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Post by tkaitkai on Jan 26, 2021 20:17:17 GMT -6
For those of you who've done this yourselves — any general tips or advice? I've been looking into it for months, and from all the stuff I've saved/bookmarked, I think I have a fairly good understanding of how it's done. Still, I figured I'd consult you guys. From what I've gathered, it seems like the best approach is to use distilled water and a very soft sable hair brush to remove dirt and grime (making sure to apply NO pressure whatsoever with the brush), keeping the capsule tilted to allow water to flow downwards and then using blotting paper to soak up the excess. No isopropyl alcohol. Below is some info I've found from scouring the web. I'd love to get your thoughts on these. First, cleaning instructions from Neumann: LINKNext, here's Dan Alexander cleaning an M49. He doesn't use a brush at all — just runs distilled water over the capsule for a few minutes, and air dries next to a warm lamp. Not sure if this is advisable? Here's a guy cleaning an SM69. Seems to follow Neumann guidelines exactly: |
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ericn
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Post by ericn on Jan 26, 2021 20:36:55 GMT -6
For those of you who've done this yourselves — any general tips or advice? I've been looking into it for months, and from all the stuff I've saved/bookmarked, I think I have a fairly good understanding of how it's done. Still, I figured I'd consult you guys. From what I've gathered, it seems like the best approach is to use distilled water and a very soft sable hair brush to remove dirt and grime (making sure to apply NO pressure whatsoever with the brush), keeping the capsule tilted to allow water to flow downwards and then using blotting paper to soak up the excess. No isopropyl alcohol. Below is some info I've found from scouring the web. I'd love to get your thoughts on these. First, cleaning instructions from Neumann: LINKNext, here's Dan Alexander cleaning an M49. He doesn't use a brush at all — just runs distilled water over the capsule for a few minutes, and air dries next to a warm lamp. Not sure if this is advisable? Here's a guy cleaning an SM69. Seems to follow Neumann guidelines exactly: This one of those situations where I know I could probably do it, but damn is it worth every penny to have somebody to blame / sue if they screw up! |
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Post by tkaitkai on Jan 26, 2021 20:49:54 GMT -6
This one of those situations where I know I could probably do it, but damn is it worth every penny to have somebody to blame / sue if they screw up! I totally hear ya; I was pretty reluctant to even look into it, but seeing a respected name like Dan Alexander basically just run distilled water over an M49 made me think it might not be too crazy (provided it's done gently). |
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Post by ChaseUTB on Jan 27, 2021 1:53:20 GMT -6
Never knew the M in M49 stood for marine  Dunking electronics in water never seemed to be a good idea to me. I’m sure one of very talented capsule/ mic makers here can give great advice! |
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Post by kcatthedog on Jan 27, 2021 4:48:37 GMT -6
One word: don't ! It's amazingly disappointing how easily the thin skin can be damaged,voice of experience here, trashed one side of a brand new Thiersh cap a few years ago: ca- ching !  |
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Post by timcampbell on Jan 27, 2021 6:57:36 GMT -6
I am sorry to say but Dan Alexanders video here may be the worst treatment I have ever seen of a capsule. He may have been lucky to inadvertantly not destroy any capsules this way but it is only out of sheer luck.
Neumann capsules have a hole in the center which is not water tight as well as M7 capsules are actually perforated at the edge. Treating them in this way would certainly result in water getting behind the membrane and taking contamination with it and possibly permanently gluing the membrane to the backplate.
A capsule should only ever be cleaned if debris is interfering with their operation which would take considerable crud.
Send a pic to someone qualified and ask them how to proceed.
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Post by Ward on Jan 27, 2021 7:20:27 GMT -6
Don't worry, you can use a propane torch to dry out the water afterwards!
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH
breathe
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH
breathe
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH
breathe
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH
breathe
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Post by kcatthedog on Jan 27, 2021 7:33:16 GMT -6
The funny thing about this is, what data supports the idea that minor debris actually impedes the skin from functioning properly?
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Post by tkaitkai on Jan 27, 2021 11:57:22 GMT -6
I am sorry to say but Dan Alexanders video here may be the worst treatment I have ever seen of a capsule. He may have been lucky to inadvertantly not destroy any capsules this way but it is only out of sheer luck. Neumann capsules have a hole in the center which is not water tight as well as M7 capsules are actually perforated at the edge. Treating them in this way would certainly result in water getting behind the membrane and taking contamination with it and possibly permanently gluing the membrane to the backplate. A capsule should only ever be cleaned if debris is interfering with their operation which would take considerable crud. Send a pic to someone qualified and ask them how to proceed. Hey Tim, was hoping you'd weigh in. Thanks for the info. It was definitely a little heartbreaking to see an M49 handled like that, but I'm no mic tech, and I know Dan is pretty well-regarded, so I figured he must know something I don't... but yeah, after all the reading I've done, I can't say I've seen anyone else advise doing that. Good to know. |
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ericn
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Post by ericn on Jan 27, 2021 12:08:36 GMT -6
Don't worry, you can use a propane torch to dry out the water afterwards! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH breathe HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH breathe HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH breathe HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH breathe And the owner of this website asked me to add the Avatar photo in the upper left hand corner of this post is why we don’t do this😎 |
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Post by plinker on Jan 27, 2021 12:29:18 GMT -6
I hold my mics capsule-down in the toilet and flush. Works every time.
Be sure the bowl is empty first, otherwise your tracks will sound like shit!
