Do NOT Buy DR Pro Mic Stands!!

[soupking]

Okay, Guitar Center only has a 30-day money back policy.

I'm not even going to get started on Guitar Center.

I ended up paying $120 for two DR Pro "Low-Profile" mic stands. They work great...

...Unless you pull them too far up, and then the pole comes clean out and you can't put them back in! My day of recording is f&^*d now thanks to this piece of s^&*.

Last year, I tried to fix the first one. It broke in the process. Now I can just through this one out as well.

dfegadon DR mic stands

ExTREMEly pissed off right now.

Do not buy DR mic stands. They are professional crap!tutt

I'm going to go break something now.

Grrrrr.

[Musiclab]

I have one, pulled it out and stuck it back in

[soupking]

The one I stuck back in was stuck and wouldn't move.

Now I'm faced with this again.

That's comforting that it's possible though.

I'm never buying their stands again though. You'd think for $60 they'd have a device that keeps it from sliding out. Hell, my stage stands have something to keep the stand from coming apart.

[stump]

Originally Posted by soupking

The one I stuck back in was stuck and wouldn't move.

Now I'm faced with this again.

That's comforting that it's possible though.

I'm never buying their stands again though. You'd think for $60 they'd have a device that keeps it from sliding out. Hell, my stage stands have something to keep the stand from coming apart.

That sucks man...I guess i have had better luck...I have had mine for
5 years no issues

[soupking]

Thanks man, "My tech" might be able to fix it. He fixes anything. He practically makes lights go on by breathing on them.

The last one I tried to re-set inside the stand just jammed up.

Whatever you do, don't pull up too hard on 'em.

Good luck,
-soupking

[instrumental]

I've successfully repaired about ten of those stands....
My interns pull em up too far all the time.
They are good and strong, and less $$ than K&M and Atlas.

[flail19]

Originally Posted by soupking

Now I can just through this one out as well.

tutt

[soupking]

They are good and strong, and less $$ than K&M and Atlas.

Maybe so, but $60 for a stand that has put me through this much hassle is too much. I bought a different stand that can hold invariably the same weight and it cost me half as much $ and didn't usher a groan post.

I like my gear to work for me, not the reverse. 5 minutes here, 5 minutes there. Next thing I know it's 2 hours. If every cable and clip I had behaved the same way I'd have to buy more duct tape.

I'm just lucky I have a tech roommate that's not as ******** as I am.

[bjornson]

I have 80 or so DR's and love them.
My 7 year old can reassemble them.
Chill out and go slowly.
Zen and the art of mic stands.

[VWYF11]

I only have one of the DR pro low profile stands, but I love it. I've never taken one apart though so I can't say how hard they are to put back together.

[soupking]

Yeah, I have to admit fault on my part with this one. This thread is overboard. My bad.

They're alright. They're cheaply made though. I shouldn't be able to pull one half of the stand out of the other one then just innately know how to disassemble and put them back together again. They should catch.

They aren't my preferred choice for that reason, and because for small studio use the legs are too wide. I like the heavy, small-footed stands better for micing in low and small areas.

For $60...Not really worth it IMO. But I think all stands, sandbags and the like are over-priced anyway.

It's an f'n stand, same as the $20 stage stands but shorter.

[joelpatterson]

Nah, you were on the right track... I had the same thing happen, I pulled one clean apart with my bare hands. Got it back together and duct taped it "closed" and it's now a secondary or tertiary stand that hangs around the drum booth in case some need for a sort-of low stand arises... and there's a slight feeling of excess or luxury to have an extra stand, primed for a certain, odd task...

[dstroyallmnstrs]

Maybe I'm just loopy but seems to me that you could go to GC and have someone "demo" how these work... "oh so it works like this? oops! Sorry man. What *other* mic stands do you have? You know that _don't_ break in less than five minutes."

[Chaellus]

nothing like those thick 70's metal mic stands....you couldnt damage em if you tried

[NickHiebert]

I'm glad we don't have Guitar Center up here in Winnipeg - Long & McQuade is our local music store of choice, I managed to get 6 solid steel Yorkville MS-305 telescopic boom stands for around $150 because they screwed me over and accidentally sold me a bunch of crumby Apex ones in a random sealed box. Almost half off, so I'm not complaining, although I haven't found a practical use for the telescopic feature yet, seems a bit gimmicky.

