Topic: replacing one of two HEB mics (dpa 4060)

[macdaddy]

apparently one of my mics is shot. the place here that tested them (valley sound, but the one on formosa in hollywood) said they would replace the mic for me if i got a new one...

my real question is that i see one on ebay for uber-cheap. it is a single dpa, and the cabling is a bit messed up. if he says he can replace the mic, couldnt he just use that mic and attach it to my existing cable..? it would work with batt box setup i am using, correct..?

here is the mic i am looking at...

otherwise i guess i could send them back to nj, but i am afraid that is going to cost me a fortune. the mics are way out of warranty, so that is not an option...

why this had to happen on the second night of dylan's five night stand, i will never know. it looks like the final two gigs are going to be csc > modsbm1 > cf recorder, but i did my brooding last night (contemplating getting out of the sport altogether), and now have mellowed a bit, and just want to get my rig back to fully operational...

any input on this matter is greatly appreciated...

this sh*t never happens when there is a lull - i got a hellride gig, and 3 nels gigs all within the next 12 days, and it looks like i will have to use the cheapo cardiods for them all (and i dont even know where the batt box is at the moment)...

i am open to any and all ideas...

also, many thanks marc, for bouncing some ideas back and forth yesterday...

[neutrino]

Macdaddy-

From the looks of the CS HEB's that I own, all the modification is done in the battery box, so using a "standard" dpa 4060 and integrating it into the setup would be no problem. A few minutes from a skilled tech with a soldering iron and some heat shrink and you should be good to go...
dB-

[neutrino]

this,(from the ebay description), sounds like a rather serious issue;
Good working order however the wire sheath has come away in a couple of places exposing the inner wire.  This was due to superglue being used to fix the microphone as part of the experiment.  Wire length is only approx 30 cm.
And,..... The cable length is only 13" long,  apprx..

Not that serious, as your going to have to add a length of mic cabling anyway. I would just cut the cable a few inches from the capsule, strip the cabling, and begin wiring up some fresh cable. As long as the capsule hasn't been touched, the mic should be good as new.
 

[shaggy]

mac,

Is it completely dead?  Any idea how it happened?  Your 4060s are not that old and  they can take a fair amount of beating.

I'd be real careful about those ebay DPAs.  You just never know where the hell they've been.  About the one you got your sights on, did you talk to the previous owner about the research they did with it?

Contact Bruce Meyers at DPA in Co.  Maybe they can help you out.  If they were bot at DPA (I dunno about Len's mod'd mics) the warranty is 2 years.

+T for luck,

ANDY

[macdaddy]

bought from len... i year warranty is expired...

didnt do anything to them - i baby the things, and i have no idea what happened...

talked to len today, but the price of a replacement, matched mic is half of the price of the whole package...

i was thinking the ebay mic would be OK since i would not be using the cable - the guys at valley sound would (i assume) just snip the mic off the cable, and attach it to my existing cable (that is attached to the bad mic). should be cheaper than the replacement route, but i am skeptical...

i am thinking that sending them to core-sound is the way to go, since he built them, so hopefully he can figure out, with more detail, what happened. but it is a pricey route...

+t's all 'round for the input and advice...

gonna run the cssc's into the sbm1 tonight.

[zhianosatch]

splicing a new mic + cable into an existing cable smells like a temporary solution. i wouldn't, however, waste any more money on len. it's a tough call.
how much do single 4060s run these days? i got my 4061s new during a sale for $312.50 apiece. if i were you, i think i'd weather this storm with your shite cardioids (or borrow someone's dpas - my offer still stands, don't forget), then buy a single 4060 and have valley sound or a trusted friend wire it into your HEB box. by my calculations, this would cost less than half of a new set of HEBs AND you'd be avoiding core sound.
the matching issue is a load of crap, IMHO. i've only heard one person ever complain about his 4061s having noticeably different sensitivities and he was exaggerating with "2 dB." my 4061s are very good friends with each other...
edit: remember, schwilly wired two ebay 4061s into a mini plug for dirt fuckin' cheap and uses one of kindguy's old sound pro battery boxes to power them. not bad for a "backup" set of mics!

[shaggy]

Zhiano,

I have a pair of 4061s that are actually handmatched in Alleroed, Denmark.  I have the DPA factory documentation and the detailed frequency response graphs complete with the technicians signature.  I dunno if anyone else can do them more properly than what they did!  Len may be exagerrating about the fresh new 406X being so far off but I bot a few off of ebay and found none of them even close to one another (as much as 6-8dBs apart).  I took the closest 4061 matching pair to Bruce Meyers and got DPA to give me a stereo matched pair for $400 (I had to let the two used ones go).  That is why I tell people to watch it when they buy those thrashed 406Xs on ebay, my own experience has told me to stay away from them.  And the two that I have now from DPA are pretty matched, no difference in output....a tad bit quieter measure noise level is -24dB for both.  I am glad I did it, it gives me total piece of mind and shit, those torrents I put up with them speak for themselves.....

