Topic: weird DPA 4060 bass problem

[yousef]

So I've finally got my Ebay 4060s back from being attached to a 3.5 stereo miniplug and tested them out tonight...

But having given the tape a quick listen back, there's a massive difference between the two channels with the right side having a huge bass cut. I'm using a Soundpros battery box (with no bass-cut option) into a D8.

I'll get the recording onto the PC at some point over the next couple of days so there can be some sort of visual representation of what's going on but for now has anyone any idea what might be the problem? A faulty mic, dodgy soldering, dodgy battery box or badly fitting miniplug & socket?

Any help or advice would be much appreciated,

Yousef

[Church-Audio]

So I've finally got my Ebay 4060s back from being attached to a 3.5 stereo miniplug and tested them out tonight...

But having given the tape a quick listen back, there's a massive difference between the two channels with the right side having a huge bass cut. I'm using a Soundpros battery box (with no bass-cut option) into a D8.

I'll get the recording onto the PC at some point over the next couple of days so there can be some sort of visual representation of what's going on but for now has anyone any idea what might be the problem? A faulty mic, dodgy soldering, dodgy battery box or badly fitting miniplug & socket?

Any help or advice would be much appreciated,

Yousef

For sure resolder everything try switching the sides of the mic and see if the problem follows IE: Put the mic that has less bass on the side of the minijack that did not have that problem and move the known good mic over to the other side of the miniplug.

If the problem still moves over to the other side you know you have a mic issue stop working on it and send it back to your seller and get a refund ASAP file a complaint with paypal first before you send any mics back:)

Chris Church

[yousef]

Thanks Chris, I'll give it a go.

I was really hoping someone was going to say "there's no way that could be a mic problem"... Oh well.

Cheers,

Yousef

[BobW]

Thanks Chris, I'll give it a go.

I was really hoping someone was going to say "there's no way that could be a mic problem"... Oh well.

Cheers,

Yousef

You have the same grids on both mics, I assume...
These are snap-on response control that add high-end:

[yousef]

I don't think that either mic has a filter on it... Does the filter just slide on top of the existing grid - making the mic a few mm longer?

As for the Ebay/PayPal route, looks like I've missed the deadline for claiming that an item is faulty/"significantly not as described". Even if I'd discovered the fault earlier, I reckon snipping off the Lemos and soldering on a miniplug would have left me on shaky ground.

A strange thing is that when I've 'tested' the mics by recording both acoustic and electric guitars at home, there doesn't seem to be any significant difference in response.

Another possible factor to be considered is that when I opened the battery box after taping the other night, I found that the 9v cell hadn't been clipped into the contacts properly, meaning that contact wasn't great and could have been lost intermittently. But I'm guessing that this can't account for a lack of bass on one channel.

I've not tried re-soldering the connections yet. I wasn't confident of my abilities to do the original job myself so I took the mics into a local PA shop who said it'd cost "almost nothing". When they'd finished (two-and-a-half weeks later!), they charged me £20 (c$40) - money I can ill afford to splash around. I gave them a bell and described the problem to them but the guy wasn't terribly helpful. He said he'd check the joints for me. Brilliant. I don't particularly want to ask them to reverse how the mics are wired only to find that the problem is with the mic and then have to foot another $20 bill.

Again, any further thoughts on what might be going on here would be very much appreciated.

Yousef

[yousef]

Thanks Moke - I'll give the distilled water a go...

[Church-Audio]

Thanks Moke - I'll give the distilled water a go...

You might be better off just getting your money back I would be pissed if someone put my mic in water even though it’s a good idea you might want to talk to the person you got the mic from, first. I would think that if it’s a lack of bass response that you capsule is most likely sweated out.

[Church-Audio]

"sweated out" is *exactly* why DPA suggests rinsing the mic with distilled water. This is directly from the DPA owners manual for this mic series.

I know but when I buy a mic from someone I dont want to have to "FIX IT" I want it in working order, if not he might be better to send it back to where he got it from insted of fooling around with it, he does not want to be in a possition were this guy says hey you ruined the mic by putting it in water even though we know it will not make the mic worse if anything it might fix it. Thats all I was saying.

[Church-Audio]

I think that he said that its too late for recourse, regarding refund or other action with these mics.

As for the Ebay/PayPal route, looks like I've missed the deadline for claiming that an item is faulty/"significantly not as described". Even if I'd discovered the fault earlier, I reckon snipping off the Lemos and soldering on a miniplug would have left me on shaky ground.

Bummer that sucks, I test things out right away if I have a problem even though in most cases I can fix it I send it back. Too bad I guess he has no other options but to try DS water.

[yousef]

I did try to get it tested right away! I took the first mic to the shop that subsequently did the soldering for me to see if they would be able to test it while the Lemo was still attached.

