Electro-Voice PL76A

P

packratlouie

Member
Hey guys, I was just talkin to my mom about the band she used to play in and long and short of it is she went to her box of music stuff and grabbed me her electrovoice pl76a "conderser cardioid" microphone. This is way old. She told me back about 25-30 years ago she paid around 400.00 for it. I am just wondering if this is a good mic, or what. I havent had a chance to test it since i dont have anything that offers phantom power, and I have cruised the net looking for info. Any info from you fine fellas would be appreciated. Thanks
 
Don’t know about the PL76A, but the ‘76B was a kickin’ vocal mic. The “B” runs on battery instead of phantom (that might be what the “B” stands for). Open it up and see if there’s a battery compartment.

I love the old PL series. I have the PL95A and a PL11.
 
BTW, I haven’t used the PL76B, but I’ve read good things about it, and from what I can tell, it is supposedly a pretty hot mic, yet quiet enough for studio use. And like I said, I’m sure not disappointed with my PL95 and PL11, although they’re not condensers.
 
well the mic definitely does have a battery compartment... and i did get a chance to record with it. Its pretty impressive compared to my sm57, but at the same time, doesnt quite serve my guitaring purposes. Would this be something you would want to use for a drum overhead?
 
Background on PL76A

I have owned two PL76A's since about 1978. I bought them new as vocal mics. They were supposed to use a 4.5 volt battery which were both expensive & hard to find. I gave up lookin for them and started using 1.5 volt AA batteries with no audible degradation of performance. I later acquired 2nd hand an older PL76 which has a slightly different looking capsule and less output but otherwise similar. I actually bought them as I read at the time they were the vocal mic of choice of Frank Sinatra. I have used them for percussion and overhead drum applications, acoustic guitar, banjo as well as cello and flute. My impression is that they are warm and smooth but have a reduced proximity affect as against the classic dynamic mics. Pretty versatile really. Hope this helps.
PS there was a phantom powered version which I thought was the PL76B but I never saw them around because in those days only the most expensive desks had phantom power.
 
I've got four PL77AA's, the successor to the PL76A. They're actually very good sounding mics. The 77AA is a silver-colored handheld unidirectional condenser mic and was designed to run on either phantom or a single 1.5v AA battery. Generally, the only thing that goes wrong with these mics is the electrolytic capacitor drys out and the mic gets really noisey then quits working completely. I've upgraded all of mine with new high quality 6mF 50v caps, and they work perfectly. I still use them at gigs.
 
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Nice mic

I've just bought the battery powered mic recently.Cheers paddy - if your reading. Use 3 1.5v button cells to make up the 4.5v battery and then use a screw to conduct the power. Bit of wrapped gaffa and your away. I was astounded by the quality of this mic. Sweet and warm, this mic would be my choice for a live vocal mic if i was engineering (forget your shures). Its cardiod shape does not increase the proximity effect to anywhere as near as i was expecting. For studio use however i would give it a go on a snare - forget overheads. Neads a far amount of gain but give it will let you ride your pre amp. Will be interesting to see how long the battery would last. There is some information somewhere on the web giving details on how to mod it for phantom power, but to be honest, in a live situation i would stay away from any phantom power as on request for it the engineer is likely to give you a blank expression. Got some other ones from the pl series. Great mics. Electrovoice is underated.
 
My PL76B uses standard 1.5 volt AA batteries. Unscrew the part you hold and read inside the battery compartment.

My 1776 uses 4.5 volt batteries and I am ordering a battery from Zbattery.com. It works with a a 1.5 volt AA but I am hoping the 4.5 volt battery will be better.
 
PL76-76A/B Pl-77/B-78 alt RECHARGABLE BATTERY! L-ION 14500 3.7V

hairylarry said:
My PL76B uses standard 1.5 volt AA batteries. Unscrew the part you hold and read inside the battery compartment.

My 1776 uses 4.5 volt batteries and I am ordering a battery from Zbattery.com. It works with a a 1.5 volt AA but I am hoping the 4.5 volt battery will be better.
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I know this is old but someone might run into this
THERE IS A NEW LITHIUM ION RECHARGABLE BATTERY YOU CAN USE FOR THIS OLD MICROPHONE. eBAY HAS THEM 14500 IS THE NAME, YOU CAN BUY ONE AND CHARGER for less than THE PX21 BATTERY, INCLUDING SHIPPING! THEY ARE 3.7 VOLT INSTEAD OF 4.5v BUT THERE IS HARDLY ANY DIFFERENCE.
iF THE HANDLE UNSCREWS AND IT HAS A BATTERY BAY YOU CAN USE THIS BATTERY.
tHESE ARE GREAT SOUNDING Microphones.much much BETTER THAN A SHURE 58 BETA, OR SO MANY OF THE OTHERS OUT THERE. ESPECIALLY THE CHEAP CHINESE JUNKERS!
I have been on stage since the 70's and am seeing many old mikes that have been long forgotten about finding new life. EV-RE 11's are a perfect example!
 
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Orion61 said:
EV-RE 11's are a perfect example!
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Such a good mic. It can be a little spikey on guitars, but on voice it's so good. It's good on a mellow guitar, too.

i bought one like 3 years ago for $50, and I see them selling for $150 now. o_O

I wanted another as a backup but now can't afford them.

I've never met an EV I didn't like, and most Shures are awesome, too. The worst Shure I ever came across were the 1990s SM57s. They sound like boxy crap to me. The newer ones are even better than those 90s ones.
 
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