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Zaxcom Wireless Gain Staging


Trey LaCroix

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Heyo! I'm still getting used to my Zaxcom wireless and am curios how other people set their gain structure. I'm using a Nova and MRX receivers. I have been typically setting my trim to unity and using the zaxnet remote control for my iso gain adjustments. While this would be the "correct" way to do it I have met several Sixers who set theirs quite differently. When I ran Lectros there were a few different gain staging techniques I used often to make up for the fact I couldn't adjust the gain remotely, but with a purely digital system is there any reason not to adjust the TX preamp to the optimal level and record the 1s and 0s at unity gain?

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Personally I set my gain on my Nova at +5db for trim on MRX receivers. That said I can't tell you why, it just sounds better that why IMO. That said if you have transmitters that don't use neverclip there is definitely a reason to set gain on TX lower and have the trim set higher on the recorder (by utilising the compressors in the Nova).

 

I've had a Nova for over a year and I've tried a bunch of trim structures, and just always settled on +5. I'm sure you're probably meant to stick to unity or maybe +3db to accomodate for receiver signal loss. But I don't think you can go too wrong within a 6db increment.

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What i have found for me personally thru a lot of trial and error is lower gain at tx’s with neverclip and makeup gain at the recorder. It saves the occasional take where talent may get suddenly really loud and would otherwise blow the gain at the transmitter if the tx is set too high. With my dpa core lavs this seems to work for me really well getting great sound at almost all dynamic ranges and riding that delicate balance of it all.  
Been doing this for a while and I have yet to get into a situation where there is any noise because of an environment being too quiet or any clipping because of a talent being too loud - win win so far

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On 2/2/2022 at 4:59 AM, sciproductions said:

Personally I set my gain on my Nova at +5db for trim on MRX receivers. That said I can't tell you why, it just sounds better that why IMO. That said if you have transmitters that don't use neverclip there is definitely a reason to set gain on TX lower and have the trim set higher on the recorder (by utilising the compressors in the Nova).

 

I've had a Nova for over a year and I've tried a bunch of trim structures, and just always settled on +5. I'm sure you're probably meant to stick to unity or maybe +3db to accomodate for receiver signal loss. But I don't think you can go too wrong within a 6db increment.

I’m also part of the “+5dB club.” Partly because I just don’t fully trust Neverclip at the transmitter (I’ve somehow still managed to clip the TX once or twice despite using stock and group-suggested settings), but also because I’m a little OCD and prefer the trim dots on the meters to line up with the “-20” indicator smack in the middle of the screen. 

24F9328C-51E1-4677-9D73-922B694837DC.jpeg

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  • 3 weeks later...

Good question, Trey. I'm mostly using Normal Sensitivity Cos11D's and I've had them clip (if a cast person laughs/pipes up or happens to look right down into their lav - working on a ladder looking up talking, then looking down talking - that can be a ~20db swing). I understand this clipping is possible because the Cos11D are slightly underpowered by 3volt Zaxcom Transmitters, so they clip out before the advertised dynamic range. This shortcoming basically defeats the TX's "Neverclip". I too keep my MRX's at 0/unity and ride TX gains too, but now I'm wondering if I (too) go lower on the Packs and make it up at the Nova. I just wish the older transmitters could properly power a Cos11D, because I personally like them better than the 4063/6060.

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