cory

A team that works with me is just coming off a gig where some hard lessons were learned. Luckily we had backups in place. Unfortunately we definitely had to use them. I was not out in the field for this one so I don't have all of the information, but I was helping coordinate the setup and running around finding solutions when things went down. This is what I gathered from talking to the 3 guys in the field. Want to post this here to 1) let folks thinking of trying the same thing know what to do/not do. 2) hopefully get some insight as to alternate solutions 3) see if other folks have encountered the same thing. pre tech day We wanted to use 2 TRXLAs to transmit four channels to 1 QRX200. I didn't remember if we had the stereo version of the TRXLAs or not, but my buddy also working on the job went into the extended menu and brought up "stereo mode" and saw two sets of meters and told me we did. That was a mistake. TRXLA mono AND stereo TXs can get to that menu option, but it only works on one. The trade off? You lose neverclip and around $450 for the modification, but you gain stereo. I really think that different menus should be loaded on to each model so as not to confuse users. This is not the only menu item that isn't functional, and it is my opinion that there should be no menu items available for features that are not available on a product. This is the day before the real tech day, so we had enough time to work around... By buying and installing the transmitter option for the Maxx to deal with two of those channels and switching to a TRX742 to transmit the other two channels (this is done at the end of the day) actual tech day Maxx transmitter falls short. During the course of the day we found that the range on the Maxx transmitter was less than acceptable. 10-15 feet AT MOST with direct line of sight in an indoor environment. Decision? add a dipole antennae (this is what we had available, I'm sure there are other better options) to try to boost range. *Note, we couldn't add the dipole to the receiver end for external production reasons. Results? Indoors test environment, the range is greatly improved, but the ergonomics are reduced significantly (not to mention we're now adding third party products.) But we decide to go with it, as we're running out of options and time. TRX/QRX flange/phase issue? Not quite sure how to explain this one. Basically, when we took the 4 signals out of the QRX and tried to monitor them through headphones (either combined, or 2 to a side) there was a crazy "phasing ish type flange issue" can't really describe it any other way. Flipping the phase did not help. Eventually needed to use the QRX for only 2 channels and introduce a different stereo receiver. Didn't have time to test for sure what was causing the problems. Given more time I would have liked to switch out the recorder (664) to see if it was a headphone monitoring issue. TRXs seems to modulate the gain of tone We generate tone on Maxx. looks steady on the Maxx's meters. Send it out via built in link and TRXs to qrx. Receiving end, the tone is fluctuating +-2db around where it is supposed to be. All four channels. Could this be NC or limiting somehow kicking in where we don't want it to be? shoot day 1 1 TRX drops dead turns off suddenly. We change to fresh batteries. No dice. Change again. Out for the count. We substitute it out. Maxx internal TX -- even with dipole boost -- falls short again Out in the field we were reduced to 20-30 ft range, far less than what we need. We switch out transmitting options quickly and stop using Maxx internal TX altogether. Other than those issues, the remaining QRXs and TRXLAs worked like a dream, and I'm really happy with them. But it would have been nice to be able to use the 4 channels and internal maxx transmitter. TRX742 was a complete champ. Hope this was useful/not too confusing/ would love to hear your thoughts!

Whoa! How many hours approx?

How long do you get on the TRX's with pana? Also, where is a good place to source them from? Getting ready to make that hard switch. C

Hey Dave-- First of all, thanks for totally kicking ass. Can't wait to see what you come up with next! So far we've modded four Remove the insert, trim, and replace. Conceptually easy, but hard in execution-- you need very strong thread and someone very good at sewing-- has to be done by hand.

Very interesting-- is this for an Occulus Rift gig? Try Jerry at Posthorn or Dale Pro Audio?

Yeah, the shipping will probably end up costing you more than the mod, unfortunately. However, I do have to say that ever since we modded the Stingrays they are out even more than they used to be (which didn't seem possible). K-tek really knocked it out of the park with these bags.

Hey Robert Usually a 2-3 day turnaround. Can do a 1 day turnaround but there's a rush fee.

The stingray for the 664 does this. The original small stingray has "rigid" underwear. We absolutely love the stingrays and the innovation coming out of k-tek. Particularly stoked about some the upcoming harness things!

I'm really excited to show off our small stingray mod that makes the "underwear" collapsible! Now it fits nicely in pelican cases and large backpacks Anyone interested in having us mod yours? PM me! http://i.imgur.com/6BqLZoj.jpg http://imgur.com/2mGjZpL.jpg See pictures below!

Internet forums can be daunting sometimes, but also extremely useful. Don't be afraid to ask questions-- that's what these places are for. And I think you'll find that on this forum in particular that you'll find a lot of nice knowledgeable folks who are willing to help out. And the occasional comment from the peanut gallery, of course. Also, there are older sennheiser evolution series than g2s that are incompatible with the others (that are sometimes mistakes for g2s on first glance)

Philip, your posts have also been extremely helpful. Are you worried to say "you'll need to fix things in post" to a producer? I guess one thing that I have been trying to do is stress that they need to shoot proper coverage (i.e don't just do everything 1 take in wide...) and, as Pascal said, try to do it so that almost everything can be handled sans wires.

This is a really great thread. I've been buying PowerEx's by the bucketful, but now will look into these new eneloops! C

The new DR-70D is clearly a consumer/prosumer device. HOWEVER, look at what it's packing. Pretty impressive looking! Anyone had one in their hands/know where I can demo in NYC? I'd love to mess around with this little guy. http://www.tascam.eu/en/dr-70d.html

The new DR-70D is clearly a consumer/prosumer device. HOWEVER, look at what it's packing. Pretty impressive looking! Anyone had one in their hands/know where I can demo in NYC? I'd love to mess around with this little guy. http://www.tascam.eu/en/dr-70d.html

Pascal, your posts have been extremely helpful. Are you able to boost equipment/your own rate when asked to do OMB? One thought that I had is negotiating up that way and then using that money to hire a boom operator...

Pretty awesome YouTube! Where can I easily source those cables from when we're on the go? Would it be available at Home Depot? RadioShack? My buddy in Denver couldn't find anything useable on the fly...

Yes I know that. Do you run into that in Texas at all?

Just saw this, sent a TXT

More and more often, I am encountering producers who tell me that they've "never heard of a two person sound crew (let alone a 3 person one with a utility) and what do I mean that narrative shoots need a boom operator? Am I not talented enough to do my job?" etc. etc. etc. Are other people encountering this? What do you do in a situation like this? How do you let them know about the importance of a boom operator-- and unfortunately no, the AC analogy doesn't work.

Just in case you haven't heard them yet, have been LOVING the sounds NASA has released to the public: www.soundcloud.com/NASA

Just as Rado has mentioned, would be awesome if the internal CL could send zaxnet commands over TC. I'm all about saving space in the bag!

Update: he couldn't find a SMA connector that fit the transmitter at RadioShack. Unfortunately the folks there generally know more about retail than their stock these days. I'd be curious to know if anyone knows an item that can be easily found at RadioShack or home depot that would work... But we did find luckily find an awesome fellow soundie to help him out with a 411 + um400 kit!

Larry/Ben-- RadioShack guy is suggesting this stuff-- do you think it'll work? http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2103324 RG58 PL-259 Cable

Thanks for this post! Information I definitely wanted. I am a huge fan of the PowerEx's (NiMH) and use them on almost every gig--- but also am hoping to find a rechargeable solution that rivals the disposable lithiums,