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T.Bone HeadMike


cedd

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Sorry for another thread about headsets!

 

I long ago gave up the search for the perfect headset. Either it doesn't exist or I can't afford it! I moved back to the CPC headsets earlier this year after a spell using Proel HCM-23's - which ended with most of them in the bin after failures a bit too early in their lives to call fair wear and tear. I modified a number of them with better connectors and heatshrink strain reliefs but even then they didn't really last and I didn't overly like the way they sounded.

 

I then came across these from Thomann;

 

https://www.thomann.de/gb/the_tbone_headmike_o_shure.htm

 

They looked good so I bought them. I'm amazed by how similar they are to the CPC mics - even down to the box they came in. There are a few subtle differences, but they're all improvements. The strain relief is much better, as is the cable quality. The ear loops also feel a bit more robust and less likely to lose their rubber end caps.

 

The capsule and plastic bits where the boom meats the headset are pretty much identical though. They're also a few quid cheaper.

 

 

 

 

Here's the question though. For my next show I need to buy another 10 headsets to replace the dead proel's. It's not going to be until September ish, but I do need them. The problem is I have no more shows on which to try this Thomann mic out before then. I'm tempted to go ahead based on how similar they look to the CPC's and hoping that Thomann have gone to the manufacturers of the CPC mic, made a few improvements and then bought them as their own. Thomann's other own brand stuff has always really impressed me.

 

What would be really really useful though would be to hear from somebody who's used them. Even better from somebody who's used them AND the CPC's and could make a reasonable comparison. I can't even lend them to a friend as I use Trantec and everyone else I know around here uses 3.mm jacks.

 

Based on how they look and feel, I'm impressed. The audio samples on Thomann's site sound ok but of course they're not in a live setting. If anybody's got any real world experience then I'd love to hear it.

 

 

 

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We went from using CPC omni's at church to the TBone omni's following a recommendation from a company that uses them as disposables for conferences and shows where the budget doesn't cover one of their several dozen Countrymans or DPAs. They sound fine and seem to have lasted better. You say the Thomann mics are a few quid cheaper than CPC- they used to be about two thirds of the price but then there was a referendum, so watch out on that front
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That ebay one comes with a handy adaptor too - but he only has one left!

 

You can get direct from China a bit cheaper but you have to wait, they normally have stock, I've used them for over 12 months now and have no connection with the seller

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Thanks everyone!

Boswell - apart from the adapter those look pretty much identical to the ones I've been importing from China for a while. The price is appealing but I also know I had trouble with the lack of strain reliefs where the cable meets the headset. There always seemed to be a sharp pinch point regardless of if you used the little clip or just came straight out of the boom. The ones that I reterminated were better because I slid some heatshrink up them. How do you go on for cables going green? Pretty much all of mine turned green after a couple of months of use - not a problem I've seen with the CPC's. Of course it doesn't affect the audio but it isn't nice handing over a green mic to an actor - "ew it's mouldy!" followed by me trying to explain that it isn't mould, without giving away that it's the sweat of the previous actor that's done it!

 

The 3 year Thomann warranty is quite appealing!!!! Obviously it won't work for obvious physical damage, but it'd be interesting to know where they drew the line between undue damage and normal wear and tear.

 

Yorkie - thanks for the advice. The changing exchange rate is part of what's driven me to think about this sooner (but not soon enough!) rather than later. Good to hear that you've got on well with them!

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At that price I don't expect them to last long enough to go green! If they last for 3 or 4 musicals, around 25-30 performances, then I'm happy.

They last just as long as the CPC ones which are around 3 times the price.

When they start going green then I know the have been well used and approaching end of life, a bit like me

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That's true, though the going green seems to be more of a time related thing than a usage thing on mine. My latest set only did maybe a week's worth of shows then went away for a couple of months (just a natural gap in shows - I've thinned them out a bit this year because of the impending wedding) and came back to find a lot of them had gone green. If they'd done another couple of shows and then gone green then that would have been fair enough. I'm actually thinking of getting some of the mics you've suggested for my dry hires - I'm starting to do a "buy your headsets, rent the wireless system" scheme - just to save them coming back broken and to protect my own stock for my shows.

 

I think sound-wise, I've always preferred the CPC's. I certainly always put them on my principals as one or two of the Chinese ones were a bit inconsistent - had a few that sounded to have some very odd peaks.

I've just taken on a last minute booking for a production of RENT in a couple of weeks time, so it might be a good chance to test a couple of the Thomann ones out before I make a larger purchase ready for the 2 larger shows I need them for later this year.

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  • 5 months later...

Ok, update - I've had a pretty rough week with these headsets

 

I bought 20 in 2 batches after having been impressed with the first one that I bought to try out. They did a run of West Side Story really well - just had one mystery failure but the rest were great and sounded a-ok. Just come to use them all again for panto and didn't have a night without at least one failure. 3 were sweat so we can ignore those as just being down to a very sweaty dame. The rest however were all unexplained and pretty similar (and by the rest, we're talking about 9 failures!). They all end up with a pretty high level white noise on their output. This clears if you flick the capsule and can also be made to come back by flicking the capsule too. In one instance it came on whilst a character was on stage (the fairy, so during a slightly longer monologue, standing perfectly still). Started as a very faint hiss that I heard but the audience probably didn't. Over about 10 seconds it rose to a level where the speech was inaudible.

Frustratingly, I only have one or two where the fault is constantly present. The rest are very intermittent. I'm going to set up a receiver tomorrow and see if I can re-create the issue and maybe get a recording of it - possibly on video.

I'm confident from the people who were wearing these mics that it isn't sweat related, nor is it anything like hairspray. I'm tempted to suggest static or a fault with the capsule. Cables and connectors etc. are all fine.

Thinking back, the one mystery failure in West Side Story was the same fault. I just reasoned it had been misused and binned it.

 

With the sheer number that have failed it sounds to be a design issue to me. I messaged Thomann on Friday about this but have yet to hear back.

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