The c12+ PE
Our c12+ Premium Edition
In the beginning...
The original AKG c12 used a magic capsule that we are told needs spells and incantations to reproduce. We don't have that magic but...
AKG original c12 capsule
... we are told Tim Campbell knows all the magic!
Tim Campbell's CT12 capsule
"Hello Brian,
My name is ****** and I am friends with ******* ******-*******.
I would like to order a C12+ like he has had done by you. I have a Capsule and a T14 transformer from Tab Funkenwerk which I will send with the mic. I borrowed his mic and it is ridiculously good. I used to work at a super high end studio (Hit Factory when it was open in NYC) and heard just about every vintage mic...this sounded as good as my favorites. C12 and a 241.
Please let me know how to proceed. ''
Thank you in advance ******"
Actual Customer request
After a year of wondering we finally got around to trying out a CT12 capsule from Tim Campbell. I have read that Tim's capsule is one the finest reproductions of the original AKG capsule that is available.
The original c12 capsule was used in such legendary microphones as the c12, the c24 and ELA m251. Truly a testimony to the quality of the capsule design itself.
Now make no mistake; we get VERY good results using John Peluso's CEK12 capsule in our Standard microphones. They sound excellent.
But it was a very pleasant surprise to find that the CT12 capsule was quite different and gives you a another "colour" to add to the microphone sound palette.
This capsule is not for the casual recordist. It costs more than others. Heck it costs more that an entire upgrade for our Basic line of upgrades!
But the CT12 capsule is more or less hand made. And the sound is... well, Exceptional.
Response Camparisons
Peluso CEK12 Response
The Peluso capsule above is plotted from 60Hz to 15KHz. It shows some a very typical AKG style capsule response. The small lift at 4Khz is a hint of the response of the Chinese 32mm capsules you can find in a multitude of microphones, but it is a smaller lift.
But the upper end at 10Khz is actually a little higher than you might see with the 32mm capsule. In fact we use a tiny equalizer cap to tame it in our m251 upgrade.
The CT12 capsule however is a different animal.
You can see that it has the lower mid-range dip that we expect from a "12" type capsule. but above 2KHz we can see the rise of 5 dB and even a little more at 10Khz. It looks like it would be way too much, but surprise! It is not. This could be because the response returns to 0 at exactly 15Khz, just like the original C12 capsule did and there is a built in anti-sibilance notch centred at 8Khz.
Too balance up all that high end notice that the bottom end has a gentle lift as well.
The overall effect of this response is to create a microphone that is bright but not brash. It's a smooooooooth brightness. Very pleasant on string instruments like banjo, guitar, cellos, double bass and some violins.
Honestly nothing sounds bad with this capsule. It's always great and sometimes amazing.
What does the “+” Stand For in c12+?
Unlike the original c12 the FAR c12+ can be outfitted with Tube in the legendary ECC88 family (6DJ8 6922 E88CC). These tubes are a newer generation of Radio Frequency triodes that feature a control grid made of wire that is thinner than a human hair. This fine wire means that microphonics if they occurr are at a very high frequency, usually beyond human hearing.
The sound is different with the 6922 tube is because the preamp response changes subtly. The response change is due to the very low output impedance of this tube family.
The graph below shows the difference between the same mic with the stock 6072 and a 6922. Responses are shown normalized for gain so you can see the low end improvement. The upper mids and high end are also flatter with the 6922 tube.
There is much less distortion with the 6922 tube and as a result 6 dB more headroom before hitting our limit of 1% distortion at 1KHz. The one negative difference is the sensitivity is reduced by 1dB with the ECC88 family of tubes versus the 6072.
Needs a Good Transformer
So to come up to the standards of this capsule we wanted to make the preamp a replica of the c12 so we have standardized this mic on the Tab Funkenwerk T14 for the c12+ line.
Peluso also makes a very fine T14. It has a extended low end and high end extension due to it's high transformation ratio. This reduces the output by 1.5dB verses the Tab T14 but the sound is absolutely transparent because the tube is more lightly loaded (doing less electrical work). If you would prefer Peluso T14/1 just ask.
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