Michael Wynne

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19 minutes ago, Johnny Karlsson said:

I’ve been running DBSM @ 25mw with great results. 

Same, it seems to be the sweet spot for most of my work.

I believe it has to do with the per channel bandwidth limit, but I don’t know from an engineering stand point.  I’ve only heard of what’s possible now that they can utilize it and it seems to open new possibilities that weren't possible before.  Here’s an excellent video from Gotham Sound on the possibilities of WMAS with Shure.

WMAS approval allowing high bandwidth bi directional communication is the future for all remote control protocols such as frequency, gain settings, sleep modes, remote recording, etc. No need to rely for unstable and overcrowded 2.4 ghz technology used in todays tech.  It’s great news for all.

On 3/29/2014 at 5:27 PM, Stuart Wilson said:

 

What I was hoping to find out was if the Pro Audio EQ with the wide band sounds much better than the standard EQ with the wide band.

bringing this very old thread back to life!  For some reason my CW version has more low end then my P Version?  Not sure if there possibly set up wrong at the factory.

The DSSM will be an excellent addition to my D2 wireless eco system.  I too what would love remote control if TX’s . I’m betting that WMAS with its 6 MHz bandwidth will the be future for remote control for not only Lectro but all manufacturers in the next couple years and all those 2.4 ghz controlled systems will be outdated.  And if/when we do see a WMAS compatible system with remote control Lectro’s track record shows that these D2 TX’s will most likely work with the next gen RX’s maximizing your investment.

Let's not forget the goals of a receivership, meaning things are most likely not over. Hopefully just changing over hands.  The Aaton brand and its products has a very high value and a loyal user base who are willing to make the investment for the type of  quality they provide.

Like LA & NY, the Atlanta market is at a stand still for TV & Film narrative work.  Local Unions are literally distributing food to help keep financially desperate members afloat.  IATSE members are loosing their homes, their health insurance and are under incredible mental and emotional pressure.  Some are quietly working through outside channels such as BET, Tyler Perry, reality TV and non studio affiliated indies on the interim but those percentages of mixers are very small. For most of us deeply embedded in the traditional channels, it’s a good time to do all that stuff you said you would do once you had some time off and then some.  Hoping this gets resolved soon!

Thought I'd share my build out progress for my standing cart with you guys!   Please excuse the cabling not being fully finished but it's a work in progress.  

Beautiful cart design Phil!  There’s a mixer here in Atlanta who’s built one very similar to this with the same Innovativ base and I’ve also been considering going this route.

In the US you’re looking at 550-608 MHz plus the guard band/duplex gap.   According to the rep Andrew in the Gotham NAB video there are no current plans to make 941 MHz in the US available.  So you’re looking about 68 MHz ( approx 2 Lectro single blocks 22/23  range ) Anything below 550 Mhz is not avail because of the RF chip they chose due its availability in manufacturing and getting to market
 

Very nice set up Shane!

When I wrote this review, I hadn’t actually had the opportunity to use them on a film set so the practicality of power management and RF robustness were still in question. But now I’ve been able to utilize them on a TV narrative workflow with the A20RX for about three months now along side my mixed bag of Lectro digital / digital hybrid.  We typically always cook them at 20mw, and the gain forward is a life saver since I’m very particular about transmitter gain staging and often utilities get in a hurry and don’t remember to set them where I request.  What’s interesting is I switched to all Nimh for my Lectros as well and the magic number for all talent batt changes is every 3 hours around the house.  We have ample time to change batts in between a scene or lighting set up even with big page count days.  Nobody ever complains, it’s never an issue and nobody is ever waiting  I do use low voltage alarms on my Cantar Mini hydra for my A20RX & timers for my Lectro which are helpful as well.  I have two of the battery doublers if I absolutely need it but I doubt I’d rarely deploy,  But I’d go with AAA lithium’s first if needed.   As far as RF robustness there as every bit of good as my Lectro digital.  I will say however that the A20 mini can be a bit more prone to RF body absorption, so transmitter placement is key,

11 hours ago, Martin Lonek said:

Hi Michael, 

thanks for a nice review. I´ll be frank and short. The technology of A20-mini and the new Nexus is fabulous - you´ve said it all and I agree. The reason I would never invest in this could not be simpler : the battery life and a lack of physical settings. All I try to reach is green (rechargeable) approach, great sound recording while not bothering a talent. With only 4 hours of battery life -  all these great remote features aren´t worth a penny. I use SK 6212 txs with great sound, similar RF range,  same size and simply amazing 13 hour battery life, with full user menu on tx. Yes, I´m limited to 110 db of dynamics only, but it has never put me down yet. I simply figured-out the right "one setting fits all" during hours of homework. One other reason I will never buy Nexus: since it is not a modular syste m anymore: once it goes wrong, you loose 8 to 12 channels, which, for me, would cause a disaster. And no, I don´t want to keep another 15k USD nexus unit as a backup in my van. I ĺl stick with 2 channel superslot rxs for a time being.

