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[boz6906]

So, did Neumann actually produce a TLM170 with a K67?

"This is the original (non-R) Version carrying the Neumann large diaphragm K67 Capsule (as in U67) -
also known as the 'TLM171' the K67 capsule (in this combination) is sonically superior to the smaller K89 capsule
as standard in the TLM170 or TLM170R.
In fact, it's a much bigger and bolder sound with the same definition as expected from the TLM170"

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=171237206392&ssPageName=ADME:B:SS:US:1120

[Rick Sutton]

Martin Schneider/Neumann refers to it in this thread:
http://www.neumann.com/forums/view.php?site=neumann&bn=neumann_mictec&key=1221472761

From a David Satz reply in this thread:
https://groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/rec.audio.pro/1buhc2V9FJQ

"Nearly ten years ago, one of Neumann's customers
in Germany ordered five dozen special microphones made up
with the K870/67 capsule from the U 67 and U 87A placed
into/onto the body of the model TLM 170.  Neumann doesn't
divulge the circuitry of the monolithic amplifiers used in their
transformerless amplifiers, but to my knowledge the TLM 170
circuit contains only bandpass filtering and no other frequency
response tailoring.  The result was a model which Neumann
called the "TLM 171".  It was so bright sounding that it was of
limited application or appeal, by all accounts; it was never put
into the catalog for general sale, and no more are available now."

[klaus]

That pretty much squares with what I know about this short-lived model as well.

Its electronics seemed identical to those of the TLM170, unless Neumann re-chipped it, which I doubt, considering the R/D cost to develop an audio processing chip. The original TLM170 electronic design was a good match with the mellower K89 capsule, which did not need additional high end attenuation, which the same mic fitted with a K870 certainly would need.

[David Satz]

Some years ago a TLM 171 came up for sale on eBay in Germany, complete with photos that included the red ID band around the base of the microphone, clearly showing its model number. It looked legit to me.

Karl Winkler at Neumann USA told me years ago that some samples of the TLM 171 had been lent to engineers and producers close to the company, and that their interest had played a part in the development of the TLM 103 with its somewhat similar frequency response. So the experiment did have a kind of legacy after all.

--best regards

P.S. after looking at the current eBay ad: Whoever wrote the ad is under the mistaken impression that the original TLM 170i model used the K 67 capsule. I've asked the seller for evidence that this microphone contains a K 67 rather than a K 89. Of course that would only be the case if the microphone had been modified, but the seller doesn't seem to realize this.

[David Satz]

As to the eBay item that sparked this thread: The seller changed the ad completely. By the time it ended, it was retitled as "TLM 170R"--which means that the microphone hadn't been the original (discrete electronics, no "R" module) version of the TLM 170 to begin with.