Electret?

wes480

wes480

New member
(did I even spell that right?)

Just wondering what the advantages/disadvantages to this kind of power for a condensor mic are? I know the basics of how the technology works....but, doesn't seem like there are many mics made with this. My dad has an old radio shack one...it's interesting. Well, actually it sounds like shit...but hey its like 25 years old, piece of crap to start with.

One other subject - he also has a Realistic stereo mic. I havn't been able to find it...but, according to him it was "really good" (he doesn't know) mic...basically like 2 mics built into 1 body. I assume this would be nothing amazing. but, hey, never know. I like the results my camcorder gives me with its stereo mic.
 
The advantage to these mics is that they are cheaper to make than a true condenser and yes many people think of some horrible old Radio Shack mic they once owned when you say the words electret condenser mic but they have become quite a bit better than that and are more common today than you might think.


Many people realize that a number of the cheaper small diaphram mics like the Akg C1000 and Shure 16AM as well as most handheld stage condensers like the Shure Beta 52 and 87a are somewhat reasonable sounding electets, certainly far better than those old Radio Shack mics, however I think few people know that many of the large vocal mics like the AKG C3000
the Shure KSM44 KSM32 and many of the Audio Technica mics are also electret technology. The $35 Behringer ECM 8000 everyone is so excited about lately is yet another so as you can now see there are actually quite a few mics around currently using this technology.
 
Hi JM,I was wondering if you got a pair of the Behringers and if so what you think of them.I got a pair and I like them alot for drum overheads but I have somewhat limited experience so i don't have many mics to compare them to.I would guess that if someone had a pair of Earthworks or another quality small dia omni they wouldn't look twice at the Behringers.

Good to see you over here.The mic forum is kind of addicting to me.I guess its where it all begins..
 
Hi Randy, fancy meeting you on a microphone forum :)

I poke around here a bit but I still prefer the Harmony Recording Forum. Hey look! I'm a newbie here!!! Harvey has the big stuff mostly covered on this forum and there's someone named Gidge that gives Alan Hyatt as much or maybe even more grief than he deserves so that angle is set too.

The Panasonic electret capsule isn't a sound I'm looking for myself so no they are not on my gas list. They are so cheap that they do sound like they are a cool mic for many people though.
 
Randy Yell said:
Hi JM,I was wondering if you got a pair of the Behringers and if so what you think of them.I got a pair and I like them alot for drum overheads but I have somewhat limited experience so i don't have many mics to compare them to.I would guess that if someone had a pair of Earthworks or another quality small dia omni they wouldn't look twice at the Behringers.
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I wound't say that's completely true. I have a pair of matched Audix TR-40s that sell for $500 for the pair, a pair of matched Sound Room Oktavas with the Omni capsules ($659), a pair of matched T.H.E. KP-6M Omnis ($892), and oh yes, I also have a pair of Omni Behringer ECM8000s ($60).
 
Harvey, I thought the TR-40's were basically the same thing as the EMC8000, why would you buy the Behringers if you already owned a pair of the Audix?
 
JM350 said:
Harvey, I thought the TR-40's were basically the same thing as the EMC8000, why would you buy the Behringers if you already owned a pair of the Audix?
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Simple, I have two studios. At $35 each, if they were similar, it just made good sense to have a second pair, so I bought them. Good omnis have so many uses around a studio, it's really a shame that most home recordists don't bother with them and seem to focus on large diaphragm, cheap condenser mics as their main mic.
 
How do I "quote" someone like you guys always do? I just end up pasting what they said into my message..and it never turns out with the cool formatted bold text and what not. Whats the secret?
 
Your right of course Harvey,I was thinking from my perspective as a hobbyist.also i guess it never hurts to add another color especially given the price of the Behringers.i've only used them for overheads and I really like them.They seem to give a pretty honest representation of the set in spite of the Peavy minimixer I use for submixing drums.
 
wes480 said:
How do I "quote" someone like you guys always do? I just end up pasting what they said into my message..and it never turns out with the cool formatted bold text and what not. Whats the secret?
Click to expand...

