I bought this brand new in 1974 for £42 from Ray Electrical Store in Cheltenham. I had joined a band called Madrigal (playing electric violin) and was persuaded (against my better judgement ) to do backing vocals. The shop owner Harry Rose assured me that the D1200 was ‘the best’ (actually everything in his shop was ‘the best’)…….. and I’ve enjoyed it ever since. Still use the D1200 live for snare, as the 2 position roll-off switch gets rid of most of the bass drum. Also good on horns (especially tenor sax.)
Click on tech spec image below to enlarge.
Martin Mitchell's Microphones 
I was recently having a look through some old band gear in my attic and found one of these mics. I see a pair of them sold for £80 on ebay. Is that a fair price do you think?
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Depends on condition. I sold one in ok condition fairly recently for £70. If you have the original clip and box you might even get a bit more. The highest I have seen in the last couple of years was £120……. but it was in showroom condition in its original case. Anyhow, Good Luck!
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how i check akg D1200E, if everything is right. Because i think something is bad in my mic, i use this mis for sing and play armonica, with pa.
Thanks, Lean.
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Hi Lean,
Can you describe what is wrong with the sound? It might help me work out what is going on.
The most common problem with this mic is the roll off switch not working properly leading to a loss of bass frequencies. The other common problem is the foam inside the windscreen breaking down causing the capsule to rattle about and also allowing breath noise to implode on the capsule. The foam is easy to replace by unscrewing the top and putting in some new bits of foam. The switch, however, may be difficult to replace.
All the Best
Martin
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Is there much difference in the sound of the D1200 and the D1000, they seem to have the same sensitivity and switches, the grill is a bit different though.
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I have used the D1000 on a number of occasions over the years and they do sound very similar to the D1200. Certainly, as you point out, the specifications look very similar.The frequency response graphs are only slightly different. The extendable mouthpiece on the D1000 might make some difference. However, because the D1000 was used by David Bowie for a while D1000s do tend to fetch much higher prices!
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Hello I’m intersted in your AKG D 1200E Microphone. Please let me know much it is. Thanks
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Hi Shay, Although I do occasionally sell mics this one is not for sale. However, the D1200 is very often to be found going cheap on eBay for as little as £50. However, be careful to make sure that the roll-off switch is working before you buy. You quite often find these with broken switches. Good Luck!
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Hi….I bought a D1200 back in the 70’s along with lots of other Mics and studio gear…This particular mic stopped working after a few weeks and as been in a draw ever since,…..I wondered if you have any ideas where to start on locating the problem …..to my knowledge it was never dropped and there are no signs of damage on the outer case …??…dry joint maybe ??…Thanks John
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Hi John, Could be a dry joint. You would need to take it apart to find out. In the past I have had problems with a dead mic that were simply down to dirty oxidised XLR pins! Also, sometime the screws on the case can work loose causing a loss of signal. Is the XLR socket tight? Might be worth taking the XLR socket out and you could check the wiring at the same time. Give it a good clean and pop it back in. (N.B. The screws on the case have reverse threads and need to be screwed inwards!) Good Luck!
Martin
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Cheers Martin…Sorry for the late reply I’ve been away for a week or so..
I recall having a look inside a few years ago and seemed to remember everything obvious seem to be ok….I think its time to have another look …..Thanks John….Love the site by the way…
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Hi i bought my AKG D1200E in 1976 for vocals /drummer and i still have the microphone today 43 years on and been used by me now as a dj/karaoke,a great microphone never let me down
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