Beesneez to release New C12a microphones!

[AcousticDreams]

Got a heads up from from Ben at Beesneez.

"We are are planning on releasing a tube and fet C12a style mic. It will have a body that looks just like the original. We are looking forward to getting it out there over the coming months."

For years I have been hearing about the legendary status of the original C12. With many referring to it as nothing short of magical.

And of all the historic mics referred to as "Holy Grail mics", such as U87, U67, U47, 49, it would seem that reasonably priced C12 clones have been of fewer numbers.

Researching I found that the C12 and C12A share the same capsule but with different inner workings. The C12A is smaller I believe.

Can't wait to hear it in action!

[jim1960]

The C12 clones have been on the Beesneez website for a while. The BC12 has nine polar patterns and the BC12 cardioid has a single polar pattern.

[AcousticDreams]

Originally Posted by jim1960

The C12 clones have been on the Beesneez website for a while. The BC12 has nine polar patterns and the BC12 cardioid has a single polar pattern.

Never heard a C12a, but it looks more like a 414 than a C12 body.

One person was quoted as saying:
"C12As are extremely forgiving mics"
"When a singer needs assistance with "body" or has a very aggressive mid-range, a C12A is what I'd go to first." "C37As are similar in this respect"

[DupleMeter]

C12s are very open & airy mics. The have a bit of the smiley face EQ thing going on, which can be very nice on some voices.

We have a custom Shannon Rhoades c12 at the studio. It's truly a beautiful mic. Possibly my second favorite in the locker. Shannon was the mic tech at Blackbird (he may still be...I know he stepped away for a while due to some personal matters).

[jim1960]

Originally Posted by DupleMeter

Shannon was the mic tech at Blackbird (he may still be...I know he stepped away for a while due to some personal matters).

Shannon Rhoades had a company called Mic Rehab but sometime either in late 2018 or early 2019 he experienced what I've heard described as a "family tragedy" (I don't know what that tragedy was) and stopped doing mic work. I saw posts from dozens of people around that time who were complaining that Shannon had their mics and that they had no way of getting them back because he wasn't responding to calls or emails. Some months later, Dave Wheeler of Nashville Vintage Audio interceded and was able to get some of the mics that were in Shannon's possession, repair them, and get them back to their owners. I haven't seen any complaints about missing mics in a long time so I think that part of the story may have been fully resolved but I don't think Shannon has gone back to doing mic work.

As of today, the last post on the Mic Rehab Facebook page says, "Due to unforeseen circumstances and personal situations going on in my life Mic Rehab has not been in operation for the last year or more. Please know that I sincerely apologize to all of those people I have offended, let down and hurt, personal friends and business relationships. I am planning to make things right. Thank you in advance for hearing me out and for prayers, patience and understanding."

[RRuskin]

Originally Posted by Knives&Guitars

Never heard a C12a, but it looks more like a 414 than a C12 body.

One person was quoted as saying:
"C12As are extremely forgiving mics"
"When a singer needs assistance with "body" or has a very aggressive mid-range, a C12A is what I'd go to first." "C37As are similar in this respect"

I had a pair of C12A's here for a while and loved them. Much smoother than the original C12's.

I own (& love) several C37A's and find them to have more mid-range presence than most other tube mics from the same generation. They happen to be great tom-tom mics.

[DupleMeter]

Originally Posted by jim1960

Shannon Rhoades had a company called Mic Rehab but sometime either in late 2018 or early 2019 he experienced what I've heard described as a "family tragedy" (I don't know what that tragedy was) and stopped doing mic work. I saw posts from dozens of people around that time who were complaining that Shannon had their mics and that they had no way of getting them back because he wasn't responding to calls or emails. Some months later, Dave Wheeler of Nashville Vintage Audio interceded and was able to get some of the mics that were in Shannon's possession, repair them, and get them back to their owners. I haven't seen any complaints about missing mics in a long time so I think that part of the story may have been fully resolved but I don't think Shannon has gone back to doing mic work.

As of today, the last post on the Mic Rehab Facebook page says, "Due to unforeseen circumstances and personal situations going on in my life Mic Rehab has not been in operation for the last year or more. Please know that I sincerely apologize to all of those people I have offended, let down and hurt, personal friends and business relationships. I am planning to make things right. Thank you in advance for hearing me out and for prayers, patience and understanding."

I do know some of the details of his situation. I know he's been trying to pull things together. I'm not sure where he is in that journey. I feel for him. Life isn't always easy...

[DupleMeter]

Originally Posted by RRuskin

I had a pair of C12A's here for a while and loved them. Much smoother than the original C12's.

I own (& love) several C37A's and find them to have more mid-range presence than most other tube mics from the same generation. They happen to be great tom-tom mics.

