mm, plus an adapter ring that snaps securely onto it to fit any 22mm SDC capsule, like Takstar, MXL, etc.

 

[Paul W]

I'd think that auditioning things with your voice on headphones in real time is just bad practice, even if you don't have phase inversion issues.

(Even if you're going to do things by ear, rather than actual measurements, it'd be better to play pink noise over a speaker and do A / B tests to see if/how one thing really sounds different from another.)

 

[SubSpec]

I'd think that auditioning things with your voice on headphones in real time is just bad practice, even if you don't have phase inversion issues.

(Even if you're going to do things by ear, rather than actual measurements, it'd be better to play pink noise over a speaker and do A / B tests to see if/how one thing really sounds different from another.)

Eh, with absolutely zero irony intended it is the simplest and quickest way to identify a mis-wired mic, which is far more common than folks might realize. In fact I would venture to say a lot of folks have mics with reversed polarity and don't even realize it.

Without being too specific as I know the previous owner is on here as well, I bought a not cheap mic (~$1k) that additionally had another ~$1k of investment in it and as soon as I plugged it in and gave it a listen found that the wiring was reversed. Two minutes later it was fixed and sounding great, but this thing had seen years of use at that point.

But also, I like the ole voice + headphones test. It's an instant benchmark if you're using a consistent setup. True that more often than not you'll be "fooled" into thinking it sounds better than it does in context, but with consistent experience at that particular setup you can easily contextualize it.

 

[Paul W]

Eh, with absolutely zero irony intended it is the simplest and quickest way to identify a mis-wired mic, which is far more common than folks might realize. In fact I would venture to say a lot of folks have mics with reversed polarity and don't even realize it.

Sure, it's a fine way to notice a polarity reversal, but that's not what I think of as "auditioning" a mic.

But also, I like the ole voice + headphones test. It's an instant benchmark if you're using a consistent setup. True that more often than not you'll be "fooled" into thinking it sounds better than it does in context, but with consistent experience at that particular setup you can easily contextualize it.

I'm skeptical.

I've learned from controlled blind tests that my own sense memory is not nearly as good as I thought it was, and I'm pretty sure most people's isn't. (Scientific literature seems to bear that out.)

A delay of more than a very few seconds in an A/B test matters, so if you're just plugging in a new mic in your old familiar setup, and listening to your own voice, without switching back and forth frequently to hear specific differences from a familiar reference mic, I'm very doubtful about your results.

You may well be better than most people are at that, and much better than me, but I have no way of knowing that for sure, so I discount such informal tests about 90 percent, and that's before getting into the issues of doing it while you're speaking, with bone conduction masking some of the sound you're supposed to be listening to.

 

[k brown]

Problem is they look very much like these 25mm electrets from Aliexpress ... which really aren't too bad at all.

So - we've now got plastic BM800 bodies, plastic 25mm electrets that look like the brass ones, and horrible 9mm omni electrets dressed up to look like FETless TSB165a style capsules.

Really is like the wild west out there these days!....

The housing is solid brass, and of course the electret-charged backplate is metal; only the other internal parts are plastic.

 

[SubSpec]

I'm skeptical.

I've learned from controlled blind tests that my own sense memory is not nearly as good as I thought it was, and I'm pretty sure most people's isn't.

Yes, I don't do so as a formal benchmark but as a check to see if the mic is worth the time of a formal benchmark. A quick check for polarity and vocal fit tells me enough about whether a mic is worth the time, and if it is it goes into a project dedicated to consistent and controlled (to the extent possible) contextual tests. Regardless, it can be a worthwhile step in evaluation but certainly not a true benchmark (my wording was imprecise on that).

 

[k brown]

Regardless of one's preferred testing methods, I can guarantee these 10-buck capsules will surprise you.

A curious aspect of these is, they are sold mounted in saddles, but there is no ground terminal; they're clearly a capsule for use on an SDC 'stick' body (same threads as Takstars). For the test head I use for LDC capsules, I removed the back retaining ring and soldered a lead to it, replacing it once it cooled.

 

[k brown]

Some pix.

Weakest part of the construction is the contact between the center screw terminal and the backplate; I've yet to take one apart and have it work right after reassembly.

