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AudioRoot Power solutions review


RadoStefanov

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Here is my review after a great day of work.

 

I am going to start with the charger.

I really like the Aluminum case with locking connector. I have had 4 IDX chargers fail in the past. The AudioRoot charger is small size and perfect for traveling.The strong aluminum case will withstand a lot of abuse. The LCD screen with charging percentage is great. It gives me clear indication on the charging state left compared to the IDX charger which leaves me almost clueless.

 

The battery cup is small and locks the battery very firm. In my current setup I have the NP1 cup on the bottom of the bag. I had a few cups that were a little loose and a small bump on the bottom of my bag will disconnect the cup leads from the battery leads. With the AudioRoot cup it is impossible to get disconnected. The cup size helps with battery placement.

 

The batteries are a lot smaller then Np-L7S “see the picture” but have a lot more power then the bigger IDX. I got 4+ hours with Nomad "recording 6 channels and zaxnet TX" 3 qrx200s, micplexer2 working in the heat pulling 1.142A and 22.16W . Beats my lightly used almost new IDX by 45mins to an hour...

 

IDX are                                               14.8V, 4.6Ah, 68Wh

AudioRoot are                                      14.4V , 6.2Ah 89Wh

I don’t know how much electronics the battery has or how they managed to fit so much power and electronics in such a small space but I just love the fact that I have more power in my disposal.

AudioRoot has a smaller 45Wh battery. Combined with the small distro the small battery will be a good power solution for qrx, mic pres and small mixers...

The batteries have LCD power indication on top which is great if you have your Cup on the bottom and the lcd facing up.

 

Speaking of battery charge indication the Distro is the most impressive piece of gear I have ever used and light years ahead of the competition…

It is fitted in a strong aluminum box with an color OLED screen and Sunlight readable with 180° viewing angle . Other manifactures should take  notice…This kind of screen is what we should have in all our gear!

The screen shows “Real time of the battery’s status : remaining capacity (%), estimated running time left, battery voltage, current consumption, battery pack temperature and battery charge/discharge cycles count“.

All this information is great but mainly the “estimated running time left“. It is very accurate. If I switch off 1 or 2 recievers the distro immediately recalculates the estimated time.

I find myself looking differently at shooting situations when I have an estimated time and not voltage… It is just so much better.

The screen is  also blinking when the battery capacity falls below 10 %. Another cool feature. The Cicles info is very cool as well. Tells you how many charges have been done on the battery.

The outputs are on the bottom « Where they are supposed to be »  and save a lot of space. The first 4 outputs have Polyswitch 2.5A resettable fuses. This is very cool. I have not tested it yet but it should keep your distro ON even if you get a power short. I will test it tomorrow by short ing a cable and find out if it really works. I wish it had fuses on all 6 outputs.

The On/Off switches on the top are just top notch design. You have to pull the switch UP to move it left or right. Even if you try to force the switch without pulling up it would never move. This protects from accidental switches. Great Design! The 2 switches gives more control over what you have on in the bag. I use one for recorder and one for wireless.

The one minor complain I have is the distro is hardwired in to the cup. "EDIT" The hardwired distro only works with AudioRoot Batteries!!!!

 

Now this my conclusion :

 

I am glad that I made the plunge in to this unknown company. The AudioRoot products are just so much better then the rest in every aspect :

Size, Durability, Design, Power and features.

IDX had a good run. I never liked their charger. Their batteries are very old technology and since IDX holds a huge chunk of the market they did not need to innovate and upgrade their product.

I will be selling  all my IDX batteries and chargers to convert to AudioRoot. IMHO it is worth it.

I will pick up a single charger , extra Cup to Hirose for backup and 2 more batteries.

 Bravo AudioRoots. Thank You for innovating each of the products that I now own. The attention to detail, design and usability is something to be admired. The prices are really competitive making converting a no brainer...

A lot of people might not want to make such a drastic change to their power solution but even if you want to stick with your own you have to try the DISTRO. I am sure once you try it you will buy it.

 

P.S. AudiRoot Right angle Hirose is nice and easy to assemble.

