Topic: Anyone know of a mod for panasonic wm61a caps to warm them up a bit?

[Neilyboy]

is there any way to make a wm61a cap 'warmer' I love tinkering around a bit but would love to know if there is a way to build a batt box which output can give me a warmer sound from a 61a cap? I have read through a bunch of diy batt box sites and instructions (and built a few) all of them seem to be the basic two wire batt box instructions.

Maybe there can be nothing done to give these cheap little caps a warmer feel but if so I would love to know how.

thanks much for any info you can provide
Neil

[boojum]

You can do that in post-production with Audacity or similar editor. 

[yug du nord]

There is mod for the wm61a...  I don't know anything about it, but I have heard some some pretty good recordings made with those mod'd caps....  search the web, I think I saw something at some point in a Yahoo group or something.

[Neilyboy]

excellent reply mshilarious this is exactly the information I was looking for. When I say 'warmer' I wanted to bring out the low and mids' as the caps always sound a bit too 'bright' or tin'ish. I am just getting into electronics so ill have to read and re-read your post a few times to get an idea of what I should try first but I love tinkering with my soldering iron and seeing what I can produce. Thanks again for the great reply buddy I do appreciate it. I will try a few things and see what I come up with. Like I said im a n00b when it comes to reading schematics but I follow them once I figure out what is trying to be done.

@uncleyug - i think your talking about the source follower mod.. I think that just allows higher spl from the caps. a good idea for some but not really all that important for me as the caps handle 'my style of music' as they are but thank you for the input its much appreciated!

thank you for the info!
Neil

[bucsab12]

Hi Neil

While I don't have any suggestions for your question, I wanted to ask you how were you able to match your two mics?

I also just started soldering but I decided I will try to build some custom mics. I followed Green Machine's DIY guide and got some nice results. I also used the Panasonic WM-61a caps. I have had a few tries at soldering the mics to the cable, but at the end there was always some difference in the sensitivity of the two caps. If you also created something similar, can you please  tell me how did you do the matching between the two caps?

Thanks in advance

[Neilyboy]

I would have no idea how to match the caps but when I buy them from digikey I always purchase about 16-20 at a time. Then I run my multi-meter across the contacts and find the ones which carry the same ammt. of resistance. They will be the most closely matched. As for differences how much different are you talking? You may either be burning up the cap or shorting out a wire somewhere... Soldering a tiny cap takes lots of patience and a steady hand. I have no idea how Chris is soldering those super tiny caps he sells.. I would love to give it a try myself though haha..

you have other questions man shoot away! That and search around for wm61a here there should be a good thread from awhile back with lots of 61a info.

Neil

[Neilyboy]

wow.. ok I have some reading to do haha. I think I will start with the cap across the capsule and go from there. Like I say, im pretty much broke but enjoy tinkering with this hobby. I want to learn more so by me experimenting I learn best. There is still a ton of this which I do not fully understand but I will keep reading and hopefully come to a better understanding.

Take care
Neil

[bucsab12]

Thanks Neil for the answer. I did not know about the multimeter test but I will try that from now on and see if it gives me better results.

An thank you mshilarious, for the detailed explanation. Can you please tell me what is the socket that you were referring to when you said:

Insert Quote
If you are making a stereo pair you have to match the capsules before you assemble them.  I wire pins to the capsules using discarded resistor leads, then stick the pins in a socket to test.

Please correct me if I am wrong, but if I am not going to very loud concerts, would I receive better quality recordings from my capsules if I don't do the source follower mode?

These is a question coming from a total noob but can you explain in simpler terms what did you mean when you wrote:

If you are building phantom-powered mics, I firmly absolutely believe the best approach (contrary to what you see in that schematic) is to take signal off both pins, which is a 'phase splitter' configuration.  That provides the best possible noise rejection.

What is the "'phase splitter' configuration"

Thank you in advance