Looking for opinions / reviews on niche microphone.

[The Flying Sloth]

Hey guys,
I'm well aware this is a shot in the dark given the low volume of sales for these mics but I was wondering if anyone had any experience with / thoughts on these unbranded Russian ribbon microphones.
A pair have shown up locally and I'm considering grabbing them, I'm aware of the fragility of ribbon mics and I've not been able to locate these models as OEM from ShuaiYin, Feilo or any of your other generic Chinese manufacturers.
There are very few sound files available on instruments other than drums (meaning there is a single video available which is using them as drum room mics) outside of those released by the manufacturer themselves and a single testimonial from a relatively unknown university professor.

Would appreciate any thoughts on or experiences with these mics.

[startrek03]

They seem to be sold by a store called HRRM in Tula, russia which is, according to the accompanying soundcloud account, owned by Andrew Nasarov.

Considering they're supposed to be handcrafted they're priced quite moderately, i think. It depends on their quality though. Maybe you can try them out, as they appeared locally, well at least if it's not half-of-a-continent-away-locally.

[The Flying Sloth]

1 hour ago, startrek03 said:

They seem to be sold by a store called HRRM in Tula, russia which is, according to the accompanying soundcloud account, owned by Andrew Nasarov.

Considering they're supposed to be handcrafted they're priced quite moderately, i think. It depends on their quality though. Maybe you can try them out, as they appeared locally, well at least if it's not half-of-a-continent-away-locally.

Unfortunately there are ongoing lockdowns in my country and when I say locally I mean about 4000 km away.

 

I have also found the store and associated SoundCloud presence but as I mentioned it's controlled by the manufacturer so I'm not sure I'd trust it too far. Absolutely agree the prices don't seem outrageous assuming they're not just repackaged Chinese OEMs.

[startrek03]

17 hours ago, The Flying Sloth said:

Unfortunately there are ongoing lockdowns in my country and when I say locally I mean about 4000 km away.

 

I have also found the store and associated SoundCloud presence but as I mentioned it's controlled by the manufacturer so I'm not sure I'd trust it too far. Absolutely agree the prices don't seem outrageous assuming they're not just repackaged Chinese OEMs.

Yeah, 4000km... Australia, I guess xD Where I live, I can reach every part of the country in under 1000km.

Considering, these mics are available in multiple stores which all hint at the same location, it appears rather plausible that they are not a repackaged chinese OEM. The price is also no that cheap. It's placed somewhat oddly in the mid range. Though, I might be comletely wrong.

[H713]

That eBay seller does have 30 day returns.

[The Flying Sloth]

2 hours ago, H713 said:

That eBay seller does have 30 day returns.

I'm in a jurisdiction where every seller has to accept my returns no matter what because of consumer protection laws anyway .
And I'm not purchasing directly from HRRM so their policies don't really apply
 

2 hours ago, startrek03 said:

Considering, these mics are available in multiple stores which all hint at the same location, it appears rather plausible that they are not a repackaged chinese OEM. The price is also no that cheap. It's placed somewhat oddly in the mid range. Though, I might be comletely wrong.

The price listed is for a pair, as a pair that price isn't much above what your standard NADY or Shuaiyin ribbon would cost and as for the price being an indicator of it not being a rebadge... Telefunken sold rebadged Apex 460s as boutique mics for over a grand, and no, they didn't make any (meaningful) modifications at all.

[startrek03]

https://www.ebay.de/itm/173337502887

Found something that's maybe interesting: another handmade russian ribbon microphone, similar form factor and similar-ish look.

Maybe something can be deduced from this. I don't know.

Well, and that also looks interesting: https://www.bumblebeepro.com/rm-5-diy-ribbon-mic-full-kit/. They also show this on their website: 

Edit: Yeah, just googled those parts... The full internals cost around 120 bucks or so. Looks like it's a rather profitable thing to do, if you have some scrap metal, metal working tools in the backyard and a bunch of time.

[startrek03]

Accidental answer to my previous post because i wanted to correct something and pressed the wrong button. whoops