Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Trevor Long on June 3, 2010 at 9:58am

Yes, I can verify Bruce's statement about lifting the mic trying to get better isolation. I also cannot get it to pick up floor vibrations. Douglas what type of microphones do you use for your boundary? Maybe floor mics in your situation aren't the optimal path.

Permalink Reply by David McCall on May 9, 2010 at 9:09am

I am also interested in the comparison with the PCC-160. We used a set of 3 of them recently for a musical, but were not blown away. They seemed a little thin on female vocals in particular. It may have been an EQ issue though.

We most recently used a Senheiser 415 in the center and 2 AKG 451s on either side. The mics were placed on boom stands that were on the auditorium floor on front of the apron to isolate the mics from the stage floor. The mics were placed near the edge of the stage parallel to the stage floor with the diaphragms within 1/4" of the floor. This has been the most pleasing sound solution so far.

Permalink Reply by Bruce Bartlett on May 15, 2010 at 5:33am

I designed the Crown PCC-160, and the TM-125 series is the next-generation model. Compared to the PCC-160, the TM-125 is 1.6" shorter, typically $100 lower cost, smoother frequency response, tighter tolerance, tested by myself, and made in the USA. The TM-125 has a 15-foot detachable cable, while the TM-125 has a permanently attached cable to prevent possible breakage of the tiny XLR cable connect that connects to the TM-125.

I hope it's appropriate for a manufacturer to comment in these reviews.. Trevor invited me here. The subjective opinions of the mic are up to you, but I'm just here to supply data about the microphone.

Permalink Reply by Bruce Bartlett on May 15, 2010 at 5:45am

Sorry for the typo. The TM-125 has a 15-foot detachable cable with a tiny XLR at the mic end, and a regular XLR connector at the other end. The TM-125C has a 6-foot permanently attached cable with a regular XLR at the end of the cable that plugs into the sound system. Custom cable lengths are available by special order.

Permalink Reply by Bruce Bartlett on May 15, 2010 at 5:52am

If readers want to see the datasheets, customer reviews or FAQ, they are available at www.bartlettmics.com

Permalink Reply by Trevor Long on May 19, 2010 at 10:22am

Hello everybody, it's been a little while since I've had a chance to sit down and type some. I've got the microphone with a master sound technician, who fortunately is not in a tech right now, and have been getting updates from him as well. One thing that I don't think I mentioned earlier is that the time with this review is longer. That gives me the chance to let more people work with the product and deliver some more viewpoints on the whole thing. I've been cataloging questions as they come up.

Thanks again to everyone for making this such a success so far. Much more to come in the coming couple of weeks.

Permalink Reply by Trevor Long on June 3, 2010 at 9:32am

Okay, before I start reading everything through again I wanted to share some thoughts from a master sound tech that I know. He borrowed the microphones while I was in the throes of some majorly tedious other things.

Anyhoo, not only was Paul able to do a little side by side between the TM-125C and a PCC160 he got the chance to use them on a Flamenco dance concert. Great test. Below are some of his thoughts:

The self-noise of the TM-125C is quieter than that of the PCC160.
The build quality on the TM-125C is really nice, very high quality. Sturdy.
Sonically nice as well.
The pattern is not as tight and more open on the backside than expected. There was more bleed from the back.
Basically it just has a wider pattern that needs to be taken into consideration when using or placing.
In regards to the Flamenco dancing: It sounded very natural with very little eq needed.

Then I did a little q and a with him (paraphrased for clarity):
T: Would you use them again?
P: Yes, I would. I'd definitely use them again.
T: Any drawbacks related to the pattern that mentioned earlier?
P: If the audience is really close to the stage or the mic placement, it isn't the best to have. You'd pick up a lot of audience noise like shuffling in their seat kind of stuff.
T: Anything else on those lines?
P: You'd want to be really aware of your PA placement to avoid feedback. It'll vary with the room.
T: If they were the same price. Would you buy the PCC160 over the TM-125C?
P: First off, I'd buy the detachable cable version [the demo ones we have are attached cable] because I need that flexibility. But, I wouldn't buy one over the other.
T: Want to explain that a little more?
P: The Bartlett is not a replacement for me for the PCC160. I'd like to have both in my toolkit. The TM-125C is a good tool, something to augment what I've got but it's not useful in every situation. Where I could use it, I would.

Thanks to Paul for his time. There is still time left and I'm hoping to get some more hands and ears on these soon.

Permalink Reply by Trevor Long on June 3, 2010 at 9:37am

@ David McCall-
Let me know if you'd like more or more specific comparison information between the two mics.

@ Everybody-
Don't go willy nilly taking you mics apart, check your warranties and warranty status. You could inadvertently change the quality of the microphone. Popping the lid for a review/demo is one thing, but I don't suggest doing it on your own equipment.

@ Everybody (again)-
Do check out the Bartlett website. Good information on the FAQs and whatnot.

Permalink Reply by Bruce Bartlett on June 8, 2010 at 12:38pm

Re popping the lid, Trevor, could you make sure that the foam inside the lid fully covered the grille holes after the lid was reassembled, and that the denser foam was toward the rear of the mic? A sound leak around the foam could account for the difference in rear rejection between the TM-125C and the PCC-160. On average they have the same rear rejection, and customers have affirmed that on our website. Thanks!

Permalink Reply by Trevor Long on June 8, 2010 at 1:10pm

Yep. We looked at that after it was put back together since it was giving strange reads relative to the other one. It's all better and both are behaving exactly the same. Thanks Bruce!

Permalink Reply by Trevor Long on June 8, 2010 at 1:13pm

The Bartlett babies are off to another adventure. This time with sound designer/composer/awesome cool dude Victor Zupanc. http://www.composersforum.org/member_profile.cfm?oid=3116

Yeah, he's pretty badass. Looking forward to what he has to say and to getting to play 20 questions with him. What questions would you like asked?

[ps I'm giving him the list of tests that were already suggested and don't feel limited to asking about the mic. He's a great source of knowledge on all things soundy]

Permalink Reply by Gear Review Agent on June 15, 2010 at 8:25am

This is a little test.

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