investigating the russian 6S6B-V tube

[kingkorg]

I separated the channels, and normalized them. If my DAW separated them correctly i would say the left one is tube mic. The one that is louder in original file, it should be the left one.

There is significant difference how these mics catch ambience, and i think they have different patterns, even though they are both in cardioids. The right one has way more room in it's sound. 

The left one is quieter as well, and i actually believe it is 6s6b, as mine mics with this tube are quieter than most of my fet mics.

But again i might be terribly wrong. Anyways, i would never use the right one here, left sounds 10 times better imho.

Are you using Tim's capsule in Elam?

 

[Delta Sigma]

I agree; left sounds better. I thought it was the 414 at first because the top end seems more detailed but it also sounds richer. I can't decide which is which but if I'm going to guess I'll say the Elam is left.

 

[e.oelberg]

yes left is the diy elam CT12 and right the 414eb Teflon. Both where  on OMNI not cardoid. I didn't use the 414 for a while, maybe something is wrong with the polarization, my impression was also that the patterns don't match. Again this is all not about science it's more of an exercise in hearing.

 

[e.oelberg]

I checked the 414 again. there is nothing wrong with the 414, omni is as onmi as it should

 

[kingkorg]

Did you check your DIY mic? Could it be it was in f8 pattern?

However the one thing i notice with capsules is that they show character at distance. The way they pick up the room sounds can be quite different, while in cardioid 30cm away from the source they can sound the same.

Is it Tim's capsule in your DIY mic?

 

[e.oelberg]

Yes it's tim's capsule and it omni  Not 8

 

[KrIVIUM2323]

What kind of body do you use for the diy Elam?
The differences (or at least a part of it) could come from headbasket/capsule interaction.

 

[kingkorg]

Yes it's tim's capsule and it omni  Not 8

Great microphone, sounds realy awesome.

 

[e.oelberg]

I don't know why the attachment doesn't work

 

[e.oelberg]

https://wolke7.grandprixdamour.com/index.php/s/JDKZLjy1xKxLao1

 

[KrIVIUM2323]

Thank you,
So, Apex 460 kind of body for the Elam.
Have you considered to try some of the other headbaskets availlable for this kind of mic from Chunger?
I wonder how this will change the sound. The Elam styled one may  smooth the hi end even more (not that your mics need this i could be perfectly happy with them as they are for my taste).

 

[e.oelberg]

not really it is more close to a brauner body. It is made out of a raw tube, but the headbasket is pretty close to a brauner headbasket. I'm  not sure, but I think my mics have bigger diameter than apex

 

[KrIVIUM2323]

How nice they look ! I didnt bother to download the picture at first sight as they was a preview...Larger diameter body is usually beneficial imho. But it depend from capsule and mesh too...
Where did you  sourced them?

 

[Banzai]

Very cool looking mics!

 

[e.oelberg]

the mic body was the first mic group buy many years back. The plating has been done by Gleyer in Berlin Kreuberg, who do this job for Neumann for half a century. I have been tweaking the mics for years. If I learned one thing about building mics:  always have a bottle of alcohol on your desk ( not a beer ) and clean everything with it, your fingers, desk, pcb. Twisting a cable with greasy fingers can diminish the sound of a mic.

 

[bruno2000]

the mic body was the first mic group buy many years back. The plating has been done by Gleyer in Berlin Kreuberg, who do this job for Neumann for half a century. I have been tweaking the mics for years. If I learned one thing about building mics:  always have a bottle of alcohol on your desk ( not a beer ) and clean everything with it, your fingers, desk, pcb. Twisting a cable with greasy fingers can diminish the sound of a mic.

"AND a Beer!"
Best,
Bruno2000

 

[Khron]

How much worse could the 6S7B-V be? Seems to be a really close relative to this, just higher gain (roughly double, from what datasheets i've seen).

As a bonus, it's "still" available in several places, unlike the 6, nowadays (due to the "situation")...

Later edit: For what it's worth, some LTspice sims would indicate it's about the same gain as a 12AT7, or a teensy bit lower.

 

[RuudNL]

Sounds very interesting! It seems the stocks of 6S6B-V are almost gone now.
I would be very interested in the results with a 6S7B-V in a microphone.

 

[Khron]

Looks like it needs a cathode resistor of about 1k to get the plate to sit around mid-supply (in the sim, anyway) and thus 0.6mA current, and indeed, noticeably larger gain that the 6S6B (as opposed to 1.9k Rk).

 

[rock soderstrom]

How much worse could the 6S7B-V be?

Interesting tube! Decisive is how it handles the high impedance at the grid and how much inherent noise it has.

I bought a couple of 6n16b-v last week, which is the double triode version of the 6S6b-v. Also a very good replacement. 5€ at ebay from Germany per piece.