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Counterfeit Shure Mics?

drpepper

drpepper

Supporting Member
Jul 20, 2009
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Columbia, Maryland
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#1
I was just browsing on ebay and saw what must be Shure knockoffs based on the prices.

Is this a known issue that just can't be stopped for some reason? @micguy do you know if this has this been a problem they've been dealing with?

If you do a search on ebay for "SM58" or "Beta 58", the majority of the results you get will be prices that can only mean they're knockoffs, and if the actual mics, accessories and packaging are the ones pictured, there's a real problem out there. Some don't actually say "Shure" on the mic, but some do...pretty ballsy. It would actually be a chore to find a legitimate one on ebay.

Rather than screaming, "Hey, look at me, this is a scam!" with "Shure Beta 58A 3-Pack $49", wouldn't is make more sense to say to your little scammer self, "Okay so the msrp on the Beta 58A is $169...I'll go $129 or maybe $109 to not be so obvious"?

Edit: Okay, so this is a well known matter...rather than deleting, I'll just leave it here in case anyone who doesn't know might benefit

 
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#2
The problem of counterfeit mics has been around for decades. One of the toughest situations is when a counterfeit mic breaks, and the owner ships it to Shure to get fixed (copying Shure's warranty card and address is much easier than copying a mic well). Shure's first contact with someone who thought they bought a real Shure mic is to tell them they didn't. Nobody is happy there, except the counterfeiter, who got their money and doesn't have to fix their mic when it breaks.

The problem is much more prevalent in Asia - a lot of factors at play there. There were also a lot of counterfeit Shure phono cartridges behind the iron curtain during that era.
 
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#3
micguy said:
The problem of counterfeit mics has been around for decades. One of the toughest situations is when a counterfeit mic breaks, and the owner ships it to Shure to get fixed (copying Shure's warranty card and address is much easier than copying a mic well). Shure's first contact with someone who thought they bought a real Shure mic is to tell them they didn't. Nobody is happy there, except the counterfeiter, who got their money and doesn't have to fix their mic when it breaks.

The problem is much more prevalent in Asia - a lot of factors at play there. There were also a lot of counterfeit Shure phono cartridges behind the iron curtain during that era.
Click to expand...

Not that ebay is where everyone goes for mics, but IMO, it's at a rather insane level when someone does a search and almost all of the results are the fakes
 
#4
Sennheiser is another one to watch out for on Ebay.

Had a band a few years ago and every "SM58" they had was a fake and sounded like it!
After the first song of sound check I went to the stage to see what was going on and looking closer to their mics it was obvious they were fake.
It still took a little to convince them even when compairing a real 58 to theirs!!
 
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