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Post by c0rtland on Sept 10, 2017 18:13:05 GMT -6
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Post by Johnkenn on Sept 10, 2017 18:21:08 GMT -6
Wtf is rhodium. And why?
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Post by donr on Sept 10, 2017 19:48:25 GMT -6
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ericn
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Balance Engineer
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Post by ericn on Sept 10, 2017 20:26:00 GMT -6
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Post by johneppstein on Sept 11, 2017 0:15:16 GMT -6
Jeez - another glitzxy product with an inflated price obviously aimed at marketing to dillettantes. Oh,. BOY! WHOOP-DE-DO!!!
Is the rhodium plating really supposed to make the audio any better?
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Post by johneppstein on Sept 11, 2017 0:19:00 GMT -6
Rhodium is a metal in the platinum family (IIRC), but somewhat less expensive, often used in jewelry and fancy personal accessories. It's frequently used to plate silver for tarnish resistance and to plate white gold to reduce wear, as it's rather hard and non-reactive. Why is the question. Maybe to attract doctors and lawyers? Or their girlfriends?
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Post by johneppstein on Sept 11, 2017 0:29:57 GMT -6
"Reisue" I wasn't aware that the U-87 was out of production. They're just making this "anniversary edition" shinier so they can sell the same mic for double the price to people with more money than brains.
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Post by m03 on Sept 11, 2017 1:25:23 GMT -6
Rhodium is a metal in the platinum family (IIRC), but somewhat less expensive Rhodium is actually more expensive than platinum, at least ever since I've been keeping track. If you happen to have a high-end mechanical watch (Rolex, Patek, Vacheron, Panerai, etc), and you're adventurous, take the back off and have a look at the bridges...those will be rhodium-plated. Corrosion-resistant and very expensive.
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Post by johneppstein on Sept 11, 2017 1:35:32 GMT -6
Rhodium is a metal in the platinum family (IIRC), but somewhat less expensive Rhodium is actually more expensive than platinum, at least ever since I've been keeping track. If you happen to have a high-end mechanical watch (Rolex, Patek, Vacheron, Panerai, etc), and you're adventurous, take the back off and have a look at the bridges...those will be rhodium-plated. Corrosion-resistant and very expensive. I'll take your word for it - haven't checked the spot metals prices for some time. The question still remains - is it going to make the mic sound any better? Double the price better? There are a number of mics I'd rather have at that price. I paid $1500 for my U87, including cleaning and replacement of one switch by Neumann. That seems about right to me. (Of course it wasn't brand new.) EDIT: If anyone cares, I just looked it up - at between $1,155 and $1,052 per troy oz. (30.5 gm,) rhodium is just slightly more expensive than platinum (which has slipped considerably since I last checked) which is $1,012. Gold is running in the neighborhood of $1,333. Several years ago rhodium was CONSIDERABLY more expensive but the price has plummetted, partly due to a lessened demand for catalytic converters in the new high tech cars.
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Post by m03 on Sept 11, 2017 2:10:44 GMT -6
The question still remains - is it going to make the mic sound any better? Double the price better? There are a number of mics I'd rather have at that price. I paid $1500 for my U87, including cleaning and replacement of one switch by Neumann. That seems about right to me. (Of course it wasn't brand new.) While true, neither of us is in the target market for such an item. It's an expensive showpiece, nothing more. We'll still be content with our used U87s
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Post by stormymondays on Sept 11, 2017 2:37:10 GMT -6
Well, it's worked for Leica, it might work for Neumann too!
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ericn
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Balance Engineer
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Post by ericn on Sept 11, 2017 7:14:14 GMT -6
Rhodium is a metal in the platinum family (IIRC), but somewhat less expensive, often used in jewelry and fancy personal accessories. It's frequently used to plate silver for tarnish resistance and to plate white gold to reduce wear, as it's rather hard and non-reactive. Why is the question. Maybe to attract doctors and lawyers? Or their girlfriends? I always laughed at the fact that eventually most of these special edition big buck mics are discounted to one of the large dealers at close or below regular edition costs because the manufacturer couldn't move them ! Lesson one about collecting 99% of what is made to be collectible isn't ! I'll admit to at one time owning a TLM103 monolith edition that I bought dirt cheap!
