[PStamler]

Hi folks:

The AKG D-224 microphone, with separate capsules for high and low frequency, was a wondrous good mic, but it was notorioudly fragile, and needed to be handled with kid gloves. As I recall, the same fragility problem afflicted the mic's two siblings, the D-202 and D-222.

Any of you folks know what made it (them) so fragile, and if that problem could perhaps be corrected by the manufacturer without changing the sound?

Peace,
Paul

[Mike Rivers[_2_]]

On 7/30/2016 9:48 PM, PStamler wrote:

The AKG D-224 microphone, with separate capsules for high and low
frequency, was a wondrous good mic, but it was notorioudly fragile,
and needed to be handled with kid gloves. As I recall, the same
fragility problem afflicted the mic's two siblings, the D-202 and
D-222.

Gosh, it's been so long. I have two D-224s. I bought them when I was
using a Sony TCD-5 cassette recorder for field recording and they were
the next best thing I could find to condenser mics since the recorder
didn't provide phantom power. I use them every now and then and as far
as I know, they still work. But I've always handled them carefully.

I hadn't heard about a fragility problem, and in its day, used to see
D-202s on stage now and then. Maybe they all broke. I recall having to
clean the low cut filter switch a time or two, and that's kind of
fiddly. I figure that if I ever have to do it again, I'll just bypass
it. The windscreens (it needed two, one with the hole straight through
so it could slip over the rear port) turned to sludge long ago, and
they're really needed for outdoor work. So maybe keeping the mics
indoors has helped mine continue to work.


--

For a good time, call http://mikeriversaudio.wordpress.com

[Scott Dorsey]

PStamler wrote:

The AKG D-224 microphone, with separate capsules for high and low frequency=
, was a wondrous good mic, but it was notorioudly fragile, and needed to be=
handled with kid gloves. As I recall, the same fragility problem afflicted=
the mic's two siblings, the D-202 and D-222.

I have some of the D-224s and some D202s, and they all have something really
weird going on in the upper midrange. They are occasionally useful but as
you note they are fragile and I think we have far more neutral alternatives.

Any of you folks know what made it (them) so fragile, and if that problem c=
ould perhaps be corrected by the manufacturer without changing the sound?=

I don't have any idea, but Richard Land at Land Audio Services in
Hendersonville, TN can. He's the expert on these things and worked for
AKG mike service for decades until they decided to stop supporting
older dynamics.
--scott

--
"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."

[Phil Allison[_4_]]

PStamler wrote:


The AKG D-224 microphone, with separate capsules for high and low
frequency, was a wondrous good mic, but it was notorioudly fragile,
and needed to be handled with kid gloves. As I recall, the same
fragility problem afflicted the mic's two siblings, the D-202 and D-222.


** The 224 was a "studio" mic - not made for the hard life experienced with sound or even location recording. Inside there is a lot of stuff, including two rather small capsules. So far more to go wrong and very fine wire used on the 200 ohm diaphragms, so the tiniest corrosion spot results in an open circuit.

The 202 was made for live sound but strangely used a plastic handle fitted with heavy metal parts at each end - so was not fond of being dropped numerous times.
It also has lots of bits inside and very fine wires plus the dual capsule is shock mounted and that leads to internal connecting wires fracturing eventually.


Any of you folks know what made it (them) so fragile,



** See above - there were multiple issues.

The MD441 had similar problems, maybe worse.

FYI:

The SM58 has got to be the most rugged and long lived mic ever made - so what makes the difference ?

Just two bits, a capsule and a matching transformer inside - no switches, coils or other fragile junk. The diaphragm uses relatively THICK wire ( the impedance is about 20 ohms ) hence the transformer which is glued firmly inside the very solid metal handle.


.... Phil

[Bill[_20_]]

In message , Scott Dorsey
writes
I have some of the D-224s and some D202s, and they all have something
really weird going on in the upper midrange. They are occasionally
useful but as you note they are fragile and I think we have far more
neutral alternatives.

I used many, many D202's in studios and outside in sun, wind and rain. I
didn't find them particularly fragile. The faults I remember were that
occasionally the whole sintered end came off cleanly where it joined the
main body, and the bass cut switches sometimes got mechanically battered
and loose or seized solid.

I also have a pair of D200's, the rare cheaper version of the 202. More
robust, but they have a phase problem. I only once used them, many
decades back, as a sort of crossed pair into a mono Nagra to record a
duo in a folk club. Red Rector, the mandolin player was wonderful,
sadly, the recording was not.
--
Bill

[Scott Dorsey]

Bill wrote:
In message , Scott Dorsey
writes
I have some of the D-224s and some D202s, and they all have something
really weird going on in the upper midrange. They are occasionally
useful but as you note they are fragile and I think we have far more
neutral alternatives.

I used many, many D202's in studios and outside in sun, wind and rain. I
didn't find them particularly fragile. The faults I remember were that
occasionally the whole sintered end came off cleanly where it joined the
main body, and the bass cut switches sometimes got mechanically battered
and loose or seized solid.

I have a few D202s still in the kit, and they all sound different. They used
to sound the same, but then they got dropped and the low end changed. I don't
know if the issue is the voice coil scraping against the gap or what, but
none of them likely sound the way they are supposed to.

I also have a pair of D200's, the rare cheaper version of the 202. More
robust, but they have a phase problem. I only once used them, many
decades back, as a sort of crossed pair into a mono Nagra to record a
duo in a folk club. Red Rector, the mandolin player was wonderful,
sadly, the recording was not.

I honestly don't think any of these microphones are really much good.
The sintered bronze thing just seems so cool and so ingenious but really
it doesn't sound good. I got them because they were well-regarded at the
time and I didn't really know how to listen back then.
--scott

--
"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."