No secret really, there is a button that says "quote" at the bottom of each message.
 
yep, i'm just getting into recording myself. i only have a couple of mics myself and have done most of my recording in my bedroom, and even though i also have a pair of the oktavas i ordered the behringer mics as soon as i read harveys post. all my friends that are into recording told me to get as many mics as i can, when i can. its all about variety and having options. :)
 
Harvey Gerst said:
I wound't say that's completely true. I have a pair of matched Audix TR-40s that sell for $500 for the pair, a pair of matched Sound Room Oktavas with the Omni capsules ($659), a pair of matched T.H.E. KP-6M Omnis ($892), and oh yes, I also have a pair of Omni Behringer ECM8000s ($60).
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So are you saying the Behringers compare to the mics you mention?

/Henrik
 
shure

The Shure KSM44 is externally biased, and the KSM27 is also..the KSM 32 is electret.

The C3000 is electret, the C3000b is externally biased.

Audio Technica tried to chew me a new one when I came down on the 3528 I have as being electret..they claim a 'good' electret is just as good if not better than an externally biased 'true' condenser..so go figure..I avoid them if I can..but for $35, I picked up 4 of the ECM8000's..like Harvey says, an omni is just another tool in your belt..when I am rich, i'll have a matched pair of QTC1's and SR77's..but for now, I got my cheapo electret Behringers :P And they sounded better than my $800 Neumann's on an acoustic guitar last week..fun stuff :P

---Sal
 
Henrik said:
So are you saying the Behringers compare to the mics you mention?

/Henrik
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Yes, surprisingly so. As I cautioned in my earlier post about the "best bang for the buck" ECM8000, I was very concerned about noise, but the mic is fairly quiet for a small omni, and the noise hasn't been a problem yet.

I have a concert harpist coming in soon, and I'm looking forward to trying some of my new mics with her. The last time she was here, the mics that worked best were the Shure SM81s.
 
Re: shure

Guardian said:
The Shure KSM44 is externally biased, and the KSM27 is also..the KSM 32 is electret.

The C3000 is electret, the C3000b is externally biased.
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I really thought I read that the KSM44 and KSM27 were the same as the KSM32 which Shure calls a permanently-biased condenser (in other words electret) but I see that they are listed as externally biased on thier website.

On AKG's website the 3000b is played up as "a true large diaphram" but I see no mention of the mic's actual type however in AKG's own press release (on Harmony Central) it is said to be a backplate condenser, I would think this means it is an electret?

It would be nice if all these companies were a little clearer about thier products and what it is exactly you are getting for your money. If it's an electret just call it one, if the mics are totally different technologies then please don't market them as part of the same product line. It seems unfortunately that pulling one over on the consumer or at least making the whole thing too complicated for many to follow is considered good business practice.
 
akg

AKG describes it as having a "true" large diaphragm..this is what their press release they list on their website says:

The AKG C 3000 B is the only "true" large-diaphragm condenser microphone in the world in its price bracket. It is an ideal tool for commercial studios, project studios, home recording and broadcasting. A special 1-inch large diaphragm transducer element provides almost the same acoustical performance as expensive studio microphones. The AKG C 3000B transducer element delivers the typical sound of an AKG large-diaphragm condenser microphone.


-Sal
 
Guardian, AKG is saying is that the C3000b is a "true large diaphram" but that has nothing to do with whether it is a self polarized electret condenser or an externally polarized condenser one.

It certainly may have a 1" diaphram but if it isn't externally polarized then it is an electret whether they want to call it a backplate condenser or whatever.
 
Grr

I am gonna be pissed if this thing is electret...They were very deceptive in their wording..and on the C1000, they flat out state 'electret'...

--Sal
 
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