Behringer may have just taken the lead in "Best Bang/buck" mics

Harvey Gerst

New member
Ok, here's the deal. As some of you already know, Behringer cut their prices almost 50% on everything a few days ago. Normally, this wouldn't even cause me to raise my eyebrows, but there is one product in their line that MAY be a real winner in the "best bang for the buck" category.

They sell a mic called the ECM8000, which is basically a lookalike to the Audix TR-40 and MBHO series of 1/4" omni calibration mics. What makes this especially interesting is that just about everybody uses the 1/4" Panasonic omni capsule; it's cheap, and it's good.

The only sticking point with small diaphragm condenser mics is usually the high self noise. That's not really a problem if you use these mics as overheads to record drums. It may be a problem for recording quiet acoustic guitars. I went ahead and ordered a pair, and I'll A/B them against my Audix TR-40s when they arrive.

Am I recommending them? Yes, and no. If you're gonna use them as drum overheads, go ahead and order a pair. At the price ($70), you can't really go wrong, and there's not too many ways they could have screwed up the sound, except for self noise.

If you want to use it for acoustic guitar, you might want to hold off for a week till I get mine in, and I'll see if they're as quiet as the Audix TR-40.

Did I mention that the $70 was the selling price for a pair of these mics, not just one? They're $35 each at 8th Street Music. The URL is:

http://www.8thstreet.com/Product.asp?ProductCode=7821&Category=Microphones
 
Harvey, do you think that you could compare them to the Marshall 603s also? Cause I've been hearing that they are really good on acoustic guitar (and drum overheads) and at the moment those are the sd condencers I got my eyes on.....but that could change depending on how good the Behringers are.....

-tkr
 
Also Behringer's B2 Dual Condenser Mic is nice as hell I was just using that in a Studio today
 
I want to farkin scream.
The Aust. distributors have those mics listed with a retail of $199 each. That's approx $400US each.

AAAAAAARRRRRGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHH.............

ChrisO :cool:
 
Tekker,

The 603 is a 1/2" condenser with a warm sound and pretty low noise, great for capturing the richness of a nice acoustic guitar.

The 1/4" Panasonic capsule is a different kind of beast, good for capturing the loud, but delicate stuff, like cymbals, tamborine, violin, mandolin, banjo, and flute. If it's quiet, it can also be used to capture the delicacy of a guitar as well.

Actually either would be good choices, with the 603 being the favorite for greater output and lower noise.

As far as the B2 is concerned, the quality control and consistancy from unit to unit would be my main worry.
 
So then would you say that having both the 603s and the Behringers would be a good option? One pair for guitar and one pair for drum OH.

Not a bad addition to your mic locker, 4 mics for only $210. :)

-tkr
 
Good deal Harvey...Im glad I didnt let my cheapskate ass spring for the 603's yet.....
 
Not less than 30 seconds after reading this thread I ordered 2 from 8th street!! WHOT A BAH-GIN!!!!!!!

Thanks Harvey!
 
Gidge said:
Good deal Harvey...Im glad I didnt let my cheapskate ass spring for the 603's yet.....
Don't get me wrong. We're talking very different flavors here.

The 603S is a great wide cardioid mic, and more similar in sound to a MC012 or a Neumann KM184. The ECM8000 and the Audix TR-40 omnis would be completely different sounding, more like an Earthworks or B&K (DPA). Each type has a place in a good mic locker.
 
Let me get this straight...you're recommending a $35 behringer mic that you haven't heard yet? You've got some balls Harvey :)

If I keep buying all these cheapo microphones I'll never get anything that I like.....but oh well, for $35 I think I'll give one a listen.

Slackmaster 2000
 
Slackmaster2K said:
Let me get this straight...you're recommending a $35 behringer mic that you haven't heard yet? You've got some balls Harvey :)

If I keep buying all these cheapo microphones I'll never get anything that I like.....but oh well, for $35 I think I'll give one a listen.
Slackmaster,

Yup, and there are some pretty simple reasons why I can recommend the Behringer ECM8000 without first hearing it:

1. Almost every 1/4" omni measurement mic around uses a Panasonic capsule, so the capsule is a known consistent quality item. It makes no sense to buy the capsules from any other capsule manufacturer; the Panasonic omni is cheap, plentiful, and excellent.

It's not without precedent; in the 60s, Peerless (a speaker company in England} sold a cheap 2" paper cone tweeter that was flat as a pancake out to 20kHz. They sold them in such large quantities, that the price was incredibly low. We were pulling our hair out at JBL because our tweeter voice coil alone cost us more to make than the whole Peerless tweeter sold for.

