AUDIO WIRELESS SYSTEMS
BELOW The Rode Wireless Go system is a newway of recording quality audio
INNOVATIONS INWIRELESS GO CABLE FREE
There are more options than ever before for wire-free audio recording
WORDS ADAM DUCKWORTH
R unning long cables from a mic to your camera is pretty much a no-no these days. Apart from the obvious health and safety trip hazards of a long XLR cable stretched across a set, going wireless gives your talent freedom of movement when conducting interviews. And of course, wireless lavalier mics have long been a staple of TV and video production. Just about every TV show you see uses lots of clip-on mics, either in full view or hidden if possible, and the giveaway is the tell-tale bulge under the clothing of the wireless transmitter box.
These lapel mics can have either an omnidirectional or cardioid pick up pattern. Omni mics don’t need to be pointed at the speaker, but they will pick up other sources. Cardioid lav mics are more directional and need to be more carefully aimed as you’ll want them pointing to the speaker’s mouth. Lots of companies, such as Rode, Sennheiser, Saramonic, Sony and Kenro make lav mics as well as all sorts of wireless systems. The most traditional is the simple transmitter box, worn by the speaker with the lav mic plugged into it. This sends a signal to a receiver box that plugs into the camera with a cable. These traditional systems remain the most popular, coming in a range of prices to suit all budgets. A bargain option is the Saramonic SR- WM4C wireless kit, which is incredible value for money at about £95/$93 as it comes with a lavalier mic and transmitter unit. This can beam a signal for up to 60m/65 yards. It also runs on AA batteries and volume is controlled by a simple wheel. The Audio-Technica ATW-1701/P1 is a more expensive and feature-packed option, which costs around £317/$439. It comes with a cardioid condenser lavalier mic and a compact receiver that has multiple mounting options, for a wide range of uses. It provides balanced and
unbalanced output jacks with the option to control the levels, independent volume control and headphone jack, as well as a multi-coupling function. Offering more modern connectivity is Sony, with its range of UWP-D wireless audio systems ideal for modern Sony cameras that have the unique Multi Interface hotshoe. You put the dedicated receiver unit on the camera and there are no cables needed. The camera recognises the presence of an audio unit and automatically takes its audio feed from there. And the camera’s battery can supply power to the unit, too. There are also options to plug the receiver into the camera via a conventional cable, so it works on all types of cameras. But Sony goes one better with the URX- P03D dual wireless receiver, which costs £717/$579, plus another £75/$50 for the MI adapter. This is an ideal solution to the age-old issue of recording two people in conversation as it can accept signals from two separate transmitters that it records on separate channels. Then, it can output them both separately to your camera, via the MI shoe or using a pair of XLR leads that come with the pack or the included two-into-one cable. You can also set it to mix the audio from both channels, so a combined signal is outputted to two channels. The receiver has a third input for another mic, which typically could be
BELOW The Audio-Technica wireless set is a high-quality unit
that sits on the hotshoe
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