Sterling SP50/S30

[bezmotivnik]

Certainly what it looks like to me. These microphones are apparently not even sold separately. $50 for the pair might be a deal, but I'm not buying blind. I already have too many marginal microphones.

[saxmeister]

I picked up the special on MF's Stupid Deal of the Day the other day. I haven't gotten them yet, but I will let you know once I have them.

The specs aren't very clear on these mics and nothing too detailed was listed on either MF or Sterling Audio's site. These are probably simply okay mics, but I thought they might be good as either a giveaway to up my studio karma or as mod fodder.

The SP 50 looks like a medium diaphragm, much like the MXL 990's smaller diaphragm capsule in a full sized mic body. I may have been better off going for the ST 51/ST 31 combo for $199.99 US, especially considering the bump in quality and the inclusion of shock mounts.

I should have them by this weekend and can give a little test and maybe some pics to inform everyone else. I knew I was taking a chance on these, but for the money... why not?!?!?

[saxmeister]

Okay, I got the mics in the mail yesterday, but haven't had an opportunity to play with them yet. The documentation was sparse but better than what was listed online. I actually got some info about the mics that I didn't see on MF or Sterling's site.

It appears that both mics use the same 3/4", 6 micron gold evaporated Mylar capsule. The S50 just adds a big ring around it to make it look bigger (much like the MXL 990/991 recording pack). Both are Class A FET, Cardioid pattern, frequency response of 30Hz-18kHz, Max SPL of 140dB, Sensitivity of 5mV/Pa, and A-weighted noise level of 28dB SPL. Both are transformerless and have an output impedance of 200 ohms. But, the S50 has a load impedance of >500 ohm while the S30 has a load impedance of >1000 ohm.

The frequency response charts look almost identical, which isn't surprising given the same capsule and probably very similar preamps. But, if the things are as flat as the chart leads us to believe, they might be useful.

I will have to plug these in this weekend and give them a go, but I'm not expecting miracles for a combo of $49 US. As long as they sound decent I will keep them around as additional mics, but given the stated noise level of these mics (which no signal-to-noise ratio was given) I'm not expecting something I can use on quiet instruments.

Full report later...

[saxmeister]

Okay, now for some photos...

The box

The carrying case

The mics in wrapping

Out of the wrapping and out of the case

[saxmeister]

Front of the circuit board of the SP50

Back of the circuit board of the SP50

A comparison of the Avantone CK-1 to the Sterling Audio S30. The Sterling's capsule does screw out for interchangeability, but the capsules on the CK-1 and S30 aren't interchangeable due to the placement of the screw threads.

A closeup showing the SP50's 3/4" small diaphragm capsule with the ring

[saxmeister]

A little (very) unscientific comparison... Not the best test in the world, but being as late as it is, this is the best I could produce for now. I pulled out my tenor ukelele and strummed a little and then shook a tambourine a few times in front of the mics. I recorded samples of both with the Sterling Audio S30 along with an Avantone CK-1 for comparison. I also did a quick reading for comparison, just for something different. Small diaphragms aren't the realm of voiceovers, but this should give you a better idea.

Tenor Ukelele
mictest_uke_sterling.wav
mictest_uke_avantone.wav

Tambourine
mictest_tambourine_sterling.wav
mictest_tambourine_avantone.wav

Voiceover
mictest_voiceover_sterling.wav
mictest_voiceover_avantone.wav

[knucklepro]

Well I bought these...my first microphone purchase, really. Hey, it's a start. I did a voice test with both. I'll report back with more of my findings.

[Robertbfw]

I just picked up this set from GC for $69. I'm hoping they are decent. I lost a nice Sennheiser e9xx in a recent move and just need something to buy me some time.

[J Jasperson]

I just bought these last month because they were super cheap ($49 at MF). I just needed some mics to be able to leave on stands to do some quick percussion idea grabbing. They sound like an average "cheap" mic and have the typical boost in the high frequencies for what some might call "air" which I call harsh tin. I'm not bashing the mic, I'm just saying don't expect magic. I also tried the pencil (SP30) on snare bottom looking for a different flavor. Again, not magic but it worked. For clarification, they both have the exact same capsules and exact same specs. They are the same mic in two different housings.