ANDY

[macdaddy]

Zhiano,

I have a pair of 4061s that are actually handmatched in Alleroed, Denmark.  I have the DPA factory documentation and the detailed frequency response graphs complete with the technicians signature.  I dunno if anyone else can do them more properly than what they did!  Len may be exagerrating about the fresh new 406X being so far off but I bot a few off of ebay and found none of them even close to one another (as much as 6-8dBs apart).  I took the closest 4061 matching pair to Bruce Meyers and got DPA to give me a stereo matched pair for $400 (I had to let the two used ones go).  That is why I tell people to watch it when they buy those thrashed 406Xs on ebay, my own experience has told me to stay away from them.  And the two that I have now from DPA are pretty matched, no difference in output....a tad bit quieter measure noise level is -24dB for both.  I am glad I did it, it gives me total piece of mind and shit, those torrents I put up with them speak for themselves.....

ANDY

i thought you bought from len...

mine were evenly matched, too - and i thought my tapes could sound pretty decent, too...

[pfife]

I bot a few off of ebay and found none of them even close to one another (as much as 6-8dBs apart).

Same here, but I'm not too worried 'bout it - just account for it on the SBM-1.

I always thought that the HEB's were modified mics as well as the battery box... but, I have no technical expertise in such matters, that's just what I thought I read here.

[shaggy]

Pfife, I kind of noticed a tonal difference between two of them.  I bot three for about $250 in 2002.  It happens.  I got unlucky maybe.  I'd be wary b/c alot of those theatrical ones have been thru some extremes, you know the ones with the senn lemo connectors. 

Seriously Mac, I would try and get Len to take it back and charge you what he pays for them or get Bruce Meyer in Colorado to ring up DPA and see what they say.  I dunno why Len would charge you HALF of the whole set up.  Makes no sense to me.  From what I've heard he's been less than friendly lately to our tight knit taping community. You got the receipt still?  I mean, Len is technically an authorized dealer...you should complain.  If you bot those 4060s less then two years ago, you should get a replacement!  I did that with my unknown 4061s and got DPA to match a pair for $400!

Bruce Myers
DPA Microphones, Inc.
691 Gray Mountain Drive
Lyons, CO 80540

Telephone: +1 303 823 8878
Fax: +1 303 823 5830

Email: info-usa@dpamicrophones.com

[macdaddy]

Pfife, I kind of noticed a tonal difference between two of them.  I bot three for about $250 in 2002.  It happens.  I got unlucky maybe.  I'd be wary b/c alot of those theatrical ones have been thru some extremes, you know the ones with the senn lemo connectors. 

Seriously Mac, I would try and get Len to take it back and charge you what he pays for them or get Bruce Meyer in Colorado to ring up DPA and see what they say.  I dunno why Len would charge you HALF of the whole set up.  Makes no sense to me.  From what I've heard he's been less than friendly lately to our tight knit taping community. You got the receipt still?  I mean, Len is technically an authorized dealer...you should complain.  If you bot those 4060s less then two years ago, you should get a replacement!  I did that with my unknown 4061s and got DPA to match a pair for $400!

Bruce Myers
DPA Microphones, Inc.
691 Gray Mountain Drive
Lyons, CO 80540

Telephone: +1 303 823 8878
Fax: +1 303 823 5830

Email: info-usa@dpamicrophones.com

that's about the same price i was quoted by len on friday, so it looks like i am in the right ballpark... i have sent him the mics (saturday - they should arrive tuesday by noon), and i was going to call him today...

thanks for the input.

[macdaddy]

mics arrived...

i will test them later this evening, and post some pics. they look good!!!

stoked to have my babies back...

[JasonR]

I don't know for certain if Len really matches the 406* capsules for his HEBs or not.  However, the paperwork provided with my mics are from a sequentially numbered pair.  Unless there are serial numbers somewhere on the mics, I can't really say if the paperwork matches the mics or not.  If it does, I would assume these aren't matched.

[macdaddy]

I don't know for certain if Len really matches the 406* capsules for his HEBs or not.  However, the paperwork provided with my mics are from a sequentially numbered pair.  Unless there are serial numbers somewhere on the mics, I can't really say if the paperwork matches the mics or not.  If it does, I would assume these aren't matched.

my problem ended up not to be the mic, so it was not swapped out, and didnt need to be re-matched.

but i am pretty sure len does match the mics up to make the heb pairs...

[macdaddy]

some snaps...


back from the shop:




with a battery (AA) for size reference:




mics close-up, clipped to the "hrtf headband"




the "hrtf headband" (aerial view):