As anyone who has serviced and repaired a lot of D12's will tell you, there were many versions of the design, produced over a long period of time. The main variations were in the capsules and transformers, which allowed for different impedance ratings: versions with 60Ω, 200Ω, 250Ω and (unspecified) 'high' impedances were released. Some versions had no transformer, and many in circulation today have been modified to be that way. During the late 1950s and throughout the 1960s, myriad variations coming under different badges and model numbers followed: the D20 had a bass filter, the D25 an integrated suspension, the D30 switchable polar patterns. The list goes on.The original production run ceased around 1976 and the mic was reissued in 1978, this time incorporating an integral XLR socket, where earlier versions had a cable wired into the chassis of the microphone. This version, the D12E, had a much-maligned plastic surround separating the two halves of the grille, a part that breaks easily and with no spares available.
When you factor in nearly six decades of use, abuse, maintenance and modification, it doesn't take long to see why buying a used D12 today is an unpredictable business. These microphones can sound quite different from each other, and some are in poor condition, both cosmetically and functionally. All contents copyright © SOS Publications Group and/or its licensors, 1985-2019. All rights reserved.The contents of this article are subject to worldwide copyright protection and reproduction in whole or part, whether mechanical or electronic, is expressly forbidden without the prior written consent of the Publishers.
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