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Harvey Gerst
New member
Nope, it's a cheap crystal mic from the late 50s, and/or early 60s. Fen-tone, along with Cal-Rad and other electronics distributers, imported these cheap mics from Japan. They sounded terrible but looked like the RCA-77, which they copied. They sold for around $10 or $15 dollars new, as I recall.
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tomleblanc
New member
I found a little info on the company. Of course you can't trust everything you read, but seeing as it was hard for me to find ANY info, I guess it's better than nothing.
http://www.rockisland.com/~tonewoods/fentone.html
Apparently it's a Japanese company that made a number of mics. This page features a different, probably more recent one.
Here's a pic of another Fen-tone mic:
http://users.belgacom.net/gc391665/fentone.htm
I found this about the Fen-tone "crystal mic:"
"Fentone crystal mic. This "Made In Japan" high impedance mic looks like a miniature RCA 77, and is really good at sounding really bad. Run through a tube direct box, it gives the best (and cheapest) vintage sound I've ever heard - no lows, no highs, instant 78 r.p.m!"
And another:
"I have a Fen-tone mic thats quite glorious in a completely awful sort of way (or is that quite awful in an glorious sort of way? Oh well, no matter). It looks kind of like a little blow drier. I use it quite often for that trashy vocals through a guitar amp thing. Mines not from the 60's though, its fairly recent. I know Fentone made some older mics that were crystal mics in plastic shells that looked kind of like RCA77DX's (and I'm sure they were every bit as
good, too <g>) Pretty junky stuff, but everyone's got their own idea of "good junk". I consider my Fen-tone mic to be 20 pretty well spent dollars"
So maybe it's worth playing around with, especially if you're looking to get a sort of dirty somewhat vintage sound.
http://www.rockisland.com/~tonewoods/fentone.html
Apparently it's a Japanese company that made a number of mics. This page features a different, probably more recent one.
Here's a pic of another Fen-tone mic:
http://users.belgacom.net/gc391665/fentone.htm
I found this about the Fen-tone "crystal mic:"
"Fentone crystal mic. This "Made In Japan" high impedance mic looks like a miniature RCA 77, and is really good at sounding really bad. Run through a tube direct box, it gives the best (and cheapest) vintage sound I've ever heard - no lows, no highs, instant 78 r.p.m!"
And another:
"I have a Fen-tone mic thats quite glorious in a completely awful sort of way (or is that quite awful in an glorious sort of way? Oh well, no matter). It looks kind of like a little blow drier. I use it quite often for that trashy vocals through a guitar amp thing. Mines not from the 60's though, its fairly recent. I know Fentone made some older mics that were crystal mics in plastic shells that looked kind of like RCA77DX's (and I'm sure they were every bit as
good, too <g>) Pretty junky stuff, but everyone's got their own idea of "good junk". I consider my Fen-tone mic to be 20 pretty well spent dollars"
So maybe it's worth playing around with, especially if you're looking to get a sort of dirty somewhat vintage sound.
jake-owa
Banned
I personally would never buy something that was not tested to work...probably doesn't.
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Hawking
New member
I guess that answers my question. I think I'll buy it anyway. There's something to be said for just having 'something else' when what you're using isn't working... Chances are, it'll wind up hanging on the wall pretending to be some vintage, super-expensive, esoteric mic.
I'm not sure whether I'm happy or sad that appearances are more important than anything else when it comes to business these days. Sometimes it makes it easy, sometimes it makes it hard. Go figure.
Anyway, thanks for the input.
I'm not sure whether I'm happy or sad that appearances are more important than anything else when it comes to business these days. Sometimes it makes it easy, sometimes it makes it hard. Go figure.
Anyway, thanks for the input.
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muttley
New member
Might make a good effects mic.da MUTT
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acorec
Banned
Great case to build the "condensor mic project" into. If it were like $10.