And remember, the C414 was the solid state successor to the C12 (as clearly seen when you look at a C12a). So, if you're looking for an option that requires less maintenance, look at the C414s...though maybe not the new ones. the C414comb and early C414EB is certainly the most coveted, but I really liked the B/ULS version, but maybe that was because it was the current version when I started recording. The later versions went transformerless (TL, TLII, XLS). I'm not a fan of those. They feel too clinical & bright to me.

If you get one of the long body C12s, most good mic techs know a trick to smooth out the top end. We had Shannon do that to the custom one he made us.

[Mics]

Taming the highs on any tube mic is pretty simple. If you strap a polystyrene capacitor 80pf-300pf (the lower the value, the less highs are attenuated) from the anode of the tube to the ground plane. It can be a bit tricky to match frequency versus attenuation but if you need to, a resistor can also be added after the cap and before ground to help. As stated, any good mic tech can play with these values to give you the desired high end attenuation. This is a simplified version of the idea behind the u67 attenuation circuit which also adds to this a tertiary transformer winding that assists by injecting a portion of the highs into transformer with the phase reversed, this this then cancels the same frequencies within the transformer thus reducing the highs.

Cheers

Originally Posted by DupleMeter

And remember, the C414 was the solid state successor to the C12 (as clearly seen when you look at a C12a). So, if you're looking for an option that requires less maintenance, look at the C414s...though maybe not the new ones. the C414comb and early C414EB is certainly the most coveted, but I really liked the B/ULS version, but maybe that was because it was the current version when I started recording. The later versions went transformerless (TL, TLII, XLS). I'm not a fan of those. They feel too clinical & bright to me.

If you get one of the long body C12s, most good mic techs know a trick to smooth out the top end. We had Shannon do that to the custom one he made us.

[AcousticDreams]

Originally Posted by Mics

Taming the highs on any tube mic is pretty simple. If you strap a polystyrene capacitor 80pf-300pf (the lower the value, the less highs are attenuated) from the anode of the tube to the ground plane. It can be a bit tricky to match frequency versus attenuation but if you need to, a resistor can also be added after the cap and before ground to help. As stated, any good mic tech can play with these values to give you the desired high end attenuation. This is a simplified version of the idea behind the u67 attenuation circuit which also adds to this a tertiary transformer winding that assists by injecting a portion of the highs into transformer with the phase reversed, this this then cancels the same frequencies within the transformer thus reducing the highs.

Cheers

While I know next to nothing about the inner workings of a microphone, and would never have the gumption to replace or modify any parts on my own, I still very much enjoy tech talk. Even though I probably don't completely understand it, tech talk often reveals what gives a particular mic its magic.

I had heard many times before about the U67's attenuation circuit. But I was not familiar with the the term " tertiary transformer" so I looked it up.
It is a Three winding transformer.
One source stated:
Advantages of Using Tertiary Winding in Transformer

Tertiary winding is provided in electrical power transformer to meet one or more of the following requirements-

1. It reduces the unbalancing in the primary due to unbalancing in three phase load.
2. It redistributes the flow of fault current.
3. Sometime it is required to supply an auxiliary load in different voltage level in addition to its main secondary load. This secondary load can be taken from tertiary winding of three winding transformer.
4. As the tertiary winding is connected in delta formation in 3 winding transformer, it assists in limitation of fault current in the event of a short circuit from line to neutral.

Regardless if I fully understand it or not...it is still fun to learn about.

[Bob Womack]

We've got a C414comb here that looks like this one:



Smooth is a good description. My last application was a harp.

Bob

[jim1960]

Bob has had his hands on ALL the toys.

Originally Posted by Bob Womack

We've got a C414comb here that looks like this one:



Smooth is a good description. My last application was a harp.

Bob

[DupleMeter]

Originally Posted by Bob Womack

We've got a C414comb here that looks like this one:



Smooth is a good description. My last application was a harp.

Bob

Yes. Smooth is a good description. Up through the B/ULS version they were such great all around mics. I just don’t like the newer ones. I know some see the capsule material change to be the death of that mic (during the EB period). For me it’s a poh-tae-toe pig-tah-toe thing. Kind of like Neumann moving from the M7 to the k47 in the u47 & m49. Both good in their own right.

That doesn’t look like the original connector.

[Bob Womack]

Originally Posted by DupleMeter

That doesn’t look like the original connector.

That's a pic from the Internet. Ours has the original connector. Old and decrepit. The company bought it new, around 1970, along with a handful of AKG C451B modular bodies and capsules. We've had those repaired more times that I can track. We've also got some RCA BK-5 ribbon mics with their original, decrepit, captive connectors. They still work. The shock mounts rubber on the stand adapters have crumbled so I am in the process of engineering new rubber compliances for them from stacks of rubber grommets. I might switch to rubber chemistry flask stoppers.


That's one on my desk in the machine room.

Fun with old stuff.

Bob