# Wireless Mic's



## TechDirector (Mar 5, 2003)

Does anybody here have any wireless mic's that clip onto the actor/actress? I have about 5 of them and I set one of them up (I don't have enough batteries to set anymore up) and the only way to set it up was to use the 1/8" jack. So I found a 1/8" to 1/4" converter and plugged it into the sound board. And it works, but it's not really loud. It seems to get distorted if I turn the gain and sliders up. I tried adjusting the other knobs but they don't do anything to make it sound better and louder. I'm thinking of buying a 1/4" to a male mic peice. Does anybody have the same problem with wireless mic's? They are almost like the mic's that you see on Jerry Springer. But mine are from "shure". I don't know the model number or anything else. We just discovered them in our school safe. Only god knows how long they've been in there. So they are most likely out-dated. Please Help!!! Thanks.


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## tm1000 (Mar 6, 2003)

TechDirector said:


> Does anybody here have any wireless mic's that clip onto the actor/actress? I have about 5 of them and I set one of them up (I don't have enough batteries to set anymore up) and the only way to set it up was to use the 1/8" jack. So I found a 1/8" to 1/4" converter and plugged it into the sound board. And it works, but it's not really loud. It seems to get distorted if I turn the gain and sliders up. I tried adjusting the other knobs but they don't do anything to make it sound better and louder. I'm thinking of buying a 1/4" to a male mic peice. Does anybody have the same problem with wireless mic's? They are almost like the mic's that you see on Jerry Springer. But mine are from "shure". I don't know the model number or anything else. We just discovered them in our school safe. Only god knows how long they've been in there. So they are most likely out-dated. Please Help!!! Thanks.



I don't know why you'd be losing signal. We use XLR (from the receiver to the mixer) for our 35 wireless, and mini-xlr from the element to the body pack. I was wondering if you're talking about from the mic to the transmitter or from the receiver to the mixer.


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## TechDirector (Mar 6, 2003)

Thats the problem though........I'm not sure what it is. Right now I'm probably assuming that it's the body pack mic. The signal is the same and it sounds the same whether the body pack is right next to the reciever, or all the way on the other side of the theater. So I'm pretty sure it's not the signal. Oh well.


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## delnor (Mar 8, 2003)

The volume is not effected by the signal thats why. Sure mics use a UHF frequency I believe and so signal stregnth would not effect volume. There is a gain adjustment on the mic itself which can be accessed with a small flat head screwdriver or with an actual sure gain adjustment screwdriver. The screw is marked with an arrow and + or - indicating the amount of gain. It should be under the battery cover right above where the batteries are insterted into the pack. Some older models of Sure mics have 1/4 out like you are saying which would not effect the signal. However I would reccomend you using XLR connectors if at all possible they pull out less often and are a better all around connection to your board. The gain on some wireless mics can also be set on the reciever end in a similar fasion.

It sounds like you might need a little walk through of the basic opperations of a sound board. If you have any other questions let me know. I am not a sound expert per say but I have worked alot of shows on sound crews, several of which were with professional sound techs that tought me a lot. If there is somthing I can't answer I will ask one of them for ya.


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## tm1000 (Mar 8, 2003)

Shure is UHF and VHF, depending on what type you buy.


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## TechDirector (Mar 11, 2003)

Well again, Im thinking that the mic for it is junk. It seems to be distorted. I am gettin a constant signal, but it sounds distorted. I looked around the body pack and "sure" enough, i found a gain nob to turn with the included screw driver and that brought the volume up dramatically. But it still sounded distorted. And you could hear the sound coming through, but all of the hanging mikes that are up are considerably louder then the wireless. And you can only hear it if it is put an inch in front of the mouth, otherwise you can't hear it. I did buy an XLR connector to connect to the sound board but it didn't work for some reason (hint: DON'T BUY ANYTHING FROM RADIO SHACK......lol).

But for now, I have given up on the wireless mics. We are currently supplied with enough hanging, floor, and other mics to give us what we want. Thank you all for your help!


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## delnor (Mar 11, 2003)

The mics themselves somtimes do go bad from use. You might want to try talking into it and running the cable through your fingers, you might find a bad spot in the cable. You can send the mic to Sure and get it repaired for less then the cost of buying a new one.


