recommend comtek headphone feed?

[commpost]

Hello ~

I'm getting ready to do some shooting, and I was wondering exactly what comtek equipment i would need to run a wireless headphone feed to on-set people. Ideally the director would wear a belt pack that he could plug MDR 7506's into. Give me some suggestions and a general context on wireless headphone equipment. No foldback mic required, just playback!

thanks

commpost

[Chase Yeremian]

All you need is a transmitter and any number of receivers. I use a M216 p7 for TX and PR-216 for receivers. The m216 will come with a F-XLR to mini connector so you can send a line level feed to it from your recorder/mixer.

For the receivers one thing to keep in mind is they are mono, so if you plug some 7506 into them the L and R headphone will be out of phase with each-other, so get a stereo to mono adapter for them.

These all use 9v, and I generally get a few days out of a battery.

[Max Futterman]

http://amzn.com/B004JRYLG4

Those are excellent headphones to provide to those who don't bring their own. Cheap, sound decent and easy to pack.

[Marc Wielage]

I had all my headsets rewired with a mono plug just to avoid the hassle (and intermittent connection) of a stereo-to-mono adapter. I believe there are some IFB receivers that have stereo headphone jacks, but not the low-end Comteks. (I'm still using a dozen PR-72B's, which are paid for!)

[commpost]

What is the lowest-priced transmitter i could get away with?

commpost

[Jeff Wexler]

What is the lowest-priced transmitter i could get away with?

commpost

Probably a used body pack style transmitter in the 72 range. Your first decision, if going with Comtek, is whether you go with the 72s or the 216s --- you can't use them together unless you have 2 transmitters (one for the 72 mghz receivers, one for the 216s).

[jrd456]

The older comtek 72's want to see a mono plug and the newer 216's will take mono or stereo plug.

J.D.

[commpost]

The 72 transmitters i have seen appear small. I assume that one 72 transmitter would generally be matched to a 72 receiver, no multiple receivers for one transmitter. Unless the crystals were somehow at the same frequency. The transmitter input must be mic level, correct? So I'd have to turn the output gain way down. Then on the receive end, I simply want to plug stereo headphones into the jack. If it picks up a mono signal, that's fine.

[jason porter]

1 transmitter, unlimited receivers.

If you use stereo phones, you will only get audio in the left ear.

The 72 transmitters i have seen appear small. I assume that one 72 transmitter would generally be matched to a 72 receiver, no multiple receivers for one transmitter. Unless the crystals were somehow at the same frequency. The transmitter input must be mic level, correct? So I'd have to turn the output gain way down. Then on the receive end, I simply want to plug stereo headphones into the jack. If it picks up a mono signal, that's fine.

[David Waelder]

If you are working from a sound cart rather than in a bag, this "base station" transmitter from Comtek is an excellent choice for working with the older PR-72 receivers.

http://www.comtek.com/bst75.html

The output is much higher than in the smaller "belt-pack" transmitters and the effective range is closer to results with the newer 216 systems.

In my own work, I have a Lectro IFB system that I use for the key players on a project (director, script, producer, etc.). Then I have the older PR-72 receivers and a BST-75 transmitter to feed them. No one listening to a scene has ever complained about receiving the "lesser" system. I mention this as evidence that even the old (now out of date) PR-72 receivers have some continued functionality. The BST-75, by the way, is still a current product.

David

[John Blankenship]

The M-72 transmitters and and PR-72 receivers were available in various "flavors." For the M72 transmitters, there are either line level inputs or mic level inputs, depending upon version. Also, for the PR-72 receivers, although mono jacks are more common, there are some that have stereo jacks (the units are mono, of course, but the outputs are wired to stereo jacks so the user can plug in standard stereo headphones).

[studiomprd]

" I assume that one 72 transmitter would generally be matched to a 72 receiver, no multiple receivers for one transmitter."

bad assumption, totally incorrect!

" Unless the crystals were somehow at the same frequency. "

exactly... and you can find this stuff out by visiting Comtek's website, or looking at the Lectrosonic IFB stuff on-line and reading some of the FAQ's.

Comtek's were actually designed as tour guide systems, specifically for one TX to many RX's. BTW, wireless mic's work the same way, thus you can send one wireless hop to multiple cameras!

" What is the lowest-priced transmitter i could get away with? "

besides comtek, and Lectrosonics, there are now IEM sustems from a number of MU manufacturers, including Shure and Sennheiser... there are also other companies making wireless tour guide / ADA assisted listening systems.