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You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.You should upgrade or use an alternative browser. CM-9887 alternatives?

• Thread starter Thread starter pixeltarian
• Start date Start date Nov 10, 2008

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pixeltarian

Active member

Joined Sep 12, 2008 Messages 39 Location Minneapolis I'm building the rickshaw ribbon mic and was wondering if anyone knew of a good transformer that will work in place of a 9887. the instructions suggest this on the cheap end; http://www.edcorusa.com/products/transformers/rmx/rmx1.html the 9887 isn't easy to it single quantities is it? otherwise I saw the sowter for sale on prodigy: http://www.groupdiy.com/detail.aspx?ID=334 I don't know if I want to upgrade from $23 to $83 though that's a bit out of my budget. I was assuming also, does anyone know if better DIY ribbon instructions, or source for parts? the rickshaw kit sends you to like 6 different sources for parts. it's going to cost well over the advertised 100 bucks if I do it that way. the brass tube alone is like 35 bucks and the metal fabric wire only comes in large quantities that costs like 30 bucks. the brass cap is 15 bucks. so we're already at 80 bucks with no actual mic components yet. if I add shipping costs this will be double the mentioned price of $100. not that I'm cheap, I'm just poor and if you're going to advert something costing a certain amount to build, I would expect the price to be accurate, especially when you're selling the plans. anyway if you know of a good beginner diy ribbon tutorial/walkthrough/instructions I would appreciate a like very much! thanks, ~ Jeffrey M

Marik

Well-known member

Joined Jun 3, 2004 Messages 1,776 Location Salt Lake City [quote author="pixeltarian"]I'm building the rickshaw ribbon mic and was wondering if anyone knew of a good transformer that will work in place of a 9887. I can't seem to remember the name of that Australian company. is it sowter? do they have a good alternative? also, does anyone know if better DIY ribbon instructions? the rickshaw kit sends you to like 6 different sources for parts. it's going to cost well over the advertised 100 bucks if I do it that way. the brass tube alone is like 35 bucks and the metal fabric wire only comes in large quantities that costs like 30 bucks. the brass cap is 15 bucks. so we're already at 89 bucks with no actual mic components yet. anyway if you know of a good beginner diy ribbon tutorial/walkthrough/instructions I would appreciate a like very much! thanks, [/quote] Mmmm... just go to your local Home Depot and in plumbing section you'll find a copper tubing and a coupling, which miraculously has the same inner diameter as XLR insert. Or else, you can use for the body something like... pencil holder, for example :shock: :razz: I will post pics of some other options. If you are making ribbon out of leaf then it will be quite hard to get a suitable transformer, as there are no commercially available, which would be real good match with leaf higher source resistance. Since Cinemag has lower ratio it might be better suited than others, but its low pri inductance will result in early bass roll off. Depending on your use it might be a good thing. Best, M

pixeltarian

Active member

Joined Sep 12, 2008 Messages 39 Location Minneapolis thanks a lot for the reply. Things like this just make me want to buy tons of transformers and sell them online. why is no one doing this? I know about group buys, but you'd think someone would get so sick of it that they'd want to start distributing parts like these. my girlfriend to an audio (per my suggestion) and her final project is to make something related to audio. she thought it would be cool to make this mic and give it to me to use in my home studio, but now I'm not so sure if I should let her take this on. I was going to help, but this build sounds like it might take a while (am I wrong?). needs to be complete in december. besides suggestions on the ribbon (which I'm still planning on doing), can you guys think of a good non-kit project to do for a beginner that would still be useful? thanks so much.

Davo

Well-known member

Joined Feb 13, 2006 Messages 504 Location LA CA Got a couple sites for you to check out... 2" brass end cap http://www.kegworks.com/product.php?productid=20941&cat=272&page=1 bronze wire mesh http://www.caslerhardware.com/shop/bronzewindowscreen/ cheapest I've been able to find for this stuff.... I've been able to get 2" brass tubing for cheap at a local metal shop, so might want to see if they've got something like that around you... home depot usually comes up short for me with a lot of stuff, but you never know dave E

edanderson

Well-known member

Joined Jun 4, 2004 Messages 637 Location atlanta [quote author="pixeltarian"]thanks a lot for the reply. Things like this just make me want to buy tons of transformers and sell them online. why is no one doing this? I know about group buys, but you'd think someone would get so sick of it that they'd want to start distributing parts like these. [/quote] i have been doing this for a few years here on this very forum. the reason i don't do it more (and others don't do it much at all) is that to get a good price, you do have to buy "tons" and at ~$30 each, it starts to add up quickly. not to mention the work involved in shipping out hundreds of transformers. fortunately for me, mike at hairball audio is taking care of that part now, so hopefully i'll be able to make some more varieties available. not too many adventurous souls out there making ribbons, however. if you are monetarily poor but rich in time, do some reading on this forum, esp. marik's projects. some research and a little imagination will lead you to a solution under $100, esp. if you shop locally. it is important to realize - DIY IS NOT THE CHEAPEST OPTION. i'm certain that without too much effort you could buy a used chinese ribbon for well under $100. but at a certain point you get what you pay for, either in money or effort. good luck! ed Post reply Insert quotes…

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