Given the plastic insides, it's highly recommended to use a lug terminal under the center terminal nut, or a pressure fitting over the exposed threads, not soldering. Press fitting probably safest, as even unscrewing the nut could possibly compromise the screw's contact with the backplate.

I did two with soldering to the center term using a skinny heat sink around the screw; worked fine on one, but the other had reduced output and increaseed self noise after.

The brass front screen is mis-leading; the diaphram is aluminized, not gold. If you feel gold-sputtered is better, I did verify that the diaphragms from the Takstar CM-60/63 drop right in and work fine. So you have a nice gold diaphragm in a 22mm electret.

 

[pmfalcman]

Regardless of one's preferred testing metjhods, I can guarantee these 10-buck capsules will surprise you.

Have you had a chance to test their FR?
Specs (stated on Ali) are:
"Frequency response: 100 HZ-10 KHZ"
Actually inna way OK for me as I record outdoors - cuts off traffic rumble. But still ..

We know that Chinese stated specs cannot be trusted. Not the good ones for sure. But what about the mediocre ones?

BTW - I strongly suspect that Chinese closely monitor this group. Anytime a capsule is mentioned here (no matter in good or bad way) is goes up in price on Ali.
KK 2 is -/+ 3x up plus higher shipping

These KBs here (saddled KB? 22 mm KB?) went up 2x since you first mentioned them.

 

[k brown]

Have you had a chance to test their FR?
Specs (stated on Ali) are:
"Frequency response: 100 HZ-10 KHZ"
Actually inna way OK for me as I record outdoors - cuts off traffic rumble. But still ..

We know that Chinese stated specs cannot be trusted. Not the good ones for sure. But what about the mediocre ones?

BTW - I strongly suspect that Chinese closely monitor this group. Anytime a capsule is mentioned here (no matter in good or bad way) is goes up in price on Ali.
KK 2 is -/+ 3x up plus higher shipping

These KBs here (saddled KB? 22 mm KB?) went up 2x since you first mentioned them.

No I don't have a way of making response measurements.

I just check SDC cardioids against my reference Okatva MK012 cards, which I know from many uses render a very balanced sound on a full orchestra.

I don't shop on Ali, so don't know what goes on there; these capsules are still the same price on eBay as shown in the first post.
Here's the current listing: https://www.ebay.com/itm/1869088066...NMQlwyQdO4cfmPtYj3n5aBjp6/U=|tkp:BFBMhNbh3rNl

They are about double on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D6RJG1J1?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title

 

[rock soderstrom]

Regardless of one's preferred testing metjhods, I can guarantee these 10-buck capsules will surprise you.

That's enough for me to order one of these capsules for my new electret project. They can then compete against KK12s.

These KBs here (saddled KB? 22 mm KB?) went up 2x since you first mentioned them.

In the old groupdiy.com tradition, we should name the capsules after their discoverer. I suggest KB22!

 

[Khron]

, I bought a not cheap mic (~$1k) that additionally had another ~$1k of investment in it and as soon as I plugged it in and gave it a listen found that the wiring was reversed.

Would that have been a clone of a classic design, perchance?

 

[k brown]

That's enough for me to order one of these capsules for my new electret project. They can then compete against KK12s.



In the old groupdiy.com tradition, we should name the capsules after their discoverer. I suggest KB22!

They'll sound rather dull compared to KK12 v1; comparison with v2 would be more valid.

Has anyone verified that these https://www.jlielectronics.com/microphone-capsules/jli-3410au/ are the same as KK12 v2, but just mounted inside a brass ring? They appear to be identical.

 

[pmfalcman]

In the old groupdiy.com tradition, we should name the capsules after their discoverer.

That's what I meant:
"saddled KB? 22 mm KB?"
First serving suggestions

I suggest KB22!

Sounds good

 

[pmfalcman]

No I don't have a way of making response measurements.

Oh, yes. I forgot.

 

[SubSpec]

Would that have been a clone of a classic design, perchance?

No, a 251-ish circuit from a boutique-ish maker but not any kind of clone. Was pretty baffling that went uncaught both from factory and previous owner, but I get that it can be very non-obvious outside of isolated headphone listening.

 

[Khron]

it can be very non-obvious outside of isolated headphone listening.

... Or a 2min objective test...