Halter Microsone

[drpro]

I have owned and used Phonak in the ear receivers.  I have an ongoing project that an in the ear receiver would be very helpful for the talent.  Seen the Halter videos on the Microsone.

Are there any folks out there that have a Microsone or used one?

How well does it fit in the ear?

Does it hide well?

   Phonak seems a bit smaller

How is the audio quality?

   I suspect there is a difference over using a Comtek transmitter or a UHF transmitter from other manufactures.

 

Price point is a large consideration.  The Roger system is a bit out of reach for this project.

 

Thank you for your thoughts and advice.

David

[IronFilm]

2 hours ago, drpro said:

Price point is a large consideration. 

If you're very price sensitive then you could track down the older Phonaks which used an induction loop, or get a new PSC earpiece which does the same thing:

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/377563-REG/PSC_FPSC0037_Wireless_IFB_Inductive_Earpiece.html

This is what I use myself, I have a couple of them which I got a few years ago. 

 

While I haven't been fortunate enough to try out the Halter Technic Microsone system, my impression though is that it would be a better choice, large thanks to not needing to make the talent wear two bodypacks! (one of the normal transmitters for their lav, plus also a receiver for the earpiece) Definitely this is the option I'd go for today if I did another shoot needing earpieces and they could cover the costs, and/or if I lost/broke my earpieces. 

 

If you're very very price sensitive, then consider the Bubblebee Sidekicks (they have a few different models, this is one of them):

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1646110-REG/bubblebee_industries_bbi_sk3_m_c_sidekick_3_ifb_in_ear.html

I worked on a netflix series which used these, because it was a whole band which needed earpieces so that they could act out playing together in time without any actual sounds being made (as of course, dialogue needed to be recorded too). But because the musical band is just in the background, with no close ups of them, then the Bubble Sidekicks worked perfectly fine! They could even work with closeups if you have say some hair or something which would hide them on the actor. 

 

[drpro]

thanks David.  I am trying to avoid induction loops and wired earpieces, which is what we are using currently

[Tobi A]

I have a set of microsones that I haven’t used in the field but on testing 2 things I found that could be problematic- the delay Bluetooth introduces and I couldn’t get as much level out of them as on phonaks. Not sure how they would go in louder environments for this reason. 
As always you get what you pay for!

[Derek H]

“While I haven't been fortunate enough to try out the Halter Technic Microsone system, my impression though is that it would be a better choice, large thanks to not needing to make the talent wear two bodypacks! (one of the normal transmitters for their lav, plus also a receiver for the earpiece)”

 

 The Halter system is not a lav transmitter. It’s a universal IFB receiver and  the only transmission happening is Bluetooth audio to the ear piece.
 

The talent would still need two packs if you need them mic’d. 

[drpro]

Thank you Tobi, that is what I needed to hear.  The delay would be an issue along with not being able to increase the gain.

[RadoStefanov]

Some of us use digital Roger’s Phonak.

Signal strength, sound level and quality are miles ahead of older phonaks.

There is so much flexibility with accessories. 

There is literally nothing else to use.

[Doc Justice]

Hey DrPro, I hope I can clear up some of your questions.

 

The Microsone and the Phonak Invisity are the same length (18mm). The Microsone is thicker than the Invisity at the top due to its built in rechargeable battery.

 

As for audio quality, since Microsone is a digital link, there is no white noise or static that comes along with an Invisity. It's a clear replication of the audio that is being received. The transmitter and modulation that you are sending makes a big difference in the fidelity. It is compatible with Lectrosonics analog and digital hybrid transmitters in all of their compatibility modes. Experiment with compatibility modes to see which one you prefer best.

 

The Control Pack receives UHF or VHF audio and retransmits that audio via Bluetooth. You get about 30' (10M) of transmission from the Control Pack up to the user's ear, so it doesn't necessarily need to be worn by the user. Many people plant the Control Pack nearby. You could even put it on the Boom Op since they're likely going to be no more than 20' from the talent.

 

You can always rent a system before purchasing to make sure that it will suit your needs. I'm happy to help point you in the right direction if you need.

[RadoStefanov]

For the record Phonak Invisity  has been discontinued for a while and it is not a good investment.