stephensharrod Posted November 17, 2012 Report Share Posted November 17, 2012 So I'm shooting right now. And the Sennhesier G3 wireless is being strange. I'm using a SD 552 and have three lavs plug into to their inputs respectively. The signal seems to be going in and out, when I check them my voice varies in volume and the signal gets slightly louder then softer. Again they are g3 lavs and have OST mics on them. I've changed the frequencies to no avail, there is an ac on cause we haven't started shooting yet, but I don't think that would be effecting the signal level would it? The boom is ok though..any thoughts? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
studiomprd Posted November 17, 2012 Report Share Posted November 17, 2012 (edited) " .any thoughts? " I would hope that your three years of experience have already taught you that problem solving and troubleshooting are a huge part of the gig... your post includes very little useful information for remote troubleshooting, and I suspect you need to solve this problem quickly... if you are personally less experienced with the specific gear (which you should have checked out before going to the set!) all the needed and useful manuals are available on-line, One of the things I make real clear to my students is that when picking up gear (school, rental, even from a friend) a thorough check of the gear and the setup is required ASAP, and before going to the set for the shoot... OK, I see you were working with the gear yesterday... so, what is different today ?? trial and error, substitution, and all the usual tricks are at your disposal as well... all of the gear you mention is good stuff, when working properly and if all the interconnections are also correct and working,... Edited November 17, 2012 by studiomprd Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jesse Flaitz Posted November 17, 2012 Report Share Posted November 17, 2012 Check your squelch settings, make sure they aren't on high. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
atheisticmystic Posted November 17, 2012 Report Share Posted November 17, 2012 When I use my G2/G3s, I keep the receivers up on my shoulder to help the signal path out a little, and keep them away from any RF spray from the recorder...and... ...I learned those tactics here on jwsoundgroup.net. Best Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stephensharrod Posted November 17, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 17, 2012 Yes, it's definitely something to do with RF, I know their range is not the best, but it's not the connections and its not the mic's. We are shooting on a college campus so there's probably all kinds of signals going around. And the lavs are frequency range A, which is the equivalent to blocks 19 and 20? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Gilbert Posted November 17, 2012 Report Share Posted November 17, 2012 Yes, it's definitely something to do with RF, No shit Sherlock. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jason porter Posted November 17, 2012 Report Share Posted November 17, 2012 Are you using the built-in precoordinated frequencies? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
studiomprd Posted November 17, 2012 Report Share Posted November 17, 2012 " No shit Sherlock. " ? I was not so sure " The signal seems to be going in and out, when I check them my voice varies in volume and the signal gets slightly louder then softer. ", and not really even now " Yes, it's definitely something to do with RF, " as (FM) audio levels do not generally go up and down with signal (RF) strength. If it is RF interference, and it certainly could be, then there is a(n obvious) remedy, but the information still seems insufficient. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stephensharrod Posted November 17, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 17, 2012 Scanned frequencies, selected them, still interference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomBoisseau Posted November 17, 2012 Report Share Posted November 17, 2012 Yes, it's definitely something to do with RF... Well maybe, maybe not. I experianced a similar problem with some lavs a couple years back. It turned out they were not properly wired for the transmitters I was using. Tom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stephensharrod Posted November 18, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 18, 2012 So, we moved to a stage, it was definitely the location, Im in the clear and the lavs sound fine. Thanks for the helpful tips! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc Wielage Posted November 18, 2012 Report Share Posted November 18, 2012 There is some "voodoo" associated with RF, and nothing but time and experience can help you solve these problems. I've encountered areas that were flawless, then moved one mile and was buried in interference. I've even had RF issues change within a few hours (I assume somebody local turned on some machinery that created spurious RFI). Crap happens. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ccsnd Posted November 18, 2012 Report Share Posted November 18, 2012 maybe it has something to do with your wireless system. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deep owl Posted November 18, 2012 Report Share Posted November 18, 2012 I have some G2s and G3s. Sometimes they're perfect. Sometimes they take tons of hits even after scanning. Sometimes they do unexplainable things. A couple of times they've sounded like they had a noise gate on them. The times that has happened were all in hard surface rooms so I assumed there may have been some kind of strange phase cancellation thing going on. I tried all different squelches, frequencies, changed out TX and RX, cable and mic. It didn't sound too bad though so I let it go in the end. Ya just never know with those things! But typically they'll be fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
studiomprd Posted November 19, 2012 Report Share Posted November 19, 2012 " Scanned frequencies, selected them, still interference. " so it wasn't 'weirdness', it was.... interference. BTW, on Senn Evo systems the scanning only scans the preprogrammed frequencies of the group. to find clear channels to use, adjusting the actual frequencies (beyond the preprogrammed groups) is often necessary, and yes, that tends to require trial and error. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rb1138 Posted November 21, 2012 Report Share Posted November 21, 2012 The thing with fixing RF trouble is that it is sometimes very vague. With the G3s, I would say to try different banks. And make sure all systems are in the same bank (that's in the manual, I think). Keep listening and try to get a bank that has less noise sounds coming from it. Otherwise, you can improve things by moving your position bit (where you're standing). Moving your receivers away from the recorder and from each other. Improving the transmitter position and reducing pressure on the antennas also helps. Sometimes you just need different blocks. For some reason, I can never use Block G around where I live in Queens. Sometimes a particular block just doesn't work in some places. Sawrab Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
studiomprd Posted November 21, 2012 Report Share Posted November 21, 2012 " Keep listening and try to get a bank that has less noise sounds coming from it. " Keep listening, with pilot OFF, and try to get a bank that has less noise sounds coming from it. or watch the level indicator with pilot ON. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alexander Burstein Posted November 22, 2012 Report Share Posted November 22, 2012 I've only read about what phasing sounds like, but don't the symptoms sound like a phasing issue? The 552 can only record two tracks and he mentioned using three inputs, which puts at least two signals on the same track. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stephensharrod Posted December 1, 2012 Author Report Share Posted December 1, 2012 What's funny is later on, I was recording with five lavs, all on one track and the boom on the other. No real issues, other than steadicam interference. (Has that happened to anyone?) We were out in a park, so I was worried about signal there, or interference but it was fine. So I'm pretty sure it was that space we were in, but I'm definitely gonna keep my ears open if it happens again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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