Gordonmoore1

In the American Hemisphere - 608 to 614Mhz are reserved for radio astronomy. For units authorized by the FCC (US units) or ICE (Canada) we cannot open the transmitter for those frequencies. For the export units, yes, 608-614 can be opened up - but the units may not have the FCC or ICE markings. It's a government thing - not a hardware thing. It is the equivalent of having TV channel 37 occupied by a TV station broadcast. In my dreams, I envision a world with unified spectrum allocations but alas, it is not to be......... so, for block 23, the usable spectrum gives you 19.6Mhz of available freqs instead of 25.6Mhz.

In case you didn't plow through all the previous posts in the HMa announcement thread that started in January, HMA is shipping now and due to popular demand, responds to the RM tone controls. No Sleep or Unsleep (the hardware is not on the board for that) but you can exert the other commands (freq, level, LF rolloff etc). Because the levels cover a wider range, New Endian has been notified of the change so they can add the additional level commands. Not sure when or if there is a new version available. But you can always use the incremental adjustment until then.

Yes, indeed!

RE: the AES endplate - yes both analog and AES mode - this is just starting in design (but we have started!) so don't expect it overnight. It will be switchable between analog and AES, and provides for external power input. Be bigger than standard endplates to allow circuit room but we will make it as tiny as we can. It will be backwards compatible with the other SR receivers. Think a little deeper than the SREXT but looking quite a bit like it. RE: the Octopack - we've seen some interesting posts asking for additional capabilities - some good ideas there.

Bandwidth is 75MHz (three blocks) like L series and Venue 2 to maintain high selectivity (think UCR411 in terms of interference rejection) and match transmitters. Jeremiah, AES end panel is in design stages - it will be fully compatible with ALL SR's, not just the C - but it's just been started so don't expect any time soon. All other end panels are compatible. I will, however, increase the caffeine uptake levels in engineering to "speed" it along.

That's an exceptionally high current drain - try it with alkaline - if it behaves properly with them, the lithium's might be imitations.

Actually, Lectro has had a top mount five pin from the very beginning for the SR - we call it the SR5P and it was developed because Sony did not have the second channel audio pin active in their cameras and there were also some mono (non-stereo cameras on the market). That was our development!

I have been following (but Wes and Larry have been doing a great job piping up) - you are being heard...... This thread is really very helpful. Gordon

Clarification here - Lectro Digital Hybrid is definitely different from the Wisycom (which has a digital component but is NOT digital hybrid) and is not "the same as analog". If you want the technical details, you can read all about it here. - http://www.google.com/patents/US7225135. (That way I don't clutter this thread up with unrelated details.) Both transmitter and receiver are full digital devices. It is correct we do not transmit 0's and 1's - the link is FM . We do have systems which do so but not in the portable formats. My apologies to Ty Ford and Audio Limited for infringing on their thread but I wanted to correct that one statement (and I know it's beating an old drum) . Now, back to the purpose of this thread - the Audio Limited 1010 review by Ty Ford. Go, TY! Gordon

I don't think the HM has the code space available but I'll look into it. One of the beauties of newer generation designs is the increasing availability of faster processors with more space that are getting tinier physically.

Regarding the Remote tone controls on the HMA - I have started a new thread (since this one has started wandering into other realms) discussing that feature. http://jwsoundgroup.net/index.php?/topic/26930-hma-transmitter-rc-question/ In short - we can do it (and will do it) - we just won't have the mute or sleep functions - but we will have levels, frequency, roll off and the other goodies. "Sleep" is precluded since the hardware does not exist on the board and cannot be implemented without re-submitting for testing again. Since the approvals are pending any day, and since we need time to write the code, the HMa will probably ship without the dweedle tone features to start but that handy little USB port will let you upgrade to the new firmware as soon as it is available - acquire now, dweedle later!

I started a new thread on this since the earlier one was straying off on tangents. We took a long look at the HMa and it looks like we can add dweedle tone controls for frequency, mic levels and maybe roll off. We cannot mute or enable a Sleep mode, the circuits are not there to support those functions. Adding those circuits at this time would mean huge delays and additional, very costly approvals testing since we are already 99% finished with those tests at the lab (and have paid heavily to do so). So, we have "pulled the trigger" on writing the code. It remains to be seen if the new code will be immediately available when we begin shipping but the HMa has a nice little USB port, so you can update anytime we come up with the new firmware. Fair warning - we may yet encounter some other technical problem but we are committing to the change as of this morning. Thanks for all the input - great ideas!

