R/E/P Community
R/E/P => Klaus Heyne's Mic Lab => Topic started by: Dinogi on March 21, 2012, 04:25:49 PM
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This may or may not save someone some problems in the future. Most of you real engineers probably already know about this.
In an over-zealous moment of motivation, I decided now was the time to replace the ugly gray wire someone used in a DIY Tuchel to XLR adapter. The microphones in question are a pair of oddball little German omni dynamics from the sixties.
Thankfully I found a pdf manual for these now discontinued mics and as it turns out, I would have wired them up bass acwards. If I hadn't seen the wiring diagram in the manual, I never would have considered that the Tuchel/ DIN socket in the mic body might be wired differently than any other mic. In fact, its wired with pin #1 hi, pin #2 ground, and pin #3 lo.
If you run across any old mics that use this connector, be sure to check it out before you turn on the soldering iron, or think the mic is dead.
And that's what I learned today.
Dean Giamette
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I never would have considered that the Tuchel/ DIN socket in the mic body might be wired differently than any other mic. In fact, its wired with pin #1 hi, pin #2 ground, and pin #3 lo.
This is actually DIN standard for a microphone connector.
Every mic. with a DIN/Tuchel connector is wired like this.
The DIN standard says pin-2 (the centre one) is the screen connector.
It's not unusual at all.
Yes - XLR is:-
pin-1 = screen
pin-2 = +ve
pin-3 = -ve
Other connectors use different pin configurations.
You cannot assume a pin configuration for one connector type will be the same as a different connector type.
So - your Tuchel connector was wired perfectly standard, the same as every other mic.
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In fact, its wired with pin #1 hi, pin #2 ground, and pin #3 lo.
Hi Dean,you clearly describe a mic wired for both high-and low-impedance. Furthermore, this only allows unbalanced connection, since the common pin #2 is grounded. For the cable-connection you only use either pin #1(hot) and #2(cold) for high-z and pin #3(hot) and #2(cold) for low-z. Not grounding the common pin #2 but grounding the metallic cable-connector shield gives you balanced connection. What is the mic in question? There used to be mics wired liked this in the sixties, like Sennheisers MD21HN/HL and MD421HN/HL. HN and HL both mean "High-Low" the former in German(Hoch-Nieder).
Esa
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I'd almost forgotten about this post. It didn't get any responses for quite a while.
So I thank you guys for responding. The microphones are indeed Sennheisers. Model MD211. I'm really glad I was able to download an original manual pdf that described the wiring difference between the XLR and the Tuchel. Lesson learned without messing up a couple of nice little oddball microphones. The omni pickup and the fact that they seem impossible to overload have made them an interesting alternative to a 57 on electric guitar. I seem to recall Fletcher mentioning he liked them on horns. I wish I had more time to experiment with them. Like most of my personal stuff now-a-days, they sit unused most of the time.
deangiamette
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I'm really glad I was able to download an original manual pdf
Would you be so kind and share the downloaded manual for this obsolete model? It may be a life saver for other owners!
Thanks,
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The manual can be downloaded from the Sennheiser website at:
http://94.100.244.130/sennheiser/old_manual.nsf/resources/MD_211_18187_0186_Sp3.pdf/$File/MD_211_18187_0186_Sp3.pdf
I wish attachment could also be .pdf... For anyone interested in copies of the relevant pages from the contemporary (1972) Sennheiser catalog, just contact me diectly.
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Would you be so kind and share the downloaded manual for this obsolete model? It may be a life saver for other owners!
Sennheiser manuals for old microphones are HERE (http://en-de.sennheiser.com/service-support/services/download-area/download-files-old-products).
Current microphones are HERE (http://en-de.sennheiser.com/service-support/services/download-area/).
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Great link! Thanks, John.
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If anyone has issues downloading the manual please feel free to PM me.
I would be happy to email it to you directly. I run a Mac with updated Norton software so the file should be safe.
dinogiammattei