Build your own condenser mic for only 20 bucks!

[AASteveo]

http://www.creativitytospare.com/?p=16

So this guy found an article in TapeOp magazine that explained how to build your own condenser mic. He made some mods to that design and posted a detailed description on his website, including a parts list and links to suppliers sites where you can purchase everything you need.

I have personally used these mics on a session for drum overheads and they sound amazing! They have incredibly flat frequency response and supposedly they compare to the Earthworks TC30.

 

[MartinKantola]

Great project! Most of the $20 is actually spent on connectors and other hardware. The capsule and electronic components used are even cheaper. But the mikes won't be able to deal with higher sound levels or long cables, and the noise might be a problem in some situations. Posted a thread recently with the same type of capsule but slightly more advanced electronics here: https://homerecording.com/bbs/showthread.php?t=268453

Martin

 

[JM350]

Nice project if you are looking for a project.

It is kind of a pain that they don't use standard phantom power and are unbalanced though.

I built five of them a several years ago and they sound pretty good but there are so many decent cheap condensers around now that are already built, use phantom, and have balanced output that I would say this isn't as great a project as it was years back.

The project really needs an update in how to use these capsules to build a mic that is balanced and uses standard 48V phantom power.

 

[Minion]

If you look on this forum there are some Naint Mic schematics ,They are just as easy and cheap to build and are phantom powered and handle higher SPL"s, Ive built several and use them as overheads and they sound quite good.....

Cheers