Hi Martin, I checked out the SK 6212 and it looks like a great piece of kit!   In regards to your comment, I also am a big fan of modularity and it's a must have in my kit.  I agree it's substantial investment for an additional Nexus and I also feel like it would be necessary on a cart if it was your primary system.  But you also would gain the additional use of simultaneous bands which could be advantageous for larger channel counts.   I'm currently using A20RX's on my small cart, and plan on installing my Nexus on the big cart for my next show.  I'll also be using my Lectro digital along side for now, as I need much more than what SD has to currently offer such as plant TX's with 48v, boom plug ons, handhelds, higher power TX's etc.   I will say that I don't mind the power on the A20 mini and management on set is not as daunting as one may think.  However I'm in narrative and we do have the opportunity to change batts.  Also as Rich posted, Nexlink really takes power management to the next level and has been able to not have to change batts before lunch, etc.

17 minutes ago, NathanWBS said:

There are BNC connections on the rear to allow cascading. .

 

Nathan, maybe I’m not being clear.  

“ I wish the BNC Inputs and cascade out were both on the rear”    Meaning 4 physical BNC connections on rear.

45 minutes ago, Constantin said:

I asked Paul Isaacs about this on Facebook. He said that transmitters can be spaced 400kHz apart, so 16 transmitters require only 6.4MHz. So theoretically 24MHz should be more than enough. And the Nexus can scan basically the entire spectrum up to 1500MHz to find a suitable 24MHz window. 

Theoretically yes, practically speaking in a fully coordinated RF workflow with COMS, IFB's, & 3rd Party Transmitter/RX's only time will tell.   Also forget anything in the 1500Mhz band here in the US, I got the best FCC minds at 695 scratching their heads on how to get that licensed for a production sound mixer doing narrative work anywhere in the states and SD keeps it on tight lock down until you unravel the puzzle.

Thanks for sharing, nice to see a real photo of this that isn''t in a moody RGB dungeon with haze! LOL 🙂

5 minutes ago, VASI said:

I had a play with A-20 Nexus at Visono, Sweden; yesterday.

 

 

Very excited about this product for many reasons, but if I had to to critique my initial thoughts are is I wish the BNC Inputs and cascade out we're both on the rear.  I assume the thought was so bag users could utilize, but this makes cascading a bit awkward on the install on a proper sound cart, they could have made a bracket like they did for wifi for this purpose having both BNC's on the rear.  If I was a bag user I would much prefer the A20RX slot mounts which I currently own and utilize on my second smaller stealth cart.   Also my gut instinct is I think it's advantageous to have two of these on a cart.  First reason is I'm a bit nervous about fitting 16 channels in one 24Mhz band, that seems a bit limiting for those of used to 470-608Mhz found on the other brands,   Adding a second gives you about 24Mhz more, but once again the BNC situation is driving me nuts on how to accomplish a clean install.

On 11/28/2022 at 2:26 PM, rich said:

on my cart, i use 2x A10 racks. the racks weigh 3.6Kg each before i put the receivers in. and one Nexus will replace both of them.

 

i'm not thinking of using a Nexus in my bag rig for the moment.

I think the A20 Rx is the way to go in the bag to compliment the Nexus on the cart.

A couple good range examples here for the A20 Mini & A20 RX in LR mode on some 1/4 wave whips.

3 minutes ago, codyman said:

Are you finding yourself turning off all the transmitters remotely when you have a lot of downtime between setups?  If so, how much more battery life does that eek out in terms of time?

I haven’t used them on a narrative film set yet, so I don’t have that feedback yet.  But when the TX is off, the user should be able to extend those battery TRT’s by the exact amount of time they are off.

22 minutes ago, gabelinkiewicz said:

Also how quickly do they power back up from sleep and are ready to transmit again?

 

Thanks for doing all this extensive testing. There’s not much real world info out on these.

Providing you have Bluetooth range power off/on is instantaneous

1 minute ago, Jobo said:

I had the opportunity to demo the A20 mini with an A20rx in a superslot a few weeks back. Comparing to lectro D2 wires, to my ear, the lectro had a slightly richer sound.  On the flip side, the SD did a bit better in usable RF range being able to jump away from DTV into those higher bands. 

Hi jobo, thanks for the feedback and also your valuable feedback on the D2 comparison.  My first impression of the A20 mini transmitter audio converter and modulation quality was it was very good.  But first impressions are not very conclusive.  I’ll need to do some more testing with different mics before I really determine what I really think about it.  I want to get some other mics & voices into play to see how things are really translating 

7 minutes ago, Jobo said:

Nice write up Michael. Curious your thoughts on how the A20 sounds as compared to “other” brands? I don’t believe you mentioned the sonic quality of the SD modulation. 

 

 I had the opportunity to demo the A20 mini with an A20rx in a superslot a few weeks back. Comparing to lectro D2 wires, to my ear, the lectro had a slightly richer sound.  On the flip side, the SD did a bit better in usable RF range being able to jump away from DTV into those higher bands. 
 

Keep the YouTube vids goin, I always take a peek and enjoy.

Bought a couple of the A20 TX’s along with the A20 RX.  Been working on this review  for a while, want to share 

Sound Devices A20, Love it or Leave it?

Oh how I do love JW Sound!  Only here can you find threads like these.  As I have some time off in between shows and am caring for my own state of mind it's so nice to read and relate!  Cheers.