Advice on Broken 416t

Hi all,

I'm wondering if anyone here has experienced the problem i'm having,
and has any advice on what to do.

I bought my used Senn. 416T (probably about 20 years old, but sounded
great when i bought it) about 2 years ago, and have used it sparingly
for the last year or so doing ENG sound mixing. About 6 months ago, i
noticed a thudding sound whenever i panned it from straight vetical to
horizontal and vice versa. It sounds as if something was loose inside
the capsule, and that it was sliding and hitting something. I took it
to get serviced at Pro Sound in New York, and Vlad said that while he
fixed it temporarily, something was loose on the capsule and that it
would come back. Sure enough, six weeks later or so, the problem came
back.

It sounds fine on a stand for interviews, and if I'm not moving it
around vigorously on a pole, I can get away with it, but its obviously
not acceptable in the long term. I've heard that Sennheiser will
repair their microphones pretty reasonably, but i'm wondering if anyone
else on Ramps has had this experience, and knows what is going on and
what it will cost me (or if its a lost cause, and its time to buy a new
mic).

Thanks in advance.

e.

Hi Ethan,

I've only ever had one problem with a 415/416. My old 415 once had a
similar sounding problem. It turned out to be a chunk from the RF
crystal tuning circuitry banging about. Sennheiser's repair depot in
Montreal fixed the problem quickly and at a reasonable price. I've had
them repair other equipment too. You can google them. I know you are in
the States, so this is just for your information.
Chris Newton
Gary Tole wrote:
> Ethan,
> I've had My 416 repaired at Sennheiser in Old Lyme Ct before and It was
> extremley reasonable. I would recommend at least having them look at it.
> Gary
>
> > Hi all,
> >
> > I'm wondering if anyone here has experienced the problem i'm having,
> > and has any advice on what to do.
> >
> > I bought my used Senn. 416T (probably about 20 years old, but sounded
> > great when i bought it) about 2 years ago, and have used it sparingly
> > for the last year or so doing ENG sound mixing. About 6 months ago, i
> > noticed a thudding sound whenever i panned it from straight vetical to
> > horizontal and vice versa. It sounds as if something was loose inside
> > the capsule, and that it was sliding and hitting something. I took it
> > to get serviced at Pro Sound in New York, and Vlad said that while he
> > fixed it temporarily, something was loose on the capsule and that it
> > would come back. Sure enough, six weeks later or so, the problem came
> > back.
> >
> > It sounds fine on a stand for interviews, and if I'm not moving it
> > around vigorously on a pole, I can get away with it, but its obviously
> > not acceptable in the long term. I've heard that Sennheiser will
> > repair their microphones pretty reasonably, but i'm wondering if anyone
> > else on Ramps has had this experience, and knows what is going on and
> > what it will cost me (or if its a lost cause, and its time to buy a new
> > mic).
> >
> > Thanks in advance.
> >
> > e.
> >