I double checked with engineering. The non-backlit units did not have a issue of this nature. There are other possible causative factors. From engineering - . I am not aware of any similar problems on non-backlit units. If any exist, they have a different underlying cause, because we were using the old processor's brownout logic correctly. Nonetheless, I am on the verge of creating updates for older and very older SMV products, and would love to address any and all known problems at this time. If there is a way to make this customer unit fail, or to make one of our units of the same vintage fail, I'll gladly diagnose it and fix it. We checked the history of repairs exhibiting the wrong block issue and there were several underlying causes - the common of which was corrosion. But the best solution now is to get those units in to the mothership and we can see if there might be yet more undiagnosed gremlins. Now is the time to tackle it since DT is working on updates for your unit! Gordon

Marcelo, Checking now - stay tuned!

On behalf of everyone at Lectrosonics, I extend our deepest sympathy and prayers to the Wexler family. On the same note, however, we celebrate the life and contributions of a man who strived to excel not just at his work but at his world, seeking to make better all that he touched whether it was a film, the working conditions to create that film or the world conditions that inspired that film. His legacy lies not just in his cinematic creations but also in the mark he leaves on this world. None exemplify that legacy better than his son, Jeff, who carries on the tradition of care and betterment. We are the better for having been touched by him, just as we are touched by his son. God Speed. Gordon

We have , in fact, posted a detailed white paper on wide band design on our site specific to the our designs. http://www.lectrosonics.com/Support/Wireless/wideband-receiver-design.html We try to stick to the facts - "just the facts, ma'am" Gordon

I suspect it may be a simple programming issue to make these compatible with the UK Frequencies - we are still in the process of getting the EU approvals so patience please. But once approvals are in hand, we can set it up so the UK dealers can program them so that the switches would give you the UK frequencies. Everything below 216.00MHz. Regarding making the deviations different between countries, that unfortunately is not as easy as it sounds. It's not hard technically - that IS easy - but it is a regulatory issue. We cannot (as in are not allowed) to have multiple user switchable deviations. Because one deviation or another would be illegal in one jurisdiction or another, their PTT offices will never allow the approvals required to import into that country. So, in order to be approved for the UK, it cannot be user switchable for US deviation - we would never get the approvals. Not our choice, we would love to make it all much easier. Unfortunately, pushing for unity in the specifications allowed generally pushes the regulations to the lowest common denominator, not the best. A dealer here in the US just tested the VHF IFB with the Phonak in-ears. They are saying the results were very good and that they walked very well and "sounded great". Stay tuned! Gordon

I've not heard of this being a recurring issue - but then again, I may not have been told! Regardless, I'll look into it and see what's happening. Sounds like the switch is failing and it simply recurred on the same location. I'll check with Jerry too. Stay tuned! Gordon

The Tile locators are Bluetooth - you have my curiosity up on that - I would assume you would put them on the talents receivers (you having possession of the transmitter) so I'm not sure what the impact would be - it's pretty far out of band - I may just order some to try it out - stay tuned! Gordon (there's theory and there's what works -may they never meet)

Hi Jeff, Thanks for the well reasoned clarification. As a wise man once said, "When invited to a knife fight - bring a gun...." :^) Yes, the Digital Hybrid technology is patented as is our Automatic Mixer algorithm (Continuous Gain Modulation with Auto-Skewing). Yes, if a product was brought to market and it demonstrably violated one of our (very few) patents we would be in contact with the manufacturer. We would not do so merely on the possibility or rumor of such a violation but when we have determined it to be true by buying said product and analyzing/confirming the design and deciding that it would have a negative impact on our company. We find little virtue in spending hard earned money on lawyers - we would rather keep engineers off the streets, gainfully employed and making new toys. What do you call 1,000 lawyers buried up to their necks in sand? A good start...... My favorite anecdote about patents is the statement by Charles H. Duell. He was the Commissioner of the US Patent Office in 1899. He wanted to close down the patent office in 1899 because - and I quote - "everything that can be invented has been invented." The Patent Office and Patent laws have been overwhelmed by the proliferation of technology. There is renewed interest and discussion on the Hill of long overdue patent law reform to account for the current pace of technology change. It is probably time for it. Gordon Now I'm going over to the "Whispering Sultry things into the Boom" thread - I might just buy a Boom

