Topic: How do you get a "matched pair" if the mic's aren't sold in pairs?

[dreyfuss]

This could be a dumb question but I am wondering how one goes about getting a "matched pair" of mics when they aren't sold in pairs.  I'm seriously looking at getting some AKG 481's but they are sold in singles not pairs.

I did a quick search and found some of the folks here suggest a "matched" pair isn't nessicary but pretty much all the mics that are sold in pairs seem to be "matched" so I'm looking for some direction in this area.

Any help will be appriciated.

Thanks

[jlykos]

Some mics are matched and some aren't.  You shouldn't sweat it too much if it is a quality microphone.  The best way to get matched pairs is to request a pair of matched microphones from the dealer.  I run Microtech Gefell and they don't sell them in matched pairs because the individual microphones are so closely toleranced that it doesn't matter if they are matched or not.

[JasonSobel]

Some mics are matched and some aren't.  You shouldn't sweat it too much if it is a quality microphone.  The best way to get matched pairs is to request a pair of matched microphones from the dealer.  I run Microtech Gefell and they don't sell them in matched pairs because the individual microphones are so closely toleranced that it doesn't matter if they are matched or not.

actually, with Microtech Gefells, you can buy them as a matched pair.  I paid a little extra to have a matched pair when I bought mine new a little over a year ago.

but in general, Jamie is correct, some manufacturers don't offer "matched pairs" because the quality control is good enough that all mics of the same type are "matched"

[wbrisette]

The other thing of note, is a lot of the higher end mics come with individual test sheets from the microphones themselves. There seems to be some holy grail of having consecutive serial numbers, but in my opinion that doesn't mean squat. It's the characteristics of the mic itself, not the number on the mic that counts. None of the Earthworks mics I own are consecutive serial numbers. I think the closest I have are two numbers off. EW will sell you individuals or MP, if you buy a set of mics, you always get a matched pair. That's the only way they sell them.

Wayne

[macacopowa]

recently I bought a single akg 391, and now I'm searching another single 391, the auditory differences s are so big that I will have to send to akg for match the pair?

[Sanjay]

recently I bought a single akg 391, and now I'm searching another single 391, the auditory differences s are so big that I will have to send to akg for match the pair?

no

[macacopowa]

thanks for your concise answer 

[jibooer]

here's my .02...  mass-produced mics, especially those coming from Chinese manufacturers or those which are made more or less on an 'assembly line' are produced so that each product is theoretically identical to one another.  No need for deep analysis on these. The C4's are a great example of this, and they are sold in a stereo set. Another example is the ol' die-hard mics -  the Shure SM-57/58. These mics are so widely used that it would be silly for the company to produce mics that sound different from one another.

however, the mics which are made by hand, i.e the high-end ones, like Neumanns and Schoeps need the sound analysis as the sonic differences are a result of the individual craftsmanship.

you get what you pay for, in other words...if you pay a few thousand bucks for mics, you damn well better get ones that sound the same, right?

as far as the akg's are concerned, they are more commonly sold individually, as the reason for their production isn't really for us tapers, although many distributors go to great lengths to match them.

[ghellquist]

Hmm jibooer,
    I think you have got it completely the wrong way round.

Neumann generally did not sell matched pairs as each and every mic is tested and tested and tested to stay within tolerances. The German engineers thought the Americans to be stupid to always asking for matched mics, as all of them were close enough to be used in a stereo pair. As people in the US wanted matched anyway, the US distributor found these nice wooden boxes and put any two mics in there, they were all matched. Now I guess even the stubborn Germans understands that the market wants matched pairs so you can buy that.

Then there are the enthusiasts. Talk to Schoeps, another of the top brands. If you buy matched from them a person with both knowledge, ears and instruments has done his best to select a pair of capsules that are real close. Here matching is going one step further, getting real close.

On the other hand, many of the Chinese manufacturers runs on a strict low-cost policy. This means that there is very little quality control going on. Quality control would cost money and also would mean that a certain part of the production would be thrown away as not passing criteria. Low-cost also means that for the components going into the mic they get what is cheapest at the moment. Without warning they can (and do) change as the parts come and go. So here would be the place where matching really would make a difference, simply because the individual mics are soo different. The problem is that matching is often done by taking two mics (any two mics) in serial number order and pack them as matched. There is absolutely no guarantee that any measurement or listening has been done.

You can match two mics yourself. Place them real close to each other pointing in the same direction, one atop the other. Send them to one channel each of your stereo gear. Carefully set gains same on both. Pan Left/Right. Now walk around the mics talking (or whistling or whatever) a full circle. Listen carefully, the stereo position of the sound should stay in the same place, not move to and fro. If that is the case your mics are close enough in my humble experience. This tests for differences in sensitivity pattern. Differences in gain is much easier to care for in a typical situation, just set the gain so you get stereo smack in the middle.

Gunnar

[jibooer]

i stand corrected....

[macdaddy]

i know that core-sound matches the dpa 406x mics when they sell them as their "high-end binaural" microphone set...

[ldseeya]

I have a question, if I was to buy schoeps mk4 capsules 1 at a time (because of price) would I need to eventually have them matched or would it be close enough buying each capsule say a month or two apart

[wbrisette]

i know that core-sound matches the dpa 406x mics when they sell them as their "high-end binaural" microphone set...

Do you get a testing chart, or simply a note saying that Len said so?

Wayne

[Church-Audio]

The only way to match mics is to have many pairs of them and find ones that are the closest to each other. I use a 1k test tone at 115db and match distortion, I then use MLS and match frequency response and absolute output level. I have capsules made for me in China but they are anything but matched I have to hand match all my mics one pair at a time I might go thru 10 capsules before I find one that matches up with another. That’s why I buy them at 100pcs at a time.

It’s very hard to match a high end mic like DPA, unless you have at least 10 of them "lying" around to compare them with one another, and find the best matches. It is easy for the manufacturing company to do this, but not so easy for a reseller or distributor. So if I was going to get a pair of matched mics I would want to talk to the manufacturer and order them from them with frequency charts/and graphs.
This whole process takes me over 1 hour to measure and compare 20 mic capsules.. So if you want a company like AKG to do it expect to pay for this service.

IMHO there is no substitute for a matched pair of mics for stereo recording, if you want a balanced left and right. So that your recordings flaws, they will only be about placement and the source and not about the differences between mics..

Chris Church

This could be a dumb question but I am wondering how one goes about getting a "matched pair" of mics when they aren't sold in pairs.  I'm seriously looking at getting some AKG 481's but they are sold in singles not pairs.

I did a quick search and found some of the folks here suggest a "matched" pair isn't nessicary but pretty much all the mics that are sold in pairs seem to be "matched" so I'm looking for some direction in this area.

Any help will be appriciated.

Thanks

[macdaddy]

i know that core-sound matches the dpa 406x mics when they sell them as their "high-end binaural" microphone set...

Do you get a testing chart, or simply a note saying that Len said so?

Wayne

a chart - they are guranteed to be within 1db of one another...