Vintage U87 repair. Where in Canada?

[niva]

Hi there!

Bought a vintage Neumann U87 (known to be defect). Sound is cutting out, unless sound is very vert delicate.

Pretty sure it's the capsule as this seems to be a common behavior when it is defect. Here are some pics for you to see. Do you think it only needs a good cleaning or is the diaphragm shot? You can see some small lines on the capsule, and some dust.

Other thing: where can I send it to Canada? It is also missing some original parts, so I'd like to send it to a place where they have those parts.

Thanks for your help!

 

[Khron]

That's certainly had at least the electrolytics / tantalums replaced at some point - i doubt Japanese caps made their way to post-war Germany in a big hurry...

(Edit: typo)

 

[niva]

You are correct. The previous owner changed the original tantalums/electrolytics to know if that would solve the problem, but it didn't.

 

[mjrippe]

I don't know if he works on mics, but @Ike Zimbel is a great Canadian tech and a member here.

 

[Delta Sigma]

I would try putting it in a zip loc bag with some desiccants for a week. Low cost, low risk.

Where are you located?

 

[RuudNL]

Cleaning of the capsule (especially the ring outside the gold vapor-deposited circle) could do miracles.
It is recommended to do it more careful than as it apparently was done before, because an ealier attempt has caused pinholes in the gold layer.
Capsule cleaning can be risky, especially if you've never done something like this before.
It that case ask someone to do this for you who has experience in capsule cleaning.

 

[soliloqueen]

note though it's it's much riskier to clean a k87 compared to a k67 because they have a hole in the rear diaphragm.

 

[ZHOUJUN]

For the old K87 capsule, the sound interruption is mostly caused by moisture. It is recommended not to clean the surface. The best way is to put it in a drying box for a while and try your luck.

 

[RuudNL]

note though it's it's much riskier to clean a k87 compared to a k67 because they have a hole in the rear diaphragm.

I have cleaned dozens of K87 capsules and they all worked like new afterwards.
(Of course you should know what you are doing...)

 

[amplexus]

@Ike Zimbel and myself are Canadian and both of us work on mics regularly (if memory serves me correctly)

Ike is a fantastic tech and a nice guy, i’m pretty good too but I’m a jerk

We’re both in Ontario.

 

[Ike Zimbel]

Actually, I only work on mics if I’m provoked! And then, I won’t touch the capsule except to tighten screws.

 

[niva]

I would try putting it in a zip loc bag with some desiccants for a week. Low cost, low risk.

Where are you located?

Quebec City.

 

[niva]

Thank you soooo much for all of your advices. You guys and girls are sooo nice! So here's how my U87's headbasket assembly (with capsule inside, obviously) looks now. I'll leave it for a week or two and light a couple of candles in a church and pray hard



Also, I want to re-replace replaced capacitors that had been changed to electrolytics to original tantalums. Do you have a specific source for them or any new tantalum would work as good as the originals? I guess I must stick to the original values. And what about the two axial polystyrene that had been changed? I want it to look as original as can be for the look and for the mike to retain it's value, I'd have to find an original battery compartment later

Happy new year to all!