Film Industries M8

From Hi-Fi Yearbook 1966

FILM INDUSTRIES LTD., 90 Belsize Lane, London, N.W.3. Tel. : Hampstead 9632/3. Cables : Troosound, London, N.W.3.

M7. Moving coil. Response 60-9,000 Hz. Imp. 20 ohms. 12 ft. twin screened cable standard, other lengths if required. Table desk and floor stands available. 4 in. flexible mounting. Internal leads. Price : £8. 15s. With on/off switch : £10 7s. 6d.

M8. Ribbon. Response 50-1 3,000 Hz. Figure of eight polar diagram. Imp. 30 ohms. Can be fitted with transformer up to 60K. Plug and socket joint between microphone head and flexible, fitted with 12 ft. of twin-screened cable, other lengths if required. Table, desk and floor stands available. Price, all impedances : £9. 9s. With on/off switch : £11. 11s.

M8A. Ribbon. Unit as type M8 but without plug and socket connection between mic. head and flexible, this being one unit. A small desk stand is provided, which is removable, enabling other stands to be used. Available in all impedances up to 60K. Price : £9.

M8S. Embodies same internal components as the other ribbon microphones .in the range. In place of the flexible support the base of the unit is machined to give a set degree of angle. Complete with desk stand. Price : £9. 15s., with switch unit £10. 7s. 6d.

The last entry for the M8 series in the Hi-Fi Yearbook was in 1973, Film Industries ceased trading round about 1975.

Manufacturer Specification:

• Frequency response: 35 Hz - 13 KHz
• Impedance: 30 Ohms standard, with built in transformer. Other impedances availble up to 57 Kilohms
• Sensitivity: -90dB ref. 1volt/dyne/cm² or 0.003 millivolts open circuit voltage across the 20 ohm source impedance.

From a review in The Tape Recorder magazine:

This neat and compact ribbon microphone is an excellent example of the modern trend towards reducing the size of such units by using high-efficiency magnetic materials. This leads to a shorter, narrower ribbon than was common a few years ago, with resultant improvements in frequency response, polar response, and general robustness. The slim design is not cluttered by external plugs, sockets, or swivelling joints. The head plugs directly into a 4-in. length semi-flexible tubing which allows adjustment to any desired angle, and which can be screwed into a floor stand or the table base shown in the photograph. The microphone is fitted with 12 ft. of screened, two-core cable; extra cable can be obtained from the manufacturers at 2/- per yard. The secondary of the line transformer is not earthed to the case, so that true balanced line operation is possible for minimum hum pickup on very long extensions. [...]

A-B tests were made against a very wide range miniature condenser microphone, and, although there were subtle differences, it was difficult to state a definite preference for either. There was perhaps a very slight hint of heaviness on male speech at 2 feet distance, but there was no suggestion of boominess. Careful listening showed that some of this effect was due to the slightly different quality of the acoustic ambient background noise, and room colouration; open air tests showed very little difference indeed. To sum up, this microphone shows evidence of careful design, and the workmanship, technical performance, and styling are excellent. It can be thoroughly recommended for studio or semi-professional use, or for home use where the associated equipment can do justice to its very wide range response.