 

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I'm definitely interested in this. The capacity of the Audioroot 89Wh battery is a major appeal. They also make a half height battery that uses the same charger, which might prove useful for QRX as camera hops.

To compare it, I'm using the B4B 6Ah/90Wh v-mount. Runtime on my Nomad rig is easily half a day. I usually change at lunch because it's a definite break, and sometimes have 2 of 3 dots still on the battery. That part of the v-mount is great, but the battery is a big brick. Not an issue for most cameras, but sucks when it's in the belly pocket of the bag. If I can get those same results out of something smaller than an NP1, that's perfect for bag use.

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Actually the battery distro box you are testing is interesting too.

I have always tried to rotate my bag batteries (v-mounts or NP1s), but at some point I am sure one battery is getting a lot more use than the others. I always write the start date on an NP1, but that's not a charge/discharge counter. I like that this will track all that info.

Obviously people are using these batteries and distros, but it doesn't seem like anyone that actively posts here is. Maybe they're not popular in English speaking regions.

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I have looked at the Audio Root stuff for quite some time, really appreciated the build quality and features, size and weight. Until Rado's postings here, I have not known of anyone using this stuff here in the US. The main reason for this, I believe, is the perception of very high cost vs. all the varous competitive products that are readily available right here in the US. The BDS boxes and NP-1s have been in use for so long and so many people have not bothered to look into alternatives.

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I switched my Remote BDS to the Audioroot vmDBOX-HRS just last week.  Price was excellent and I couldn't be happier with the unit.  It takes up a much smaller footprint in my bag (Orca 30) and the hirose connections are so much better than the locking ones on the Remote.  Honestly I can't recommend it enough.

 

Aside from the small footprint and hirose though, which I could have gotten with a Battery Bud, I went for it specifically because of the voltmeter.  It is extremely helpful especially as the low battery indicators on my gear collectively meant nothing anymore.

 

I recently bought a few new Switronix NP L6's and kinda wish I hadn't.  I plan on switching fully to Audioroot power when it comes time to replace my current batteries.  Smart design and quality seems top notch.

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I'm pretty sure most of the batteries, charger base boards etc are made in the US. Inspired energy, for us in the uk, accutronics are the distributor. RFS handle the audioroot stuff. If you look back through the site you'll find JP from Aaton mentions them. The 98WH high density pack is due out about now to.

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Even if you disregard VAT in the UK the comparative prices are wildly at odds. For a product made on my European doorstep it is frustrating (again) to see the US market getting a much more reasonable deal.

 

Is it a tariff thing, or are they possibly lowering prices in the US to get some market share? Wisycom was offering those great prices as a "we are now selling in the US" introductory deal.

Granted, wireless is a very different thing because of government approval, as opposed to something like batteries or windscreens or whatever. That took a lot of money getting cleared for the US market, where as some products can pretty much ship a case of products to a dealer and see how it goes. 

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Is it a tariff thing, or are they possibly lowering prices in the US to get some market share? Wisycom was offering those great prices as a "we are now selling in the US" introductory deal.

Granted, wireless is a very different thing because of government approval, as opposed to something like batteries or windscreens or whatever. That took a lot of money getting cleared for the US market, where as some products can pretty much ship a case of products to a dealer and see how it goes.

No idea. Might be an offer. I'm still waiting on the Zaxcom and Lectro 'deals' for Europe ; )

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"Can we get back on subject?"

 

I think the cost, availability and service are all right on the subject (at least that's what many of the posts seem to feel is important). I think it all helps for many of us to get a clearer picture of what the Audio Root line of batteries, chargers and distribution are all about.

 

Of course, Rado, we are all eagerly awaiting your full review and analysis, which is certainly right on the subject.

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Sorry Jeff,

I just did not want this to turn like the facebook conversation where Europeans were saying that audioroot is too expansive and discuss the European union economics.

But you are right.

"Can we get back on subject?"

 

I think the cost, availability and service are all right on the subject (at least that's what many of the posts seem to feel is important). I think it all helps for many of us to get a clearer picture of what the Audio Root line of batteries, chargers and distribution are all about.

 

Of course, Rado, we are all eagerly awaiting your full review and analysis, which is certainly right on the subject.

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