beyerdynamic M 160 Hypercardioid Ribbon Microphone. One still has the original ribbon. It has a hyper cardioid polar pattern. It is often paired with the M130 for mid-side stereo applications, in which the bidirectional M130 captures the “side” channel, and the M160 captures the “mid.”. Ribbon mics are all the rage these days and deservedly so. Apparently, they just swap the guts wholesale, and charge you around $300. I have three M260s, all purchased new in the early 1970s. It is a dynamic band which has the distinction as the M260 and M160 another, being hypercardioid. I'm thinking about getting one or the other. The Beyer Dynamic M260 is a ribbon microphone designed for use in the recording studio. The M160 is an unusual ribbon microphone, in that it has a hypercardioid pickup pattern. The lovely smooth lift at around 4kHz has the effect of making snare drums jump out of the wider mix and really punch you in the face: the effect is similar to giving your drummer a double vodka and Redbull and then insulting his mother just before a take! DX mod’ed Beyer M-260, DX mod’ed Beyer M-500 by Ed Pettersen. Beyer M160. 1 user review on Beyerdynamic M 260 NC. The first one that failed, I returned to Beyer and they replaced the ribbon assembly for a perfectly reasonable price. OVERALL OPINION I've been using the Beyer Dynamic M260 ribbon mic for about a year. I was Stephen Sank's first Beyer M260 repair customer. As with all ribbon mic, I wouldn't use this outside of the studio, but as far as ribbon microphones go, the M260 is as sturdy as any. It is easy to hear why the Beyers are so well-known for drums. Price isn't much of an issue, but so if the M160 sounds better than the Fathead, I would get it, though I also wouldn't mind saving a few bucks. Additional Media. Beyerdynamic M160 Ribbon Microphone Features at a Glance: Double ribbon design Hypercardioid pattern to reject off-axis sounds Excellent stringed instrument microphone Black and chromium plated to prevent glare from broadcast lighting Includes case and mic clip. 4. Another forum says (FWIW) that, as of 2016, they will not service an M260 or M500, but will still service the M130 & M160. The M160 has two ribbons, mounted back-to-front just 0.5mm apart. Has anyone here compared these two mics? But I'm with you - if it's that hard/expensive to get them … The second one to fail was a little more expensive but still reasonable.