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## delnor (Mar 11, 2003)

Another thing I just thought about, fantom power (+48 volts) if you have fantom power on, on your board. The wireless mics will not work to protect themselves, or some of them become damaged. Make sure fantom power is turned off.


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## tm1000 (Mar 12, 2003)

delnor said:


> Sure and get it repaired for less then the cost of buying a new one.



not to be a pest, but I've noticed you've done this twice, the company name is Shure not Sure, I only say this because I use to spell it sure until a Pro Tech guy corrected me and I felt rather stupid.

http://www.shure.com


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## TechDirector (Mar 12, 2003)

delnor said:


> Another thing I just thought about, fantom power (+48 volts) if you have fantom power on, on your board. The wireless mics will not work to protect themselves, or some of them become damaged. Make sure fantom power is turned off.



True I tried to turn the phanthom power off but when I do, my hanging mics go off! lol so either way, I have 5 mics that don't work lol. I'll try the mic wire thing you said though. Thanks again.


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## delnor (Mar 12, 2003)

LOL, yeah thanks for catching that, actually I just type my posts out in Word and it auto corrects that all the time and I forget to change it somtimes.

In response to the fantom power thing... You can't turn it off per channel? Most boards have a fantom power controler on each channel so you can seporate different types of Mics. Try looking for it, but I guess it is possible to not have that seporation.


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## tm1000 (Mar 12, 2003)

delnor said:


> LOL, yeah thanks for catching that, actually I just type my posts out in Word and it auto corrects that all the time and I forget to change it somtimes.



Yeah, just checking that out, I was confused as to why you'd be typing it like that, thanks for the clarification. (I type mine in outlook XP, usually)


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## delnor (Mar 12, 2003)

Yeah I should probubly just add it to the dictionary so I dont have to remember all the time, but im lazy...


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## Jo-JotheSoundDog (Mar 13, 2003)

*wireless mics*

Okay after reading the original post, I am a little confused. I have worked with some old wireless systems, but I have never seen any that had an 1/8th inch output. In all wireless systems there are four very important parts. Let's start with the mic capsule. The mic capsule is the actual microphone. These do go bad faster than one thinks. This is the part that is often "sweated out" during a performance. If sweat gets into it, it will go down and sound bad until it has time to dry out. Some of the newer capsules are better at this. The Sennheiser MKII gold is the industry standard and has a high resistance to sweat. I am a big fan of the Countryman Isomax B6. It is the smallest capsule on the market, it is cheaper than the MKII and it is superior in sweat resistance. It just doesn't sound quite as natural as the MKII. 
The second part is the transmitter this is the pack that is generally worn on the waste, thigh, chest, or back. This unit requires a battery to send the signal. In active musicals, it is good practice to place the transmitter in a nonlubricated condom. Sweat can also destroy these units. In ways to cut production costs, I have heard of some theatres switching to plastic bags. But for my money the condom is the way to go. This unit also has an antenna. The antenna have occasion to go bad also. 
The third part is the reciever. This is usually stationed at the mix position. This is where the signal is recieved and sent to the mixing console. In larger houses you sometimes have to run antenna extensions to above the stage. 
And then there is the power supply. Pretty self explanatory. All of these have to be in working properly to get a good signal. 
In your post you say you only had enough batteries to test one, but did you try bouncing your good batteries to the other units?
Hope this helps a lil'


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## TechDirector (Mar 13, 2003)

Sweat gets on the mic's??? I never thought of that. And you would rather use condoms then plastic bags to cover the body packs? haha!!!!! But you have to remember, in a previous post, I mentioned they were in the main office's school safe. And I have no idea how long ago they bought them. Probably before I was born. But I'm not too worried about them now. With those stupid dimmers cleaned out, sound should be fine and I won't need the wireless anyway.


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## tm1000 (Mar 14, 2003)

*Re: wireless mics*


Jo-JotheSoundDog said:


> ... The Sennheiser MKII gold is the industry standard...


Great Element, however I have also come to liking the DPA 4060, great sounding audio and a small element for about 400 dollars list each, we have 6 of those, plus 12 MKII (non-gold) for about 300 list. The one you mention (Gold) is 375 list.


