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[GYMusic]

I have a TLM-170 that I want a shock mount for.  I don't need a genuine part.  Wondering if anyone has used these WGT ones from China.

TNX and Happy New Year! 

[klaus]

I have not used or reviewed this particular Chinese shock mount, but the pattern is firmly established:
copy the German design in all its dimensions, use inferior metals, plating, bonding, and assembly methods, strap with low quality elastic bands, and sell at roughly 1/3 to 1/2 the price of the original.

Nothing wrong with any of it, and most studio clients will never know, plus, you can always upgrade the most crucial (and probably only acoustically relevant) component- the elastic bands- to Neumann quality.

[Piedpiper]

are you implying that the elastic bands do make a difference in effective isolation or are you just pointing out that they are the only part that could possibly have any sonic effect? Seems like longevity would possibly be a factor with them as well. Any real experience with either issue?

[klaus]

From comparison experiments and personal observation I can report that the elastic bands are crucial in both functional aspects you mention, and are also an issue in regards to longevity of the bands.

This is more complicated than would seem possible with a couple of "rubber bands": I have had Chinese replacement bands for the EA87 and 47 which, either because the rubber material was not appropriate, or the external weave insufficient, or the tensioning too high for the level of equilibrium in the cage, resonated at certain frequencies and/or transmitted shockwaves from the floor into the mic.

I am sure there are formulas to predict elasticity, shock damping and body transmission, but I'll leave that to someone else to explore. I just stopped using Chinese elastic bands for clients' Neumann cages, and now regularly shell out the (seemingly) outrageous money for genuine Neumann elastics, even when the client moans.

[Kai]

I have good results with the Peluso supplied shock mounts.
Likely of chinese origin.

I don't know if one of his fits to an TLM170.

Regards
Kai

[Nob Turner]

i'm not sure about the chinese shockmounts, but i used to work at a studio that had several u87's. they tried some off-brand replacements for the fixed mount (neumann sg367, originally) and the welds holding them together failed very soon.

i've used off-brand yokes for the m49, as the originals are basically unobtanium. those sold by peluso and blue/red are made of pot metal. again, i found the welds to be the weak point, and welding pot metal is apparently a very difficult task. i had a rather unpleasant interaction with a local welding shop over that.

since then, i invested in a flea yoke mount, which so far seems to be of superior construction.

[Kai]

...those sold by peluso and blue/red are made of pot metal. again, i found the welds to be the weak point...

I cannot support this.
I have 5 or 6 of these "chinese" mounts here, all are made of a ferrous material (magnetic).
3 are from Peluso, 2 from a company called HDW Microphones (very chinese!), one is from Soundelux, now Bock Audio (not sure that this one is exactly "chinese").
The only problem I had was the swivel screw on the Soundelux, which is made from plastic and broke.
I cannot coment too much on the rubber bands (they do their job, exept for the Soundelux, which had to be replaced).
My floor is made of concrete with direct contact to ground.
So no problems with floor vibrations causing resonances here anyway.

I have to admit that I bought mine several years ago, so it might be that the situation has changed. You can ask John Peluso for an updated information on his.

Regards
Kai

[soapfoot]

the biggest problem I've experienced with shockmounts from Peluso and the like is the threads where it mounts to the stand.

It's made of brass (or similar) and the threads strip quite easily with normal long-term daily use-- even careful use.

[Piedpiper]

I haven't ever had any problem with weld joints giving way or any other problem with the metal parts. I can easily imagine that different elastic bands have different acoustic properties but have never done a direct comparison. I would be delighted to do so though, as I have certainly experienced the ill effects of insufficient isolation at times.

[Kai]

..problem...the threads where it mounts to the stand.
...the threads strip quite easily...

We don't have that problem here in Europe because we use 3/8" coarse threads on mic clamps.
For this we use an insert in the standard 5/8" fine thread.

I can imagine with a bulky elastic suspension this fine 5/8 threads aren't easy to screw on absolutely straight to avoid damage.
Most small mic clamps use brass too BTW.

For a quick "fix" you could use a 3/8" insert in combination with an adapter piece back to 5/8".
But I believe Peluso is happy to send you a replacement if you tell them.

Regards
Kai

[soapfoot]

We don't have that problem here in Europe because we use 3/8" coarse threads on mic clamps.
For this we use an insert in the standard 5/8" fine thread.

I can imagine with a bulky elastic suspension this fine 5/8 threads aren't easy to screw on absolutely straight to avoid damage.
Most small mic clamps use brass too BTW.

For a quick "fix" you could use a 3/8" insert in combination with an adapter piece back to 5/8".
But I believe Peluso is happy to send you a replacement if you tell them.

Regards
Kai

You're correct.

There are many people using the mounts here-- both suites are booked commercially about 28 days a month, with a mix of house engineers (often with less-experienced second engineers) and occasionally freelancers, so it's hard to encourage care in a "foolproof" way. Eventually stripping happens. I do believe that if the metal were steel or some hardened material it would not happen frequently.

We recently bought 5 or 10 of those replacement parts from Peluso just to have on hand, but we'd love it if someone just made a quality mount with nice, hardened steel threads. Adapters would not be very practical in our studio.

[Piedpiper]

There's no teaching the ham handed unfortunately...

[Kai]

it's hard to encourage care in a "foolproof" way...

You could buy some more stands and leave the suspensions mounted all the time.
More or less this is what I do here - I even leave some mics set up and connected ready to use all the time.

Regards
Kai

[soapfoot]

Fortunately, there are only one or two Peluso shockmounts in use in the facility. Many microphones do remain on stands (daily use), but microphones are shared between the two suites, and very often get shuffled onto different-height stands for different applications (in our studios, a U47 is as likely to be on an acoustic double bass or acoustic guitar as it is to be on a vocal, for instance).

The Latch Lake that might be used for a U47 on a drum overhead might be completely impractical in a small-ish iso booth on an upright bass, for instance.

[John Willett]

If you don't want to use a Neumann original, I would use a Rycote USM (or USM-L) which is technically much better.

This is what I use, rather than originals.

As Klaus said above, there is a lot of technology involved in designing a shockmount - Rycote did a lot of study before coming up with their patented "lyre" design, so much so that they now do OEM versions for many microphone manufacturers.

(The poster is a dealer for Rycote products. KH)

Sorry KH - this statement is a bit misleading.  I have a cash-with-order account with Rycote like I do with most ProAudio manufacturers.  I am The UK distributor for Gefell and the Rycote bit is to enable me to supply a Rycote when someone buys a mic.  I am not a shop and do not sell Rycote stuff on its own, as most people can get these from their local ProAudio store. - my comment above was posted just as a satisfied user