They said that they'd have to cut it off just to test the mic so I didn't bother. Wish I had done now - maybe I could've got them to reattch the Lemo and returned it for a refund there and then.

I'd read so much about these mics being so resiliant that I felt reasonably safe picking them up used on Ebay - how likely is it that the faulty one is completely shot? Are DPA willing to do repairs on modified mics? Sticking with my CSBs is looking more and more like the realistic option...

I'll do the distilled water thing tomorrow (just dip the whole thing in and swish it around?) and hopefully find something to tape next week.

Thanks for all your comments and advice.

[Church-Audio]

I did try to get it tested right away! I took the first mic to the shop that subsequently did the soldering for me to see if they would be able to test it while the Lemo was still attached.

They said that they'd have to cut it off just to test the mic so I didn't bother. Wish I had done now - maybe I could've got them to reattch the Lemo and returned it for a refund there and then.

I'd read so much about these mics being so resiliant that I felt reasonably safe picking them up used on Ebay - how likely is it that the faulty one is completely shot? Are DPA willing to do repairs on modified mics? Sticking with my CSBs is looking more and more like the realistic option...

I'll do the distilled water thing tomorrow (just dip the whole thing in and swish it around?) and hopefully find something to tape next week.

Thanks for all your comments and advice.

If you do the water thing let the mic dry face down hanging off a coat hanger. Let the mic dry for a few days then try it out.

[yousef]

Wow - thanks for taking the time to post all that, Moke - way above the call of duty there.

I'm still a little unclear on the cleaning though - the guide says that "The cable and protection grid are the only parts that may be cleaned if necessary"

but then it says:

"Note: If the microphone has been exposed to sweat it must be rinsed out in distilled water and left to dry out to recover its original specifications."

So, just to be absolutely certain - I'm taking the whole mic with the grid still attached, swishing it around in distilled water and then hanging it upside to dry for a few days?

I've got a bottle of de-ionized water here - does anyone know if it will that be ok to use instead of distilled? Google isn't much help on this.

Again, many thanks for your time.

[Church-Audio]

Wow - thanks for taking the time to post all that, Moke - way above the call of duty there.

I'm still a little unclear on the cleaning though - the guide says that "The cable and protection grid are the only parts that may be cleaned if necessary"

but then it says:

"Note: If the microphone has been exposed to sweat it must be rinsed out in distilled water and left to dry out to recover its original specifications."

So, just to be absolutely certain - I'm taking the whole mic with the grid still attached, swishing it around in distilled water and then hanging it upside to dry for a few days?

I've got a bottle of de-ionized water here - does anyone know if it will that be ok to use instead of distilled? Google isn't much help on this.

Again, many thanks for your time.

It must be de-mineralized water, the reason being is this type of water breaks down the salt crystals and does not leave any minerals on the mic capsule it self.

[yousef]

Hmmm... distilled water seems mighty hard to find round here (Manchester, UK). I've still got a couple of pharmacies (and the hospital I'm studying in) to try but it looks like everywhere else just does de-ionised. I've tried car parts shops, gardens centres, big chemists, photo shops and supermarkets. Blank looks all round.

[Gutbucket]

Hmmm... distilled water seems mighty hard to find round here (Manchester, UK). I've still got a couple of pharmacies (and the hospital I'm studying in) to try but it looks like everywhere else just does de-ionised. I've tried car parts shops, gardens centres, big chemists, photo shops and supermarkets. Blank looks all round.

I think you're supposed to take the protection grid of before rinsing in the distilled water (I haven't had to do it).  Notice the caption with the arrow pointing at the grid in the full page photo of the manual page Moke posted.  I believe "The cable and protection grid are the only parts that may be cleaned if necessary" refers to more rigorous methods than a distilled water rinse for caked in stage makeup and the like.

Distilled water is usually available in the supermarket (usually only in gallon jugs & often with red text or label for some reason) and in autopart stores for radiator use.. or build a still.

[yousef]

Is there a recommended way to remove the grilles? I've tried gently pulling and twisting them but there doesn't seem to be much movement.

Still really struggling with the distilled water. De-ionised is everywhere but the best I've done so far is a local pharmacy that said they could order it in specially but when they rang their supplier found that there was a production problem(!) and none was currently available.

[pjdavep]

Try getting distilled water from a cigar shop.  I know that most cigar humidifiers call for distilled water, so perhaps that would be a source?  Just a suggestion, since distilled water is fairly common here in the states.

Later,
   pjdavep

[yousef]

Thanks again guys - your continued help and advice is much appreciated.

Off to the tobacconist's then...

[yousef]

Thanks for all that, Moke. Certainly some food for thought there... I wonder how a pair of resuced-from-the-garbage 406x's compare to another set of mics costing a similar amount. Even if they're not up to DPA standards, might they still be a significant upgrade for some tapers?

Looks like I'll be getting hold of some distilled water soon - I'll let you know how I get on.

Thanks again.