Topic: Need some advice... Behringer C-2 stereo condesor mics???

[leshlush]

Can someone who knows about mic specs take a look at these mics and let me know what thay think... Keep in mind, I'm not looking for a heavy duty set of mics, just some cheap starter mics... Any feedback would be appreciated...

I'm looking at picking up my first set of mics and saw these from Full Compass and the price was very attractive for the package(stero matched pair, t bar, clamps)... The frenquence response seems to be what I need(20 Hz to 20kHz) but as far as the other specs are concerned I know what each mean but I don't know what ranges I need... Thx, much appreciated...

The link for the mics is:

http://www.behringer.com/C-2/index.cfm?lang=ENG

If you could please click on the link to the "manual" and open the acrobat file, you'll find the specs on pages 5 and 6 of the document...

Sorry, I would have copy and pasted the specs but it's a pdf file...

Thx everyone...

P.S. I plan on running (C-2>ARTII>HOSA MIT 176>JB3) would the C-2's do the trick for bar-shows

[fozzy]

For $50 a pair they would probably do the trick.  I haven't seen any of these listed in any source info so your results may vary.

I doubt you will be able to find any packages similar(mics & accessories) in this price range.

[leshlush]

I was originally looking at buying the Superlux SMK-H8K Matched Stereo Pair and know that a few people have run them but if these Behringers fit the required specs, then hell, the price can't be beat...

Thx again

[johnw]

One nice thing about them is they are short (3 11/16"). You could probably run them in a low profile setup like the 184s in a schoeps mount. It would be kind of funny to see a pair of mics in a shock mount that costs more than the mics themselves.

[Roving Sign]

Neato!

[leshlush]

Thx for posting the specs Roving Sign!!! Much appreciated... I was having probs copying from the pdf file...

So folks, now that the specs are posted, what do you all think?

Based on the specs, would these mics do trick??? Is the Open Circuit Sensitivity, the same as sensitivity??? If so, would I need alot of gain to run these or is -41 dBV around the required range I'm looking for???

Thanks everyone for the feed back and keep it coming...

Being a newbie who's looking at setting up his first rig, I really appreciate any and all of the advise from all of you experienced tapirs

Cheers folks

[spyder9]

1 mv is way too low for senstivity.  You want something 11 mv or higher.  Somewhere around 15-20 mv would be best. "Reach" is very important when selecting a mic to be used in various locations.

[leshlush]

1 mv is way too low for senstivity.  You want something 11 mv or higher.  Somewhere around 15-20 mv would be best. "Reach" is very important when selecting a mic to be used in various locations.

On the spec sheet where it says "Open Circuit Sensitivity  (at 1 kHz): -41 dBV (0 dBV = 1 V/Pa)

Am I misunderstanding that the sensitivity would therefor be -41 dBV???

If so, when I use the dBV to mV/pa converter on "http://www.sengpielaudio.com/calculator-transferfactor.htm" and I enter -41 dBV, I get a sensitivity of 8.9 mV/Pa...

Am I doing this wrong or am I misunderstanding it???  Is mV/pa the same as 'mv' that people commonly refer to???

If in fact the mv is 8.9mV/Pa, would these mics do the trick for what I need them for???

I know you mentioned a sensitivity of anything over 11 (preferably in the 15-20 range) is best but when I chkd the Superlux SMK-H8K (that I was originally looking at picking up)they had a sensitivity of 10 mV/Pa and I also chkd the AKG 1000s(another alternative for starter mics) and the sensitivity was only 6mV/Pa, so would the sensitivity of these Behringer's suffice for a set of starter mics???

Thanks again everyone for all the help and comments, keep them coming, they're helping alot...

Spyder9 if you get the chance, could you please get back to me... It would be greatly appreciated... As I mentioned befor, I don't know what I'm doing and don't know specs. I have really appreciated the feedback... Last thing I want to do is buy a set of mics that are of no use to me; on the other hand, if these puppies will do the trick, then the price just can't be beat...

THX

[leshlush]

Hey folks I know these questions are getting old but if someone has any additional feedback, it would be greatly appreciated... I especially would appreciate some direction in concerns to my last post...

Was I off the mark or were my assumptions correct??? Is the sensitivity 8.9mv??? Will these puppies therefor do the trick???

Again, sorry if this is becoming redundant, but I really do appreciate everyone's help..

Thx guys

[johnw]

I think you are interpreting the sensitivity correctly, and 8.9 isn't great, but it isn't the worst either. As you found out, this falls between the published specs of many more commonly used microphones. The JB3 can provide some gain to compensate, but it may be noisy. I would recccomend saving up a bit more and buying a UA5 or the GP preamp. I don't think you're going to be blown away by the sound of B2>Art II regardless of the sensitivity, but if you want to start with small diameter cards, this will work.

If you are planning on going B2>Art II>Hosa 176>?adapter>JB3 you are going to need a mic stand, T-bar and XLRs which is going to run $400. If you have fun recording, I'll predict that you start trying to figure out what you're going to upgrade next and then you'll regret buying all that stuff instead of saving up a little longer and getting something a bit more commonly used.

Just out of curiosity, did you consider a stealth style setup instead? It might be a little cheaper, sound a little better, be easier to run and you might not get the upgrade bug as quick either. Of course all of this is just my opinion and I don't think anyone on this board has tried this setup, so it may work out great. Good luck, +T.