Sennheiser Mic - Old

[Mickstape]

ok so i just bought what possibly is a dud but i couldnt help myself, its an old sennheiser, i couldnt get a definitive answer out of the person i bought it from regarding it being dynamic/condensor or polar patterns. it terminates in a 1/4" balanced plug, its made of bakelite so i'm thinking it is similar to this old yamaha stereo mic i have. you can view here, i've tried google but have had no luck. can anyone suggest a site with info or pics of the same type of mic.

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll ... =all&tid=0

[Mickstape]

ok i have to wait for it to come in the post. sorry bout the link not working, apparently ebay won't let me post the image nor will it let me post a link.

[Mickstape]

just took a pic with the mobile so its not the best quality.

[Mickstape]

the closest i can find to it seems to be an early md407, maybe this was the concept?

[rick]

this is really old
i think this will be a you tell us deal mick :)

[Mickstape]

is that so.... well mebbe it will have to go to Rob Squire, apparently it cuts in and out. I'm guessing original components are of the "unobtanium" kind, just my luck.... I cannot for the life of me find any info on the web about it, i will keep on searching lol :)

was 60 bucks too much to pay i wonder now....

[Text_Edifice]

Hi Mick,

this is an MD-407 (http://www.madooma.com/shop/sennheiser/ ... 407_e.html).

What you have is a Sennheiser dymamic – if it is a 407 in a different housing you may be in luck as the 407 purportedly has the same capsule as the MD-409

See: http://thewombforums.com/archive/index.php/t-225.html

Suggest opening the thing up and taking a look inside as you'll have to re-wire the mic to use with an XLR anyway (pretty easy if you can get the casing open).

If it works it'll probably be a useful tool to have around – every Sennheiser dynamic I have is great for something – but probably not worth much to anyone else.

Suck it and see.

[Mickstape]

Thanks Dave, i dunno bout opening it up, i'd rather have someone else do it <re-wire it> if anyone wants to have a play with it just let me know, sydney is fine for me as is newcastle.

so im guessing 60 bucks was ok then, i have a few old mics in my collection, some of them are considered to be quite poo by aficionados but i like the look and solidness of the old stuff. It will look good on the shelf anyway even if it is no good for tracking. oh and thanks for putting me onto the womb forum, i wasnt sure if you were a member or what your screen name was there so i couldnt refer your name. All good, that post was pretty cool man and it looks like i may have something worth keeping.


cheers

[Text_Edifice]

really not so hard to rewire these things and worth the time as a learning exercise I reckon – but see how you get on.

If it's a 409 capsule 60 bucks is a good deal but I think you might be disappointed in that regard (just a hunch).

This doesn't mean the mic isn't worth keeping but I'd consider paying much to get it fixed up if the capsule is dodgy.

The Womb can be a bit of a sewer trawl but there's some interesting stuff on there occasionally.

[Mickstape]

okay just a quick update on this mic for those who are interested.

I emailed sennheiser support and this is the email that came back to me.

Dear Mr. Shaw,

a nice microphone, a real vintage one. It is so old, that I can only guess
the time of launch: I found in an old catalog a microphone that was used at
a calling system vocaphone (1954) - but that was labeled with Laboratory
Wennebostel (short Labor W) at the brand sticker. The brand sticker of
yours is the former Sennheiser label. At 1958 the name of Labor W changed
to Sennheiser.
Old catalogs of that time show the MD 43 or MD 93 sililar to yours but with
different housings some details of the technical datas:
MD 43
sensitivity freeload 0.26 mV/µbar
characteristic cardioid
nominal impedance 200 Ohm

MD 93
sensitivity freeload 0.2 mV/µbar
characteristic nearly omni
nominal impedance 200 Ohm

The frequency range wasn't very flat. May be you could tell approx at 600
Hz - 5 kHz to 403, 1.2kHz - 7 kHz with the 93. Of course the could pick up
higher and lower frequencies - but not according tho the rules of today of
+/- 3dB.
Hopefully this foundings are sufficient for you - nothing more detailed can
be found out - because documentation and storage of documents was not at
the same interests like today.


With best regards

Günter Hitz
Service Centre Support/Technical Service Trainings
Technical Services

Phone: +49 (0) 5130 600-633
Fax: +49 (0) 5130 600-436
email: support@sennheiser.com
web: http://www.sennheiser.com

Sennheiser electronic GmbH & Co.KG
Am Labor 1
30900 Wedemark
Germany


----- Weitergeleitet am 05.05.2010 17:05 -----
----- Weitergeleitet am 04.05.2010 11:23 -----

so it looks like i have one of those mics that may only be good for decoration. I wasn't expecting an answer from sennheiser so i pleased that they could enlighten me as to it's application and a rough idea of it's heritage. Although i'm wondering if he defined it as being from the 50's or perhaps before that? Either way its my first Vintage mic and will take its place in the mic cabinet. If Rob Squire happens to read this post could you let me know if i can bring it down sometime for you to have a peek and see if we can get a signal to pass through it, i also wonder if it is a wise idea to even send voltage to the capsule in the case of an overload due to different impedance/voltage specs from then to today? Let me know.

[Alastair Reynolds]

It's not surprising you got an answer, Sennheiser are pretty fanatical about service and procedures .Hence their ISO9004 certification. I spent a week training at Sennheiser on UHF radio mic systems in the early 90s with Herr Hitz and toured the factory and R&D labs. It was a real eye opener to the level they work at and how far ahead they were thinking, things only released in recent years under developement 15 years ago.Most impressive was the cleanroom making the diaphagms for condenser Mics. If you're ever in Hannover it's worth contacting them for a possible visit. And the beer is very good at some of the little local pubs

[rob]

always happy to have a look at such things, so sure, email me and arrange to send it on down.

the mic looks so cool it will be a bonus if it works and finds a role in your recording world.

the make or break deal with dynamics is the condition of the capsule / diaphram. If it is shot, generally speaking the mic is a write off. Keep yer fingers crossed on this aspect.

This reminds me of the giant bakelite mic that was sent to me with Neumann emblazened on it. After some research, including a prompt and clear response from Neumann ( as yours was from Sennheiser ) it turns out that the "mic" is an intercom station made by a company called Neumann who specialised in train intercom systems. Now the plan is to turn this "Neumann Mic" into a 2W guitar amp!