Realistic microphone keep or trash

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Shadowdog

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I am putting together my first digital home studio and cam across 2 Back Electret Cardioid Condensor mics. Are these worth keeping, and if so what would the be good to use for (vocals, guitar amp?)
 
Shadowdog said:
I am putting together my first digital home studio and cam across 2 Back Electret Cardioid Condensor mics. Are these worth keeping, and if so what would the be good to use for (vocals, guitar amp?)
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Depends on which model it is. Some of the old Radio Shack mics were made by Sony for Radio Shack and are pretty damn nice, with a few simple mods that anybody can do.
 
Cat. No. 33-1080, if tht means anything to you. It has a music/vocal switch inside where the battery is at???
 
Harvey Gerst said:
Depends on which model it is. Some of the old Radio Shack mics were made by Sony for Radio Shack and are pretty damn nice, with a few simple mods that anybody can do.
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Know any good mods for their stereo mic to take out the white noise generator? :D
 
I say keep everything you got....ya never know when ya might need it for something....
 
Thats what I was thinking I would just hang on to them, but wasn't sure if they were "good" mics or not. What kind of applications are mics like these used for?
 
Shadowdog said:
Cat. No. 33-1080, if tht means anything to you. It has a music/vocal switch inside where the battery is at???
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According to the RS catalog, the 33-1080 is their PZM. That doesn't sound right to me. Got a picture of the mic?
 
Are PZM usually flat? If so, these are not. But I do have a picture. I will scan the manual tonight and post it.
 
Shadowdog said:
It has a music/vocal switch inside where the battery is at.
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Yup, I'm pretty sure you have a rebadged Sony mic there.
 
Janesaid2me said:
I say keep everything you got....ya never know when ya might need it for something....
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Yup... you never know... ;)
 
Hey Shadowdog,

The best way to find out what a mic is good for is to try it out on a bunch of different things and see what it does. You may hate it or you may love it, but you won't know till you try. Even a "crappy" mic can have a nasty little sound all it's own. For all you know, these could become your secret weapons that give you your signature sound.
 
I've seen the pics.

I believe those look most like the TEAC ME-10's, which were fine little low-end electret condensor mics. I have two TEAC ME-10's from the early 80's already, but if I were you, I'd keep'em. It would not surprise me in the least if they were OEM'd by Radio Shack from TEAC. Except for the color, they're IDENTICAL! IDENTICAL, I SAY!!!

I'll put up a pic of the TEAC ME-10's, if I get a chance,... eh,... later.

That's my 2¢ !!

PS: The TEAC ME-10's of which I speak, have very nice, clear audio response, and are nothing to disparage,... despite their vintage & low-end nature.

/DA
 
Sweet, thanks guys. I like the secret weapon idea, I will try them for a bunch of different things and see what happens, and put black tape over the labels so no one knows what they are. :D
 
Use some label tape, and print the word "TEAC",...

to paste right over the R/S name!! :eek: ;)
 
A Reel Person said:
to paste right over the R/S name!! :eek: ;)
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I once had some Peavey floor monitors... and immediately after taking off the name plates some friends said it improved the sound by at least 30%... lol. :D
 
Harvey Gerst said:
Depends on which model it is. Some of the old Radio Shack mics were made by Sony for Radio Shack and are pretty damn nice, with a few simple mods that anybody can do.
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I have an old Sony mic too. It's a dynamic. F-K60H. I had to open it up and remove all the old crumbling foam. I unscrewed the top and had to wash the foam out of it. It's really hard to take out anything else from the body, really jammed in there.
 
When you guys talk about moding them, what does this involve?
 
Yup, it's the Sony mic, which Sony also made for Teac. The mod is pretty simple:

Replace the 1-1/2 V battery with a 6 to 12 V battery. More output, greater dynamic range, and lower noise.
 
I bought a pair of 33-1080 when they were new. I still own them today, and still have the original Radio Shack boxes. They are indeed "33-1080" on the box. Like Harvey, I tried to find that model, only to see RS has reused the model number for the PZM.

These are great SDC electrets. I used them for overheads and acoustic work until I got a set of Studio Project C4.

I will continue using them. They are real gems. Especially if you get 'em cheap.
 
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