Chinese Manufactured Mics-for the sake of newbies.

  • Thread starter Thread starter Rimshot
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Rimshot

Rimshot

New member
Hello all,
A lot of garbage has been thrown on this board concerning mics and other audio made in China. Let's provide a list of manufacturers of microphones that are made in a Chinese factory.


This should be enlightening.
 
Let's go one better...

...let's figure out how many different "manufacturers" have their names on the EXACT same microphone.

Let's start with this one.

Nady (900,910,920)
ADK (A-51 series)
Marshall (MXL2001)
Cascade (M-20)

I'm sure there are others...

Feel free to add to the list.
 
Re: Let's go one better...

H2oskiphil said:
...let's figure out how many different "manufacturers" have their names on the EXACT same microphone.

Let's start with this one.

Nady (900,910,920)
ADK (A-51 series)
Marshall (MXL2001)
Cascade (M-20)

I'm sure there are others...

Feel free to add to the list.
Click to expand...
I'll point out that it's not the ADK A-51 "series", but just the A-51 with no suffix. The other A-51 mics, such as the A-51SC, A-51ST, A-51TL, etc... are totally different animals. Their model numbering system is very confusing, to say the least.

Also, even though the Marshall is basically the same, it's made in a different factory. You can add the V67G to the list too.
 
Rimshot said:
Hello all,
A lot of garbage has been thrown on this board concerning mics and other audio made in China. Let's provide a list of manufacturers of microphones that are made in a Chinese factory.


This should be enlightening.
Click to expand...

Good idea, and lets provide a list of the Chinese mic factories also.

Fielo in China makes ? mic's for ?
797 Audio in China makes Studio Projects mic's for PMI Audio.
Marshall in China makes Marsahll mic's for Marshall Electronics.

I wonder which Chinese mic factoy has the best overall craftsmanship and which manufacturer has the best quality control?
 
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Rimshot said:
Hello all,
A lot of garbage has been thrown on this board concerning mics and other audio made in China. Let's provide a list of manufacturers of microphones that are made in a Chinese factory.


This should be enlightening.
Click to expand...

What is garbage about what has been said about Chinese mics and audio ? Why should it be enlightening ?

If you explain those two things I will take you off my troll list.
 
So let's see,

Rode (very good mic company)
has all of their microphones manufactured for them by a Chinese electronics manufacturer(I hear they are in the process of moving their manufacturing to Australia) but all of the Rode mics that are available now are Chinese.

Marshall (also a good mic company) has all of their microphones manufactured in their Mogami plant that was originally created to manufacture their cables.

Studio Projects (very good new mic company) has their microphones manufactured in the 797 Audio plants in China which in the industry is considered China's premier microphone manufacturing plant.

Fielo is a knock-off microphone and electronics plant in China.
I believe they are responsible for Behringer, Nady, et al. (Am I correct in this? I could be wrong, this one is hearsay.)

So, some of the microphones that we all regard so highly are manufactured in China. The cost of living there is much lower and therefore production costs are much lower translating to a saving to the consumer (not neccessarily
diminished quality).

So what's the problem with Chinese mics? Is it the color of the skin of the workers, the shape of their eyes or their politics?
 
I think only a few mic's from China are really good. Is there child/slave labor in China?
 
First of all, Wide Awake, Rimshot may be many things, but a troll isn't one of them. Secondly, of course it's politics. I couldn't care less that some Asian guy is making these mics, and a *bizzillion* other products that we (Americans, in this case) use every day. What I *do* care about is that the profits from that sale will go straight to the neostalinist fat cats that rolled tanks into Tienamen Square.
Unfortunately, in the real world, you have to make decisions. So your Harley has Mitsubishi parts in it, from the guys who brought you the zero. And the best cheap condenser mics you can get are made in Red China. I won't lose that much sleep that I had to use a Chinese mic. I hope to use it to record the resignation of China's repressive leadership. The thing about the Chinese is- they listen well. The mics get better every year. About now, they'll start with higher level European tech support, and try to build a top flight main condenser mic. These sure as hell are interesting times. Right now, Marshall, Studio Projects, and Rode seem to get the nod for mics with Chinese capsules, and Nady, Behringer, Carvin, Samson, and others have a ways to go to convince anybody their mic is much good.-Richie
 
Rimshot said:
So let's see,

Rode (very good mic company)
has all of their microphones manufactured for them by a Chinese electronics manufacturer(I hear they are in the process of moving their manufacturing to Australia) but all of the Rode mics that are available now are Chinese.
Click to expand...
My Rode NT5s that just came yesterday say made in Australia on them.
 
The Rode and the behringer are made in the same factory and utilize the same electronics and capsules.

the mxl2001 is not the same mic as the others mentioned, but it is the same as the Jo Meek 7 mic.

All in all some really good stuff comes out of china, but some pretty bad stuff is coming out too.
 
