It's really hard to believe that a counterfeiter would dupe a Beta52. It's way more complex than say a 57, the hinged housing especially, looks like a lot of work to clone.

And realistically, I'd think that clones will only sell well for a short period until everyone becomes aware. It would seem to not pay. An initial run of fake 57s I can see, but now Beta52s? As well, I'd imagine that way less Beta52s are sold in general than 57s, not really an ultra popular mic, why not clone a more popular, simpler mic instead?

How does this cloning work? Do the counterfeiters actually get their hands on the exact molds / castings / parts that Shure uses? Or do they really re-pro all this stuff from scratch?

If this 52 cloning is true, then we know that Shure 57s and 52s are now being cloned. What other mics are being cloned? Any non-Shure? Is there a list somewhere of fake, cloned mics (or other pro audio) that we should be watching out for?

Can't Shure (and other manufacturers) come up with some type of system, perhaps with complex serial numbers or some type of code scan etc, that would allow ANY potential wholesale purchaser to easily check to see if the stock they're about to buy is authentic or not? And if this could be done, then ANY reseller selling a fake unit should be arrested immediately, no?

I can't understand how all this cloning and selling of clones can go on and on. Gee, if they're actually cloning 52s now it surely means that they're doing well with their cloning business. It really would seem like an easy thing to crack down on. The only thing that might make sense is that a lot of wholesalers must simply be very ignorant or are willing to partake in criminal activity knowing that they can't truly get busted. In the above quoted letter from Shure etc (and from another post above) they're merely suggesting to simply return the product for a refund. Instead shouldn't a crime unit descend upon the seller and at least confiscate the stock?

Just thoughts.