New Microphone Purchase

[BNEL]

With the 700 Mhz shut down about 75% of my microphones will become unusable. I have a mix match of wireless microphones. I wish to streamline the operation. I have a brand new facility that is being completed right now which 16 wireless microphones have been speced for it. I need to match that with my old facility. The three big brands I am looking at are Electrovoice, Shure, and Sennheiser. Shure UHF-R. Sennheiser Em 3700 Series. Electrovoice REV UHF series. What is everyones thought of pros and cons of these microphones?

[mbenonis]

Take a look at Lectrosonics as well. If you're in the UHF-R or Sennheiser 3k range, the Lectro is going to be less expensive and more reliable, especially in a school situation. Go with the Venue receiver system (VRT receiver modules) and SMDa transmitters. I own 17 of these and they work wonderfully and are virtually indestructible. Feel free to PM me if you want to do so.

[BillESC]

If you go with the REV-D system, you'll only need 4 antenna for 16 channels of operation. That's just one of the great features the EV system offers.

[Andy_Leviss]

Originally Posted by BillESC

If you go with the REV-D system, you'll only need 4 antenna for 16 channels of operation. That's just one of the great features the EV system offers.

With any professional system and appropriate antenna distribution, you should only need 2 antennas for many more. Well-designed systems of Sennheiser, Shure, and Lectrosonics are all possible with upwards of 32 channels on two paddles.

With Sennheiser, you also get the added benefit of using what's become the de facto standard in Broadway, off-Broadway, and touring. With Lectro you get many other benefits (6 channels in 1 RU, optional remote programming of beltpacks, ability to work with rx/tx from other manufacturers, waterproof without needing condoms or polybags), etc, although they've not yet eclipsed Sennheiser in the professional theatre world.

[csheleytd]

I'm curious about the choice between Shure and Sennheiser? We have 14 Shure UCs I need to replace.....about a year ago we bought 4 Shure ULXP4s. All of these work fine, however having the opportunity to essentially start over makes me want to look at Sennheisers. I like the "industry standard" factor as well as the smaller size of the transmitters. In addition, the AA batteries seem more advantageous as I've had much better luck with AA rechargeables than 9 volts. Anyone have particular feelings one way or the other. I guess I should add that our power distribution units would still function with new Shures because of there large frequency range. Anyway, any help would be much appreciated.

[howlingwolf487]

Realize that some rechargeable batteries do not have the full voltage that a throw away battery would have.

I personally do not like Sennheiser's input jack; I prefer the TA4 connectors that Shure uses on theirs. Other than that, I would use either - so long as they are set up properly, all will be fine.

[mbenonis]

I've had very good luck with the 2000 mAh eneloop rechargeable batteries. Not only do they have plenty of capacity, but they hold their charge for months at a time. We use them with our Lectrosonics SMDa transmitters.

Also, csheleytd, tale a look at Lectrosonics as I said above. They're a bit pricey, but certainly no more pricey than Shure UHF-R or Sennheiser 3k/5k equipment (actually, Lectro sits nicely between "prosumer" mics and true professional systems).

I don't work for them, I swear - I'm just a very happy customer. I'm also happy to answer questions via PM.

[avkid]

Originally Posted by mbenonis

I don't work for them, I swear -

Not yet anyway.

[mbenonis]

5 years of graduate school to go...

[Chris15]

If size is the only reason to go the Sennheiser route, one might care to look at the the UR1M from Shure. It is even smaller than the SK5212 from Sennheiser.

I have to disagree with howlingwolf on TA4Fs. They were not Switchcraft's best invention... The knockoffs are worse than the real ones, but they are one of the major sources of issues with headsets etc through our service dept. In contrast, those with microdot connectors seldom fail. There are microdot to TA4F adaptors available and these plus the microdots seem to be the best way of connecting.

Big gig last year we had some dropout issues with the Senny G2 IEMs. We have never had issues with Shure PSM gear. This is a part of why we have an extensive Shure inventory and only a handful of Sennheiser... I'm sure that at one point or more, Lectro would too have been considered... Their price point is not as attractive down here for various reasons...

csheley, your antenna distributioon, which I assume is what you are talking about, in ultimately independent of manufacturer. The governing factors will be the bandwidth that the splitter is happy at and possibly you may need new antenna cables for an oddball receiver. Beyond that, manufacturer is no issue... Ditto for antennas.