microphone-parts.com

[rockstudio]

Has anyone heard of this website? I saw a link on facebook. They are selling 1 type of microphone capsule right now for DIYers. The website says the company started in November.

[Slau]

Yep, I first heard about the plans in October at AES. The capsules are imported from a Chinese manufacturer and are a K47-type. I guess, for those who wanted a Joly mod capsule but wanted to DIY, this would be a perfect alternative.

[rockstudio]

Thanks, the website was so vague, I thought it was a scam. I wonder about the quality of the capsules, and how they would surpass an OEM Chinese capsule.

[calaverasgrandes]

not what I would call screamingly cheap either.

[Slau]

Hmm? how much are Peluso's K47s? Not "screamingly cheap" but not that expensive, FWIW. I'll probably pick up a pair for shits & giggles.

not what I would call screamingly cheap either.

[calaverasgrandes]

http://cgi.ebay.com/Mic-34mm-Large-Caps ... 77&afsrc=1

Seeing as they dont really have any pedigree or name to trade on as Peluso or Mike Joly do, they are just a bunch of Hacks with Chinese knock off capsules. $90? I can get a Chinese knock off mic for that much. After about $10-$50 in parts it will sound decent.

Maybe if they had some other parts such as transformers, submini tubes and corressponding sockets.
I would be really interested in more old low tech shit like transformers, switches, inductors etc. Stuff that doesnt require a cleanroom to make!

[???????]

yeah... I wanna know what sets these capsules apart from the ~$35 capsules available everywhere.

[Slau]

Well, I think you didn't mean to imply that Peluso or Joly are notorious in any way, perhaps noteworthy but they're certainly not notorious. Also, I think they might branch out into other parts at some point?who knows. This is probably an initial offering. Further, as far as Chinese capsules go, where do you think Joly's capsule comes from? Finally, most of the Chinese mics use a K67-type capsule and this is an option to use a different design. Sure, it's not revolutionary and it's not for everybody?just an option for some folks looking for this exact thing like, for example, a capsule but not a full mod from a third party, that's all.

Cheers,

Slau

http://cgi.ebay.com/Mic-34mm-Large-Caps ... 77&afsrc=1

Seeing as they dont really have any pedigree or notoriety to trade on as Peluso or Mike Joly do, they are just a bunch of Hacks with Chinese knock off capsules. $90? I can get a Chinese knock off mic for that much. After about $10-$50 in parts it will sound decent.

Maybe if they had some other parts such as transformers, submini tubes and corressponding sockets.
I would be really interested in more old low tech shit like transformers, switches, inductors etc. Stuff that doesnt require a cleanroom to make!

[Nick Sevilla]

Just so you know :

Neumann is making the K47 capsule again.

$800 USD though, so certainly not DIY "experimentation" cheap.

But available if you have a mic tech, and a mic that could use that capsule.

Cheers

[calaverasgrandes]

Well, I think you didn't mean to imply that Peluso or Joly are notorious in any way, perhaps noteworthy but they're certainly not notorious.

hehe yeah I often type faster than I think when I have too much coffee.
Though to be fair the latin root of the word, spelled much the same has a more neutral meaning. I suppose I could blame that on the Catholic Church for the damned latin lessons.
If they sourced their capsule anyplace but China I might be more inclined to check them out. And yeah, I hold that against Mike Joly's sino-capsules as well. Which is why I havent bought any.

[Michael_Joly]

I've missed the camaraderie of the TOMB - especially after the shellacking I've taken over on Gearslutz by the hate club over there. With the exception of one mis-spent evening, I've really tried limit my posting on the message boards - it?s a simple matter of time. My lead time on mods continues to grow and I'm scrambling for every hour I can find to dedicate more time to doing mic work.

But my Google alerts picked up this thread and I thought I'd add a few words from this horses-ass's mouth ; )

I can only speak about my own capsule since I don't know the technical details of anyone else's offerings - including John Peluso's capsules, though I have worked with John's capsules and they are a fine alternative to $800 Neumann capsules.

So with that out of the way, let me begin with a bit of history. Back in the cold dark days of the last cold war, there was quite a bit of cultural and scientific co-operation between East Germany and the People's Republic of China. As you know, the "Gefell branch" of the Neumann family thrived in the former Soviet East-Germany. In the 50's and 60's there were quite a few cultural exchange trips between East German microphone scientists and eager-to-learn Chinese microphone engineers. The net result was the transfer of deep microphone capsule knowledge from East Germany to Beijing.

Fast forward a generation - the sons and daughters of these East-German trained microphone engineers started their own companies, some in Beijing in the North, some in Guangzhou in the South and some in Shanghai / Ningbo on the North East coast. The particular company I use to manufacturer my capsules can trace its genealogy back to Neumann-Gefell in East Germany.

I chose this company because their relatively small size and dedication to the craft of capsule manufacturing using proven materials and techniques. But most importantly, I chose them because they were the only company that would manufacture capsules to my specifications (historically accurate back plate dimensions and drilling pattern / dimensions but lighter and more responsive 3 micron diaphragms for extended but not peaked HF) and tighter-than-normal-tolerances and test every one in an anechoic chamber and document its performance.

When you buy an MJE-K47 equipped mod or mic from me you are getting a microphone that, in part, carries forward the materials, techniques and precision demanded and implemented by the Neumann Gefell scientists and engineers. Then add my non-anonymous visibility and reputation on top of the technical stuff - in my opinion, that's an excellent value proposition relative to the cost of a new, stand alone $800 Neumann K47 capsule or grey-market $35 DIY capsule from some trading agent in Hong Kong.

Frankly I'm happy to watch newly-arrived, lowest-price vendors race each other to the bottom of the barrel while competing against each other on price. During my entire 35 year career as an analog audio design engineer I've never been a part a "lowest-cost" company - only "best performance" and "best service" companies. And based on my 3000+ clients and growing lead time, lots of folks are very pleased with my dedication to those core values. Happy 2011!

[Michael_Joly]

oops, duplicate deleted.

[calaverasgrandes]

To be fair, I would rather pay Mike Joly a few hundred to bond one of his sino-capsules to a mic body that he had also modded. Rather than pay $100 for a capsule by itself. Moddingwise, I would rather the $35 grey market jobby over the $100 one from an unproven company. But you know, the more the merrier. I hope they thrive and prove me wrong and all that. My original satement still stands, its not "screamingly" cheap.