Richard Monroe said:
What I *do* care about is that the profits from that sale will go straight to the neostalinist fat cats that rolled tanks into Tienamen Square.
Click to expand...
The country has dramatically changed since. I spent a couple of weeks working in China last summer and was totally surprised, given my (and I guess most people's) prejudice, to see the real China. The country is going through a dramatic change towards a (governmentally guided) democracy & capitalism. People can now open & run their own business, and CEOs of larger companies are both being held responsible for their business and profit from being successful. People can also travel and go on vacation, wich wasn't the case over the last 4,000 years or so. All in all, I think China is not what most of you think. Given the history and enormous number of people, changes won't happen over night, though.
 
Strangely enough, I've had direct dealings with Feilo.

Mind you, I am NOT an engineer or an audiophile. Just a guitar player. But I did get to know a couple of the engineers and was involved with some decisions on a couple of products that failed to make it to the US market.

My brother was friends with some of the engineers at Feilo. He was involved in pro home theater installations, and the like, at the time. Somehow he convinced them that he could bring their products to the US market for them under a different name.

Long story short. They were VERY eager to penetrate the US market and we had direct dealings with the engineers for working on designs for speaker and surround sound equipment. Most of the stuff they were manufacturing was a knock-off of some European or Amercian brand. Some of them really nice sounding though.

In the end, their very low cost, all-in-one home theater system, that they designed, couldn't pass safety certification. This was quite a few years ago now, before there were really any low-cost all-in-one home theater solutions. Before DVD took off and before most people knew much about home theaters.

They had also sent a whole truckload of different speaker systems (everything from towers to Bose-a-like multimedia systems). Many of which I still have. The fit and finish of these speakers has degenerated over the years. Mostly cosmetic though...like the fake wood grain bubbling up and peeling off the towers.

I think with US/Euro guidance in design and manufacturing, there is nothing wrong with them being manufactured in China. You need an Alan Hyatt type to tell them what can and can't be acceptable and tolerated in a product.

As for the politics? My brother visited there and said it was alot different than what most people might think. We're no fans of the communists around here, as my mom's country fell to the commies. But apparently China has opened alot more over the years. It's no North Korea.

Just my humble opinion.
 
Rode capsules and some of their electronics are Chinese origin.

The bodies are machined in Oz and the mics are assembled there as well.

If you don't mind subsidizing commies then I guess Chinese mics are ok...............:rolleyes:

The problem I see is that they don't do any engineering on their own. They use backwards engineering techniques to exploit the R&D capital investment done by companies in America and Europe to manufactire knockoff's with inferior components, al-la Behringer.

Consider buying American or European. The job you save may be your own.............

Manufacturing wages in China are a fraction of what they are in first-world countries. It astounds me that at a time when this country is losing 44,000 jobs a month that folks would even consider buying foreign goods of any kind when American-made products are available that will put our fellow citizens to work.

Personally, I have nothing against Joe Sixpack from China. But let them develope their own economy with their own money instead of ours, and then they can sell their mics to their own citizens.
 
C7,

Rode are apparently making all their electronics in Aust., too...........they have one of the totally automated component placing systems that I believe are really something to see in operation. At present, it is only some of the capsules that are still from China, and that is supposed to be changing with the opening of their new factory soon.


AND FOR THE RECORD.......................any NT2 I have seen has totally different pcb design to the Behringer mics.

:cool:
 
I rarely get pissed-off but:-

c7sus said:


<If you don't mind subsidizing commies then I guess Chinese mics are ok...............:rolleyes:>

Yes they are and so is my American Alesis HD24 HDR ?

<The problem I see is that they don't do any engineering on their own. They use backwards engineering techniques to exploit the R&D capital investment done by companies in America and Europe to manufactire knockoff's with inferior components, al-la Behringer.>

So USA never uses other peoples technology like rocket or jet engines etc. etc. Behringer are not manufactured using inferior comps. Take a look at the photo's in ausrocks thread.
Also Behringer is a German company it just chooses to use China for its Manufacturing like a lot of good old western companies, Alesis maybe.

<Consider buying American or European. The job you save may be your own.............>

So fuck the rest of the world because I am all right.

<Manufacturing wages in China are a fraction of what they are in first-world countries. It astounds me that at a time when this country is losing 44,000 jobs a month that folks would even consider buying foreign goods of any kind when American-made products are available that will put our fellow citizens to work.>

So we boycott all products from cheaper countries I do not mind,I can afford a Neumann if I want too BUT ???

<Personally, I have nothing against Joe Sixpack from China. But let them develope their own economy with their own money instead of ours, and then they can sell their mics to their own citizens.>

They will eventually become a world power to compete against the US and when that happens they will either have become a Democratic country with all our help etc. or remain communist because of the actions of small minded countries with protectionist attitudes like you are advocating.
Click to expand...
 
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Giganova said:
The country has dramatically changed since. I spent a couple of weeks working in China last summer and was totally surprised, given my (and I guess most people's) prejudice, to see the real China. The country is going through a dramatic change towards a (governmentally guided) democracy & capitalism. People can now open & run their own business, and CEOs of larger companies are both being held responsible for their business and profit from being successful. People can also travel and go on vacation, wich wasn't the case over the last 4,000 years or so. All in all, I think China is not what most of you think. Given the history and enormous number of people, changes won't happen over night, though.
Click to expand...


it's not that simple i guess.

has anyone here read the book No Logo by Naomi Klein?
 
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