Jo-JotheSoundDog said:


> ... In active musicals, it is good practice to place the transmitter in a nonlubricated condom. Sweat can also destroy these units. In ways to cut production costs.....But for my money the condom is the way to go.....



We had to use condoms over the summer time for our production of Les Mis. Our opening night we put a shure ulx on a girl in our show and when I got it back that night, the LCD display on the lav was condensed, I had to open up the unit and clean everything before I could turn it back on, after that we just used the condom and it worked perfectly.


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## dvsDave (Mar 14, 2003)

*Favorite Transmitter/Receiver sets*

I like the mikes, but what gear do you use as the transmitter/receiver set?


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## tm1000 (Mar 14, 2003)

*Re: Favorite Transmitter/Receiver sets*


dvsDave said:


> I like the mikes, but what gear do you use as the transmitter/receiver set?



2 Shure U series (UHF) [http://www.shure.com/wireless/uhf/default.asp#dual-combo]
12 Shure ULX Series (UHF) [http://www.shure.com/wireless/ulx/ulx_professional.asp]
16 Vega U2020 (UHF) [http://www.showorks.com/Pro_Audio/Vega/Vega-index.htm]
20 Shure LX series (UHF) [http://www.shure.com/wireless/lx/default.asp#lavalier]

and 2 handheld Vega Wireless


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## tm1000 (Mar 14, 2003)

I just thought of this, you were talking to TechDirector weren't you?


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## Jo-JotheSoundDog (Mar 14, 2003)

*Re: Favorite Transmitter/Receiver sets*


tm1000 said:


> dvsDave said:
> 
> 
> > I like the mikes, but what gear do you use as the transmitter/receiver set?
> ...


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## Jo-JotheSoundDog (Mar 14, 2003)

*Re: wireless mics*


tm1000 said:


> Jo-JotheSoundDog said:
> 
> 
> > ... The Sennheiser MKII gold is the industry standard...
> ...


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## tm1000 (Mar 14, 2003)

*Re: wireless mics*


Jo-JotheSoundDog said:


> tm1000 said:
> 
> 
> > Jo-JotheSoundDog said:
> ...



We bought some Countryman last year and for some odd reason they sounded terrible, we couldn't figure out what it was, but we just decided it was because of our sound board, so when we bought the MKIIs it was great sounding audio, I think we have only had one sweatout.[/quote]


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## Jo-JotheSoundDog (Mar 14, 2003)

*Re: wireless mics*


tm1000 said:


> [
> 
> We bought some Countryman last year and for some odd reason they sounded terrible, we couldn't figure out what it was, but we just decided it was because of our sound board, so when we bought the MKIIs it was great sounding audio, I think we have only had one sweatout.


[/quote]
Did you get the B-6 or the B-3.

I tried the B-3 once and hated it. But I have never had a problem with the B-6 and I've gone through about forty of them. Right out of the package they consistently sounded the same and I can usually get about 192 performances from a capsule beofre it goes down the dumps.
Whereas the sound guy I replaced had just restocked with MKII's. Throughout the course of a 12 week run, 8 performances a week. I usually had three sweat outs a night.


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## tm1000 (Mar 16, 2003)

*Re: wireless mics*


Jo-JotheSoundDog said:


> tm1000 said:
> 
> 
> > We bought some Countryman last year and for some odd reason they sounded terrible, we couldn't figure out what it was, but we just decided it was because of our sound board, so when we bought the MKIIs it was great sounding audio, I think we have only had one sweatout.
> ...



Yeah I think it was the B-3


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## delnor (Mar 17, 2003)

Just wondering what luck you guys had with Sennheiser stuff? To be completly honest I have not used it, I always use Shure equiptment. When I am doing things on my own, I use Shure just because they are about 2 miles down the road from my house. Sennheiser I have herd a lot of good things about from people who do proessional theater sound installs. I am thinking about getting a few channels of sennheiser for a building I am working on.


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## Jo-JotheSoundDog (Mar 18, 2003)

*Sennheiser Equipment.*


delnor said:


> Just wondering what luck you guys had with Sennheiser stuff? To be completly honest I have not used it, I always use Shure equiptment. When I am doing things on my own, I use Shure just because they are about 2 miles down the road from my house. Sennheiser I have herd a lot of good things about from people who do proessional theater sound installs. I am thinking about getting a few channels of sennheiser for a building I am working on.