[Royal Music FND]

That's a bummer about your problems.

I've had one for over a year and I take it apart and put it back together while loading it down with the Real Traps Portable Vocal Booth and it's been great so far (knock on wood).

I do believe that bjornson has it right about using mic stands slowly. It absolutely increases the lifespan of any mic stand.

[bobsandifer]

Spend the extra $$$ and buy atlas. I have some that I bought over 25 years ago and they still look good and work flawlessly. Yea I paid extra but 25 years of use ! They were worth the money.

[tapermark2006]

I love my dr pro's. Best stand out there IMO. And I've tried a lot of them. Never had one issue with the Dr's. ymmv

[tombak]

Originally Posted by rsandifer

Spend the extra $$$ and buy atlas. I have some that I bought over 25 years ago and they still look good and work flawlessly. Yea I paid extra but 25 years of use ! They were worth the money.

+1 on Atlas though I have the Atlas/K&M hybrid.

Atlas round base stands with K&M booms.

Atlas stands do not cost that much more than the DP throw.

B&H Photo has fair prices:
atlas | B&H Photo Video

[christopher84]

I have a DR Pro short boom stand that I just pulled apart and put back together good as new. Here's how to fix it if you pull the top out: unscrew the boom and the knurled collar, then insert top tube up the flared bottom of the tripod tube, replace knurled collar and boom mechanism. Voila! fixed.

[Prime Tire]

It's definitely a pain in the ass to get the pole back in, but after a while of using them you figure out how far you can extent it without the pole coming out and then it's just second nature to stop at a certain point.
Other than all that, I've beat the hell out of my DR Pros for at least 4-5 years and they've worked good as new every single time I've used them. I can't complain.

[metallicfallout]

+1 ^

I am working in a live sound venue that has a whole plethora of different brand mic stands. I am having to set up and tear down mic stands in a very quick amount of time every day.

The DR pro is the only solid one that I don't have any complaints about.

Yeah, I pulled the pole out once. Then I found if you slowly extend the upright pole and it starts to wobble (you no longer are sitting on the pole, but the plastic piece that holds it in), you lower it a touch and move on.

C'mon, after all, I am just some knuckle dragging live sound engineer . I am sure you can figure it out.

• K&M's/Byerdynamic telescoping knobs tear your fingers apart when someone wrenches down on them.
• Ultimate Support has some alright stuff, when it breaks, it can't be salvaged (you think your pissed about what you spent on your DR Pro)
• $40 stands (On Stage, Musician's Gear, etc.) have their flaws, almost always in the clutch.

DR seemed to address these flaws and make a stand that not only ergonomically makes sense, but also stands the test of time.

BTW, save yourself the embarrassment and inconvenience later, never use duct tape in the audio world. We are professionals.

[Teddy Ray]

ive never had any problem with any mic stand. lucky I reckon.

[DaveE]

Yeah I got one of those DR baby stands free with a D6 purchase on Musician's Friend and I did the same thing the first time I went to use it. One of the plastic teeth got dinged but it went back in ok and still works. It is a great mid-sized stand. I always have to remind myself not to extend it too far. I have a larger one too that is decent.

[skyshooter]

Originally Posted by Chaellus

nothing like those thick 70's metal mic stands....you couldnt damage em if you tried

No kidding I was going to a gig at school with some friends and got cut off by a moron running a stop sign I slammed the breaks on my 62 impala causing physics to go into effect, the 2 mic stands probably late 70's model, 10 lb+ weighted base, thick chrome tube, kept moving forward at the speed of my car before the brakes were applied, luckily they did not punch through me or my friends craniums, they did punch 2 nice round holes through the windshield. The stand base caught the back seats and kept them from taking the whole windshield out! stike

Note to self, always secure loose heavy metal objects in the back seat.

[WVUtubadude]

Any mic stand works perfectly if you take care of it. I have On-Stage stands that work fine as long as I don't bang them around...or adjust them, or move them, or breathe on them...or even look at them

[toneguru]

I bought an AKG boom stand and it broke on me...

That is it broke on me after 20 years and about a thousand gigs...

Then I went and bought another AKG boom stand.

Buying cheaper mic stands is actually not saving any money at all. Buying expensive high quality German made stands will save you money in the long run and more importantly it will save you your time and sanity.