Jump to content

Recommended Posts

Interesting retune, John.

I would love a Canatran option as well, if only for being able to have the Canatran freqs on file so I can stay the heck away from them. I'm working on a show with three of them right now and it EATS my range. Usually if you're a block or two away it will give you the best performance, but in general, they are spitting out so much stuff that one transmitter indoors at 1/4 watt was giving me minor problems across all of my wireless. When we get all three running at 1/2 watt, my range ends up being less than 20 feet from talent (on wireless one block away from one of the transmitters, the others are further out). If I stand within 3-5 feet of a Canatran it cuts that range down by half.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 148
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

Top Posters In This Topic

Posted Images

I ran into a hitch today: tried to use the app and it kept crashing on me because it had trouble figuring out my location. I finally got a stable 3G signal, ran the station finder first, and then it worked fine. Still a little buggy -- sometimes it just closes up quick. The scrolling between frequencies is also very slow.

But having said that: it worked, and I had no major issues coordinating 6 frequencies much of the day.

Hi Marc. I know the maps portion is still kind of buggy. The next update will make the app more stable. I am also aware of the slow scrolling and of an issue that causes the station data to not load upon first activating the TVDB add-on. I'm working on those issues currently. Thank you all for your patience.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

WARNING! I don't usually use SM transmitters as hops, but did on this "kit provided job". I changed a freq while somebody was potted up (we were not rolling), I had been listening to the troublesome mic, so I also retuned a hop channel. Oops. I personally use a Zaxcom hop, so I just wasn't thinking that this would happen... till it did.

I've made this mistake before.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi Marc. I know the maps portion is still kind of buggy. The next update will make the app more stable. I am also aware of the slow scrolling and of an issue that causes the station data to not load upon first activating the TVDB add-on. I'm working on those issues currently. Thank you all for your patience.

Not a problem -- I recognize the considerably amount of trouble you'd have to go through to make this work. Just today, the app came in very handy when we had a swap-out transmitter situation, and rather than run back to the cart, all I had to do is check the iPhone app and know which frequency to set the transmitter to. Saved us at least 90 seconds, which can be life and death on set sometimes!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Daniel, there is not an instruction manual for this app for a number of reasons. Mostly because there are still features to add and changes being made to the app, so any documentation would be incomplete. Also, I do try to make the app as intuitive and user friendly as possible. I want people to ask me questions so that I know where improvements can be made.

At the same time, I do encourage a small sense of exploration. Press every button you see. The effects of each button are immediately apparent. No configuration change is hard to undo (except of course pressing a "Delete" button). On the other hand, the app does require a little knowledge of its purpose. That said, let me give a small introduction to the app, and you can email or personal message me with any questions you have.

FreqFinder is an app designed to help calculate and avoid the extra intermodulation frequencies generated by the use of multiple transmitters in close proximity. The basic mechanism of the app is to add transmitters to your list, and select channels for each transmitter from the "Compatible Channels" list. Your transmitter list will also notify you for transmitters on which you can expect to have decreased performance.

Aside from that, there are a few common conventions used in many apps that I take for granted. Examples include: use of the navigation button to move through the page hierarchy; use of the "+" button to add items to a list; swiping a list item to delete it, etc

Again, I am more than happy to answer any questions and listen to any comments or suggestions. My email address is: newendian@gmail.com

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

In regards to the Canatrans/modulus issue, having the ability to input what channels are being used would help so that intermod frequencies on that channel are not available for use.

I use the android version but this is already possible. Create a new transmitter and choose the custom option instead of Lectrosonics etc. it gives you several parameters to adjust including frequency.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I use the android version but this is already possible. Create a new transmitter and choose the custom option instead of Lectrosonics etc. it gives you several parameters to adjust including frequency.

Could you go into more detail, please? UHF TV Channels have a bandwidth of 6Mhz, and our wireless Tx's have a bandwidth of approximately 200khz. The bandwidth for new Tx's in FreqFinder has a max of 500kHz bandwidth. Are you creating 12 new Tx's and assigning them to adjacent frequencies within the TV channel bandwidth?

Could you image if you where shooting with 3-4 of these and had to input the information across 48 different Tx's saved in freqFinder? And then they changed them after a scene or two? You would have to change 12-48 Tx's to keep everything up to date.

This would have to be a different type of entry that would cover 7Mhz of unusable frequencies, centered off the TV channel for each video transmitter in use.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The custom function isn't perfect but I've dialed in canatrans with it and just maxed out the rf power and bandwidth and hoped for the best. Couldn't say how useful it was but I ended up coordinating everything and had few issues.

I agree, even the max bandwidth setting available with the custom funtion is a far cry from the swath of airspace that a video transmission takes up.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

In my experience, the Canatrans knock out a good block on either side of them and their bandwidth gives you significant range reduction for about 1-2 blocks away. With 3 running at 1/4 watt, there are small hits on all my whip antennas unless I'm quite close to talent. I do like to have the systems in my freq finder as 200khz custom bands but it is mainly for having them stored. If you set their full bandwidth in freq finder you will likely have no Intermod free freqs on your transmitter list.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks a lot! I too am using Android and am looking forward to buying the TV addon. The trial has been great. Thanks for such a great product. I did just change phones to the Galaxy S3 and it is greatly needed for 20ish channels to run smoothly compared to my old Galaxy S. One feature I'd LOVE is the ability to email or share profiles. It took a while to rebuild my current shows from scratch and it woulld be great to send a show coordination to another mixer or day player.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks for the TV Tx setup option. I'll look into it once Apple approves the update. I think it'll be a huge help in eliminating a lot of channels that are eaten up by these things, instead of always checking and at times forgetting that procedure. As your app grows, perhaps intermod planning around them will get better. At this point the app doesn't do that, so I'm not missing anything. I've been working with three Canatrans for over 3 months now and have parked my Lectros close to them without any intermod issues. but I have by mistake forgot to check the Canatrans channel and squatted right in the middle of one. This should help keep my mind on my work and not on frequencies. Thanks again!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.


×
×
  • Create New...