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Post by adamjbrass on Sept 11, 2017 7:38:34 GMT -6
singers want to feel important and sing into a shiny beer can.
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ericn
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Balance Engineer
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Post by ericn on Sept 11, 2017 8:12:11 GMT -6
Well, it's worked for Leica, it might work for Neumann too! Never did forgive my father for the M3 he left sitting on the bottom of some Northern Wisconsin lake!
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Post by johneppstein on Sept 11, 2017 15:04:57 GMT -6
Well, it's worked for Leica, it might work for Neumann too! Never did forgive my father for the M3 he left sitting on the bottom of some Northern Wisconsin lake! How did that happen?
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Post by Martin John Butler on Sept 11, 2017 15:24:30 GMT -6
Rhodium is a rare, silvery-white, hard, and chemically inert transition metal. It is a member of the platinum group. It is one of the rarest and most valuable precious metals.
Rhodium is a noble metal, resistant to corrosion, found in platinum or nickel ores together with the other members of the platinum group metals. Because of its rarity, rhodium is usually alloyed with platinum or palladium and applied in high-temperature and corrosion-resistive coatings. White gold is often plated with a thin rhodium layer to improve its appearance while sterling silver is often rhodium-plated for tarnish resistance.
This is called plain U87, I wonder if it's the same as the AI version, just rhodium-ized?
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ericn
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Post by ericn on Sept 11, 2017 15:24:47 GMT -6
Never did forgive my father for the M3 he left sitting on the bottom of some Northern Wisconsin lake! How did that happen? Fell off the deck of a custom catamaran with a cooler full of beer.
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Post by johneppstein on Sept 11, 2017 15:31:36 GMT -6
Fell off the deck of a custom catamaran with a cooler full of beer. Damn!
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Post by drbill on Sept 11, 2017 15:48:22 GMT -6
Doesn't surprise me. If there are people willing to spend $50k + on a nice paint job for their car, I'm sure that a couple thousand extra for a blingy Neumann is a no brainer.
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Post by ChaseUTB on Sept 12, 2017 14:25:58 GMT -6
Just why? 🤦♂️
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Post by johneppstein on Sept 12, 2017 20:38:08 GMT -6
Go tell Aunt Rhodium Go tell Aunt Rhodium Go tell Aunt Rhodium That the old grey goose is dead!
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Post by donr on Sept 12, 2017 22:40:20 GMT -6
Go tell Aunt Rhodium Go tell Aunt Rhodium Go tell Aunt Rhodium That the old grey goose is dead! John, I'm sure that flew over the head of most people here, but not me.
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ericn
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Post by ericn on Sept 13, 2017 7:03:06 GMT -6
Go tell Aunt Rhodium Go tell Aunt Rhodium Go tell Aunt Rhodium That the old grey goose is dead! John, I'm sure that flew over the head of most people here, but not me. Most of the time his posts make me feel old, this one flew over my head making me feel young😁
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Post by johneppstein on Sept 13, 2017 11:11:50 GMT -6
Go tell Aunt Rhodium Go tell Aunt Rhodium Go tell Aunt Rhodium That the old grey goose is dead! John, I'm sure that flew over the head of most people here, but not me. Thanks, Don! That was actualy one of the first 2 or 3 songs I learned on guitar.
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Post by donr on Sept 13, 2017 12:48:03 GMT -6
John, I'm sure that flew over the head of most people here, but not me. Thanks, Don! That was actualy one of the first 2 or 3 songs I learned on guitar. I thought it was cool that Bruce Springsteen recorded "Fox Went Out On A Chilly Night" a few years ago. Both that and "Go Tell Aunt Grody" were songs I learned in the first grade ages ago. Don't know if they still do that. Probably not.
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