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Post by plinker on Jan 27, 2021 12:36:59 GMT -6
I am sorry to say but Dan Alexanders video here may be the worst treatment I have ever seen of a capsule. He may have been lucky to inadvertantly not destroy any capsules this way but it is only out of sheer luck. Neumann capsules have a hole in the center which is not water tight as well as M7 capsules are actually perforated at the edge. Treating them in this way would certainly result in water getting behind the membrane and taking contamination with it and possibly permanently gluing the membrane to the backplate. A capsule should only ever be cleaned if debris is interfering with their operation which would take considerable crud. Send a pic to someone qualified and ask them how to proceed. Klaus H. gave similar advise on his forum too. |
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Post by tkaitkai on Jan 27, 2021 12:58:12 GMT -6
Klaus H. gave similar advise on his forum too. I've read through a lot of posts there as well. It seems like Klaus wasn't too fond of Neumann's cleaning procedure at one point (not sure if that's changed at all). I also have that super old Josephson text file that's been floating around forever... looks to be a little more in line with Neumann's original recommendations, but it does suggest occasional use of isopropyl alcohol or xylene for tough jobs. |
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ericn
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Post by ericn on Jan 27, 2021 13:46:41 GMT -6
I hold my mics capsule-down in the toilet and flush. Works every time. Be sure the bowl is empty first, otherwise your tracks will sound like shit! I thought you said it was $100 bills you were flushing down the toilet, wait re-read same thing.😁 |
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Post by plinker on Jan 27, 2021 14:40:09 GMT -6
I hold my mics capsule-down in the toilet and flush. Works every time. Be sure the bowl is empty first, otherwise your tracks will sound like shit! I thought you said it was $100 bills you were flushing down the toilet, wait re-read same thing.😁 Hah! It seriously hurt my insides to watch him casually pour a bunch of water over those beautiful/expensive capsules from a gravy strainer!
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ericn
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Post by ericn on Jan 27, 2021 14:52:29 GMT -6
I thought you said it was $100 bills you were flushing down the toilet, wait re-read same thing.😁 Hah! It seriously hurt my insides to watch him casually pour a bunch of water over those beautiful/expensive capsules from a gravy strainer!
Remember back in the day Dan would pay SM58 prices in Europe for those mics. |
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Post by EmRR on Jan 27, 2021 15:09:53 GMT -6
Dunking electronics in water never seemed to be a good idea to me. It's still best advice if you say, spill a beer in it first. Water = better than. Purified water best. Don't ever let any sort of beverage dry inside something, it's already wet, wash it out. I don't understand how I don't have it bookmarked, there's a great cleaning reference for audio gear that TapeOp put together after one of the major hurricane floods, I think NY/NJ. Your Massive Passive is full of salt water and sand sorta biz. Some surprising 'keep it submerged and wet until you can deal with it' options for some things. There's also a site with pics of radio broadcast engineers with a 1kW broadcast transmitter out in the driveway, hitting it with a garden hose to clean it. But yeah, you don't want liquids in places it won't come out of again! Mic capsule internals, open frame audio and power transformers, etc. |
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Post by plinker on Jan 27, 2021 15:37:31 GMT -6
Hah! It seriously hurt my insides to watch him casually pour a bunch of water over those beautiful/expensive capsules from a gravy strainer!
Remember back in the day Dan would pay SM58 prices in Europe for those mics. True dat!
I just got a really good deal on prime rib -- I think I'll boil it!
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Post by jcoutu1 on Jan 27, 2021 17:04:11 GMT -6
Remember back in the day Dan would pay SM58 prices in Europe for those mics. True dat!
I just got a really good deal on prime rib -- I think I'll boil it!
I love a good milk steak. |
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Post by cowboycoalminer on Jan 27, 2021 17:14:58 GMT -6
I thought it noteworthy that in the second video, the curve moved only slightly, (mostly inching toward the bright side). In other words, if you like the way your mic sounds, I.E. rolled off, don't fuck with it. Hard to get a mic to that "burnt" sound. Takes years. That's what people pay thousands for.
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Post by Guitar on Jan 27, 2021 21:09:15 GMT -6
Yikes, thanks for the tips timcampbell. I guess the second video looks about right then? Just tiny controlled amounts of water with a delicate brush and drying at the edge?
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Post by drumsound on Jan 27, 2021 21:46:44 GMT -6
This one of those situations where I know I could probably do it, but damn is it worth every penny to have somebody to blame / sue if they screw up! I'm witchu, Eric! This one of those situations where I know I could probably do it, but damn is it worth every penny to have somebody to blame / sue if they screw up! I totally hear ya; I was pretty reluctant to even look into it, but seeing a respected name like Dan Alexander basically just run distilled water over an M49 made me think it might not be too crazy (provided it's done gently). I'm not sure Dan Alexander should be (or is) that respected... |
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Post by tkaitkai on Jan 27, 2021 22:44:47 GMT -6
I'm not sure Dan Alexander should be (or is) that respected... I'm not super familiar with Dan to be honest. I know some folks here speak pretty highly of his mic pres, and I've seen him praised many times on GS. I do remember coming across some complaints on GS, but they were from like 2003 or so. That's about the extent of my knowledge. |
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Post by drumsound on Jan 28, 2021 8:57:17 GMT -6
I'm not sure Dan Alexander should be (or is) that respected... I'm not super familiar with Dan to be honest. I know some folks here speak pretty highly of his mic pres, and I've seen him praised many times on GS. I do remember coming across some complaints on GS, but they were from like 2003 or so. That's about the extent of my knowledge. I remember, back in the day, not many people were getting products that were 'as described' from him. I had a tech (who's long since flaked) you told me he'd fixed a number of things people bought from him in supposed 'mint condition.' |
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Post by Omicron9 on Jan 28, 2021 10:38:12 GMT -6
Eeek. Is it just me, or was that Dan Alexander video painful to watch? Oh the squirming.
-09
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