edward chick

I have been doing location sound for college big 10 sports for many years. Cos 11 or dpa turned upside down mounted to avoid sweat dripping into it, mount with strong Velcro. Run the cable around collar of shoulder pad to back of pads, secure the cable with strong medical tape. There usually is a “flex” type of suspension that connects the pads in the back. Transmitter fits perfectly in between. Secure with Velcro. Let trainer or equip manager sign off.  I have never lost a mic or transmitter with players hitting full contact.

Yes they (players) yell, you will have to ride the gain and pull your boom back, it’s a live situation be ready to move. Try to stay out of way on sidelines. Post game it’s follow your camera op and roll with it. You may get banged around slightly, but that’s the gig. They rarely touch the boom. You have not mentioned what level of football you are covering, but in my experience college and pros are pretty respectful  of you as long as you pay attention, you should have no problems. Your Producer/Director should have a good communication with the Sports  Information  Director or equivalent .They will dictate terms between coaches, players , and production crew. 

 Don’t know what type of wireless you are using, but Lectro SM on player and smqv both  at 250mw from bag to camera, I can be on opposite end zone and hear player clear and hit the camera clear.Also helps if there is an RF coordinator. I usually try to maintain line of site, but other players and tons of “guests” are always on sidelines. Depending on the story being told, player dialogue is important, (think NFL films).  Have fun, with players mic’d it’s like you are in the game. I’m sure others have better tips than me, but that is how I have been doing it for several years and it works.  

Clean bag. 

Was it a Sound Devices approved card? 

Love my CS3e for sports coverage.. huddles, post game interviews, etc. It pulls the voice out of the chaos. 

Tom.. Rock on! 

Denecke Compact TC slate. Try to get it in annually for checkup on the crystal. Or as others have mentioned if it takes a hard drop. 

Aircraft comms use vhf frequency range. Maybe you were being stepped on by close plane or comm tower. 

Repair fees for most lavs today can  cost almost as much as buying a new one. Sometimes the repair vendor will tell you that up front. It makes sense to me to consider them as expendable for a long job. I can understand why foh mixers would want a dual mic on key talent for a live show. Broadcast networks do it all the time even in studio which is pretty much a controlled environment. 

Silk long underwear is great to wear under street clothes. Also great under fleece or flannel lined pants. . Also silk glove liners are my go to for finite things like mic’ing up talent, riding trim pots, etc. I have had my kit out in -20 degree weather here in Michigan for the several days on end, and never had any issues. Liner socks under wool socks are essential also.Gore-Tex does make your feet sweat, the liner socks help absorb the moisture, hence keeping your feet warm. Pac type boots are good if you are going to be in deep snow, they do make your feet sweat. I prefer an insulated hiking boot or work boot like Irish Setter Elk hunter series, they  are very warm and have excellent traction on ice and snow if you are going to be  on the go. Down is a great outer layer for parka / jacket.  

Good luck. Sounds like a challenging and fun shoot!

Rule of thumb has always been a two block separation between hops and what is coming into bag. Wideband helps. 

Down load and learn to use Freq Finder. It is a good tool to help avoid intermod issues. 

He was not wearing a tie. That is always a first choice for me as well. 

Just ran into this issue today on the job. CEO of  automotive supplier was wearing a starched shirt with a jacket. Used my go to b6 with a furry over cover in space between chest button, no luck. Pulled that rig and used a white b6 just under center chest button. Button hid the b6 perfectly. No more rustle. I will try the rig PMC has posted next time. 

I’m another fan of the Foam Box. Comfortable to sit on, and handy just like a wood apple box. 

Your wireless may have been “stepped on” by a stronger source on your frequencies. I had that happen recently on a campus in Ohio. When I got home and checked freq site there was a DTV station that the campus owns that was really close to my frequency block. Sign of the times. It helps to have wide band gear or  if you have fixed blocks, get some used units in different blocks for just such emergencies. My interference only happened in one location on the campus. I moved a few feet in either direction and  the interference stopped, and I was able to get good sound. 

I have used Ambient ACN for several years. It works how Jim described it. Every six seconds the Master Lockit sends a signal to the Tiny Lockits. If out of range they have their own internal clocks that are quite stable to provide accurate tc. Interesting thread for sure.  

I have put transmitters on College football players and NHL players during practice . Always attached the transmitter to the middle of the pads in the back. Ran the mic around the front and Velcro’d it to the front of the pads with the element upside down. Never wrapped the transmitters in anything other than the Lectro  leather pouch. Never had an issue. I would attach the SSM to the back of the player’s sports bra. Attach the mic to the front of it or her jersey and send her off. If you can experiment with different mounts during a practice go for it. Player’s trainer may want to have a look at what you are doing for safety reasons. 

Just my .o2 that has worked for me numerous times. Let us know what you come up with . 

For a temp fix, put piece of card stock  in between the door and the batts, it should keep pressure on the batts against the terminal.  Then off to Lectro when you have the time to send it. I’ve done that with HM series. HmE I have not had that issue. 

Send to Lectro. They have a quick turnaround. 

Not overly busy here in Michigan. I’m mostly network news and college /pro sports. Sports  networks are starting up for football season obviously. Corporate and commercial work is down. 

What the others have said. Freq Finder is a good friend. Play with your gear before you head out. Always accept the fact that no wireless is impermeable to other rf sources. As you work more and get money up, think about getting a few Comteks. They are in the VHF band. Not sure how that is regulated in your neck of the woods, but here in USA I hardly ever have rf  issues with them. They do not have the fidelity as Lectrosonics or Zaxcom, but for reference they do just fine. 

I’ve been using Axient wireless for a year now. Range is good, sound is really good. I like the ability to change freqs from the receiver. You do have to re sync the Show Link after long periods of inactivity. The AD1x transmitters are a little big. But I’m mostly Network news or sit down interviews for sports docs. For commercials or corporate depending on the wardrobe I’ll use the Shures or Lectro sMV.

I still rock my Lectro 411as and SR series as well. A good friend and fellow mixer was using the Shure Axient series and raved about them so I bought a set. I had adapters made to from tA5f t Lemo for the transmitters. It’s cheaper than having multiple mics wired for the other transmitters (Lectrosonics).

There is a lot of cool wireless out there now. You have to look at what your production workload is requiring and plan it accordingly.

I’m mostly network news and sports docs with a smattering of corporate image and commercials. 

I interface with FX9s on a regular basis with the broadcast networks. As long as the camera frame rate matches yours on your mixer/recorder /sync box AND the BNC input on the side of the camera is set to IN on the Timecode port it’s a hard switch with a graphic line, you should be good to go. Never had to go into S/Q menu. Like PMC stated when camera is off speed you will not be in synch, when it comes back to your frame rate it will lock in via your tc box. I use Ambient Nanos. 

HIQ and Audioroot charger. 98wh hiq usually go through 2 a day during a 10 hour day. Sometimes 2.5 depending on number of wireless and tracks I’m running that day. 

I have both. The Bow ties can be clunky during run and gun for sports doc or fast moving jobs. The SNAs seem to get a little bit better range. I find the set screws that keep the antenna at the precise block setting need to be tightened periodically as they become loose over time. 

I have used Comteks with pretty good success. Last car to car I did was for a political spot, candidate was driving a Suburban. I dropped the bag with the Comtek M 216 connected to Comtek Mini MIte  1/2 wave antenna.  I gaffed the mini mite in the back of the suburban,  reception  in follow car was great. No drop out even when not in line of sight of talent vehicle. I too, like the cell phone Idea.