I think my biggest problem with the Sennheiser gear, is that my sales rep keeps trying to update my older gear. But I have to keep telling him that there is nothing wrong with it. If I could justify the expense, I would love to pick up another 12 channels or so. I am a huge fan of Sennheiser and I probably will stick with them for wireless in the future.


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## delnor (Mar 19, 2003)

Yeah that is what I have herd from a few people actually. I have always been a Shure fan but with the expence, Sennheiser is starting to sound a lot better. (Sound a lot better.... ok im done)


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## tm1000 (Mar 20, 2003)

delnor said:


> Just wondering what luck you guys had with Sennheiser stuff? To be completly honest I have not used it, I always use Shure equiptment. When I am doing things on my own, I use Shure just because they are about 2 miles down the road from my house. Sennheiser I have herd a lot of good things about from people who do proessional theater sound installs. I am thinking about getting a few channels of sennheiser for a building I am working on.



Great luck with them, they all still work after doing two major productions (but it hasn't been a year yet with them) I'll have to keep you updated on this sweat-out issue I'm hearing about from members on this board. It hasn't happened to me yet.


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## delnor (Mar 20, 2003)

To tell you the truth, I have never had a problem with sweat out. I usually have a fairly large crew that checks the mics during intermissions replaces batteries and cleans them. We have never put them in bags or anything. The only time when I did that was when I have had a speaker on stage for long periods of time. One man shows tend to sweat a lot more.


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## tm1000 (Mar 21, 2003)

delnor said:


> ...during intermissions replaces batteries...



Why types of batteries do you use?


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## Jo-JotheSoundDog (Mar 26, 2003)

*wireless mics*

The condoms only protect the transmitter. The actual sweat out occurs at the capsule. I have heard of people scotch-guarding a small piece of nylon and covering the capsule that way, to protect it. But in my theatre we don't have the luxury of much distance between the audience and the actors. I have most of my problems with sweating actors during dance scenes. It doesn't really matter how long they're on stage, it is the action that is taking place. And I too wonder why on earth you would change batteries at intermission. I usually train the run crew basic mic maintenance and load them up with a spare capsule and fresh battery, but I couldn't justify changing a battery at intermission unless I had a faulty battery. With the Sennheiser systems a Copper top lasts me at least 4 and a half hours. Which is good for one show. I have squeezed two shows out of one battery,but right after curtain call it was dead. 
Is that a difference with the shure systems?


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## tm1000 (Mar 28, 2003)

*Re: wireless mics*


Jo-JotheSoundDog said:


> The condoms only protect the transmitter. The actual sweat out occurs at the capsule. I have heard of people scotch-guarding a small piece of nylon and covering the capsule that way, to protect it. But in my theatre we don't have the luxury of much distance between the audience and the actors. I have most of my problems with sweating actors during dance scenes. It doesn't really matter how long they're on stage, it is the action that is taking place. And I too wonder why on earth you would change batteries at intermission. I usually train the run crew basic mic maintenance and load them up with a spare capsule and fresh battery, but I couldn't justify changing a battery at intermission unless I had a faulty battery. With the Sennheiser systems a Copper top lasts me at least 4 and a half hours. Which is good for one show. I have squeezed two shows out of one battery,but right after curtain call it was dead.
> Is that a difference with the shure systems?



Ever heard of Pro-Cell Batteries? They last me 8 hours.


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## delnor (Mar 28, 2003)

Thats what I use is pro-cell, and basicly what it comes down to is that we have the budget to change batteries a lot so we do. I don't wait for them to get low. They arn't wasted we take the slightly drained ones and use them for radios and other battery opperated devices used for the shows. I don't change all the batteries for every mic, just the ones that are used a lot and get drained quickly.


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## Jo-JotheSoundDog (Mar 28, 2003)

*procell batterys*

Heard of them yes.
Used them yes.
Had a weird little problem with them years ago, tell you the truth I can't remember exactly what it was. But when I use a battery in a mic, it is brand new, period. I don't want to play the how many hours has that battery been on for game. I can get the copper top for cheaper and I have only had a couple little problems with them. I think that over the years I have used close to 20,000 batteries most have been copper tops and only about 10 little problems I can remember.


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