2. If you've been following the polar pattern thread, you already know that omni capsules have a sealed back end, so they are not dependent on the body of the mic for any of the sound, or the polar characteristics. That means Behringer can't do much to screw up the sound - you just put the capsule in a skinny housing that doesn't create acoustic shadows and you're good to go.

3. The basic mic body design is an exact knockoff of the Audix TR-40 and the MBHO omni measurement mics. I own a pair of Audix TR-40s so I know that the Behringer housing should sound pretty similar to the TR-40. In other words, the housing does not really contribute to the sound. This would not be the case with most pressure gradient designs, but it is true of most 1/4" small diaphragm calibration omni mics.

So the only real unknowns at this point are the electronics in the Behringer mic body that might be used for amplification. About the only thing that is likely to be affected is the self noise level. Hence, my cautionary note; if you're planning on using them for quiet instruments, wait till I give them a listen next to the Audix.

But for drum overheads, they should work great, and the $35 price is rediculously low.

Recommending the Behringer ECM8000s, without hearing them first, is actually a pretty safe bet on my part. I would not recommend any other Behringer mic without hearing several samples first, since quality control, consistency in tensioning, and the actual design of the capsule and the housing would make a major difference in the sound.

Other than mentioning that the 3 original Autocoms I own (that were actually made in Germany or Austria) are "ok compressors for some things", I have never recommended any Behringer products for serious professional use. I've tried to avoid the whole "Behringer vs. the pro audio world" fight as much as possible over the years.

I hope this helps explain why I recommended the Behringer ECM8000 without first hearing it.
 
Harvey Gerst said:
Slackmaster,

Yup, and there are some pretty simple reasons why I can recommend the Behringer ECM8000 without first hearing it:

1. Almost every 1/4" omni measurement mic around uses a Panasonic capsule, so the capsule is a known consistent quality item. It makes no sense to buy the capsules from any other capsule manufacturer; the Panasonic omni is cheap, plentiful, and excellent.

It's not without precedent; in the 60s, Peerless (a speaker company in England} sold a cheap 2" paper cone tweeter that was flat as a pancake out to 20kHz. They sold them in such large quantities, that the price was incredibly low. We were pulling our hair out at JBL because our tweeter voice coil alone cost us more to make than the whole Peerless tweeter sold for.

2. If you've been following the polar pattern thread, you already know that omni capsules have a sealed back end, so they are not dependent on the body of the mic for any of the sound, or the polar characteristics. That means Behringer can't do much to screw up the sound - you just put the capsule in a skinny housing that doesn't create acoustic shadows and you're good to go.

3. The basic mic body design is an exact knockoff of the Audix TR-40 and the MBHO omni measurement mics. I own a pair of Audix TR-40s so I know that the Behringer housing should sound pretty similar to the TR-40. In other words, the housing does not really contribute to the sound. This would not be the case with most pressure gradient designs, but it is true of most 1/4" small diaphragm calibration omni mics.

So the only real unknowns at this point are the electronics in the Behringer mic body that might be used for amplification. About the only thing that is likely to be affected is the self noise level. Hence, my cautionary note; if you're planning on using them for quiet instruments, wait till I give them a listen next to the Audix.

But for drum overheads, they should work great, and the $35 price is rediculously low.

Recommending the Behringer ECM8000s, without hearing them first, is actually a pretty safe bet on my part. I would not recommend any other Behringer mic without hearing several samples first, since quality control, consistency in tensioning, and the actual design of the capsule and the housing would make a major difference in the sound.

Other than mentioning that the 3 original Autocoms I own (that were actually made in Germany or Austria) are "ok compressors for some things", I have never recommended any Behringer products for serious professional use. I've tried to avoid the whole "Behringer vs. the pro audio world" fight as much as possible over the years.

I hope this helps explain why I recommended the Behringer ECM8000 without first hearing it.


And all that for $35.00 !!!!! Man, I spend more on that in beer ALONE!!!!!!!
 
MISTERQCUE said:
Other than room measurement and over-heads, what other ways can this mic be used!!??
Assuming the noise level is roughly the same as the Audix TR-40 (i.e., pretty low), it would be a great mic for recording acoustic guitar (both steel string and nylon), violin, pipe organ, choirs, flute, tamborine, shakers, guiros, bell trees, maracas and castanets, even mandolin and banjo.

Think of any situation where you want a neutral, accurate recording of something with a lot of delicate high end content. Most single diaphragm small omnis don't have many high end peaks, so the response up high is very smooth.

The only drawbacks are where the instrument is either very quiet (and the self noise might be a problem, like recording a quiet classical harp), or you want a particular type of mic coloration, for recording vocals, electric guitars, electric bass, toms, snares and kicks.
 
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