Radio Mics and cables.

[rob aylestone]

When I first started working for myself, the name I chose East Anglian Radio Services was because back in the 90's - I was hiring radio microphones. I had a 'real' job' for a while but kept on the hire services, then went back full time. A phrase I constantly used when people asked about radio systems was "The most expensive radio system is nearly as good as a £10 cable".

On Saturday it was the first of the summer theatre shows I manage. First one was a three hander comedy show - MC, who is also a comedian, then three comics, with the final one being a well known UK comedy and acting figure - An Irish guy called Ardal O'Hanlon.

The show's promoter sent the usual rider in advance and it mentioned they needed two mics. Something made me wonder, having done a lot of comedy shows, so I installed a rack that had 4 channels of hand-held Sennheiser, and 2 channels of Shure digital hand-held plus a antenna distro running off a couple of paddles - for reliable coverage of the stage. I couldn't justify 4 channels of the Shure as they were pretty expensive and I ran out of funds likely to be recovered by use.

I also for backup took a couple of SM58's from the collection and a couple of 20m - long XLR cables.

We were in at 11 as we had loads of jobs to do - the artistes turned up at 6, for an 8pm show.

The theatre is on the end of a pier, and I didn;t realise the seafront road was closed off because a big car event was on - custom cars, jet cars, monster trucks - that kind of thing.

I'd pre-programmed the 6 radios (not expecting to use all 6) on interference free channels as usual, but I really struggled in the theatre because there seemed to be mics on almost every frequency from the nearby mini stages, car displays and music stuff. The analogue Sennheiser, normally bulletproof, fizzed and occasionally spluttered, and the Shure digitals were better, but even they suddenly would mute. Digital hand-helds either work perfectly or mute - nothing in between. In the end I managed to get 5 channels working interference free, but another user could so easily rock up and turn on. I wasn't happy.

The promoter arrived and I offered him the really nice, new and expensive radios, but added that I did have a couple of cabled SM58s if he fancied them? He said yes - can we do cables please. I've had bad experiences with radios over the years and we don't mind cables. Secretly, I was nodding in my head.

A classic example of a problem that could just appear and leave you looking foolish. Dead spots, interference, battery problems, intermod - all totally possible.

All that expense and we ended up using £250 cost mics and cable. Nothing much has changed really. Radio is of course better than it was when I started, but equally there are far too many people using them. As in a guitar radio connected to the effects board on the floor, never more than a few feet away, and radios for the BV singers with their mics on stands which never move. Let alone DJs who never move from behind their gear.

One of the comedians as a 'joke' punched the mic stand, which toppled over smashing the 58 into the ground - it went bang, and of course survived totally untouched, as they do. I wonder if the radios would have done the same - or would the battery tube have flown out, or shook it so hard it went off?

I'm supposed to love radio mics, but the truth is ...... I hate the damn things. Dropping one of these would make me cringe!

 

[bouldersoundguy]

Yep, wireless is cool until it isn't. If it breaks, that's potentially $1k or more. A cable is $20-40, and that's if you can't just solder it back together.

 

[Papanate]

I'm supposed to love radio mics, but the truth is ...... I hate the damn things. Dropping one of these would make me cringe!

First off you should get Shure’s Wireless Workbench : Wireless Workbench is free software - It is a RF spectrum management tool that gives you full command of your compatible wireless devices - And guarantees your success in any RF environment – no matter the location - basically you can map out your RF Signals getting clear ones - it notifies you when your wireless frequencies are encroached upon - as for dropping wireless - we use the Shure Axient Digital AD2/SM58 Wireless Handhelds - and they can take a beating - not as much as a SM58 can - but dropping them occasionally doesn’t hurt them much if at all - if you dent the screen
you can take it out and straighten it.

 

[Papanate]

Yep, wireless is cool until it isn't. If it breaks, that's potentially $1k or more. A cable is $20-40, and that's if you can't just solder it back together.

And guitars are cool until they aren’t - PA systems are cool until they aren’t - basically everything is cool until it isn’t.a

 

[rob aylestone]

The shure software is good, but it doesn't really solve the issue of just too many random users. Here, in the office and workshop, everything was fine and perfectly stable, but in the venue, sadly not. I use a handheld RF explorer to see what is going on, and while at some points all looked good, a few hours later - more users had appeared. To make it worse, each manufacture has the usual sets of intermod free frequencies but in this case, two Shures and four Sennheisers don't play well with each other. Just how it is. Had I know the place was going to be RF hell, I would have had lots of options for not using ch 38 and going for coordinated channels - but It never occurred to me there would be so much activity. Normally, you can get 8-10 channels in the allocation, but of course people with one system can pick any channel they think works. They don't realise the impact.

 

[bouldersoundguy]

And guitars are cool until they aren’t - PA systems are cool until they aren’t - basically everything is cool until it isn’t.a

Guitars and PA systems don't have alternate options other than just not having them.

 

[Papanate]

The shure software is good, but it doesn't really solve the issue of just too many random users. Here, in the office and workshop, everything was fine and perfectly stable, but in the venue, sadly not. I use a handheld RF explorer to see what is going on, and while at some points all looked good, a few hours later - more users had appeared. To make it worse, each manufacture has the usual sets of intermod free frequencies but in this case, two Shures and four Sennheisers don't play well with each other. Just how it is. Had I know the place was going to be RF hell, I would have had lots of options for not using ch 38 and going for coordinated channels - but It never occurred to me there would be so much activity. Normally, you can get 8-10 channels in the allocation, but of course people with one system can pick any channel they think works. They don't realise the impact.

Mmmm - Workbench solves my issues - like when we are in New York City and Broadway lights up a couple of thousand wireless - I know where I can go - still we switched over to the Shure Axient Digital - and I haven’t looked back - of course it’s a lot of money - but I only have to spend it once - as for the Shure and Sennheiser combos - I learned long ago to not do that - the systems don’t play well with each other at all.

 

[rob aylestone]

Two channels of the Shures was all I could afford - I have quite a few Sennheiser mics and IEMs in the stock. The sound of the Shure's was nicer, despite being a Sennheiser user for a long time. I have 14 channels of the Axients for panto, with lav packs, and they're really nice and solid, RF wise. The big events are perfectly doable, I totally agree - but not when the actual users, frequencies and transmitter types are totally random - AND - appear and disappear. A few years back, we were doing a show in the theatre and on the sea front nearby they had been running bowls championships. At 6 they locked up and went back to their hotels, leaving the sound system on. Our radio mics (not on during the day) worked fine through their system - the people on the sea front got our show for free.