The IQ filter stands for Intelligent Q. The Q of the filter is the ratio of the filter depth divided by the filter bandwidth. A Hi filter is very tight and low Q is very loose. The IQ filter circuit analyzes the signal strength of the transmitter as it arrives at the antenna. If you have a good strong signal, the receiver actually reduces sensitivity and tightens the filter (increasing Q) to make a very tight front end. In doing so it is rejecting not only very close interference but some of the energy of the transmitter as well. This can be a good thing. For example, if you have a 1/4watt transmitter running and the scene starts in very close proximity to the antenna, you can run a risk of RF overload in the front end. IQ filtering prevents that overload and makes the filter extremely tight. Then, as your talent rides away on the chopper, the filter relaxes and the receiver sensitivity increases to capture as much transmitter RF as possible to keep range at its best. Now, envision a shoot on a very difficult set with lots of RF in the vicinity (the deck of an aircraft carrier on general quarters). You can set all your transmitters to 1/4 watt for excellent capture and not worry about front end overload, even at close range - not only will you get good capture but you will also have very high rejection of the local interference sources that are slightly off frequency. IQ filtering is a dynamic, hands off automatic function based on signal strength - at its loosest, the filters are better than a VRS, nearly VRT like. At its tightest, the Q exceeds any filters we have ever designed. You can actually have the antenna of an SMQV at 1/4 watt nearly touching the Venue 2 receiver antenna with no overload. It's pretty cool - I think we finally found the correct ratio of Oreos, Twinkies and Coca Cola for the engineering staff - they did a great job on this. For those of you who wanted a Dante capability, we looked long and hard at that (as Dante license holders) but realized the added cost would be an extra burden on those wanted Venue 2 without Dante. (We would have had to use the Brooklyn 2 chip set which is capable a 32X32 matrix. Dante does not have an 8X8 or 6X6, just 32 X32 , 4X4 and 2X2). So, for this Venue 2 introduction, you can buy a Venue 2 and if you want Dante capability, we are offering a DNTBOB88 8X8 unit at half cost complete with the required cables to integrate a Venue 2 into a Dante network. This gives you the additional capability of the additional two input channels for other gear on the cart AND the 8 output channels -plus the flexibility to use it elsewhere. The additional cost would be equivalent of integrating the Brooklyn 2 into the Venue 2. But you get additional capability for your Dante based cart beyond just the Venue. We recently signed up for the Dante 2X2 and 4X4 platform for future developments. Gordon

Jeff Wexler said ; Please don't drag our name into this discussion. To my knowledge, Lectrosonic's has not blocked another product based on our patent nor threatened legal action to do so. We did ask Sony to cease advertising their digitally companded wireless as Digital Hybrid (that's a trade mark issue) and they honorably and cooperatively complied. They simply missed the trademark and corrected immediately. They are still selling the product. But we have NEVER blocked another product based on patent issues nor has anyone to our knowledge has even tried to infringe on any of our patents. The implication that we may have in this statement disturbs me greatly - that's not "how we roll" and I resent that implication, both corporately and personally. I also resent the implication in that same question that other manufacturers would attempt to "steal" our patent. That part of the statement is , in my opinion, a disservice to all the audio manufacturers out there. As has been pointed out before by others, the pro audio industry is remarkable in the exemplary honor amongst its manufacturers and its users. I have always felt the industry at every level has been a joy to work in for that very reason. So, in answer to that question quoted above. How many manufacturers? - "None" Do any of you know? - the answer now should be "yes". Now, back to the more important task of herding engineers for more new toys for you guys - (the lashings will continue until morale improves.........) Gordon Gordon Moore President - Lectrosonics

I should have signed more completely :^) Gordon President, Lectrosonics - (that means I get to choose the sponge for cleaning the sink when I have kitchen duty)

Did you notice the serial number is 411? That's the only UCR411A whose serial number matches the model number! That's kind of cool - and yes, I looked it up and it's legit. Gordon

I would ague against Larry's proposition - except I spent 30 minutes starting my MGTD last Saturday - first pull and replace the starter, then waste half the battery turning it over before it finally catches only to discover the first carburetor had a stuck jet which meant no gas to cylinders 1 AND 2. (Carburetor two was stuck in the OPEN position allowing massive quantities of gas to clean my garage floor.) - Finally started up and ran like a demented top. I'm jealous of the German warranty.... Gordon Current Lectro Janitor - with greasy hands