Wireless - audio technicia 2000 series vs shure performance gear

[harrier]

I need some experienced help! I need to purchase four UHF lavalier mics for weekly dramas at church. At the minute our budget will not stretch to top of the range gear and we only really need something which is functional and as reliable as possible. Our price range will stretch to the price of shure's performance gear system but i have also found a supplier who can sell me the audio technica 700 system at the same price. Has anyone used wireless systems from these brands and in a position to offer advice. I need to purchase the system asap so any advice is appreciated! Thanks!
[ps any other budget brands worth considering would be appreciated]

[mbenonis]

I'd probably go with the Shure system - it's basically an SLX system without a frequency-agile tuner. If the receivers are close to the transmitters, and you're not in a heavy RF area, you should be fine.

[Schniapereli]

I've used the Shure SLX series before and they are good if you keep good care of them. The junior high's always have problems because the kids don't know how to take care of them, but at the high school where I am, we only run into some small problems very now and then, which are easily fixable.

[harrier]

Thanks for the advice but has any body used shure's rock bottom performance gear wireless like the PG14/PG185. I'm wondering if audio technica's 700 series might be of slightly higher quality because it isn't their lowest quality system. audio technica also say that their system can be extended to 8 mics whereas the shure system can only accomodate four at this level even though it has 11 frequencies. Is it worth limiting myself or should i go with shure's better reputation?

[mbenonis]

Like I said, the PGX *IS* the SLX without the ability to tune to an arbitrary channel (this straight from Shure). Re: number of channels, you might be able to do more than four; we'd just have to see what frequencies are offered and see if they work together. That said, if you can step up to the Shure SLX or the A-T 2000 series, you'll find it a heck of a lot better bang for your buck...

[Eboy87]

I've never used the PGX stuff so I can't be of much use to you. I have used the SLX before, and I must say the best option would be to save money and purchase an SLX system. A frequency agile system may not be necessary now, but it might further down the road. Just out of curiosity, how many mics are you planning on running?

If saving isn't an option, and as Mike said; the PGX is the SLX without the ability to tune, then get the Shure. But that's just opinion as I haven't used the A-T system. Take it with a grain (or several if you wish) of salt.

[harrier]

We are initially purchasing four mics and this should be sufficient but i won't rule out purchasing a couple more down the line. Having seen the you tube video of the shure system i was pleasantly surprised seing the totally digital channel choice on the transmitters. The built in aerials in the recievers is a handy feature also for our application because the recievers will sit directly in front of the sound technician. The only positive i can see with audio technica system is that they guarantee that their system will work in the future because they operate in the lower UHF bands and should avoid all the changes to the airwaves in the future, however i'm in the UK and this may not be as big an issue as in the US. I rang Shure UK and asked if i could encounter problems with future frequency changes with the performance gear wireless system and he just said " I think you'll be all right" whatever that means. I'm ordering the system tonight and am currently veering towards the shure system so any last minute warnings or advice are greatly apreciated!

[Hughesie]

It appears no one has provided an opinion on the audio technica you might want to wait because im sure someone will have used them and you want to have both sides of the story not just what you seem to be getting now, which is "i haven't used it by the model up is good" which might not be as helpful as it sounds, i have used the range of shures your talking about and for a controlfreak like me i hate not being able to set the frequncies, because i know what works well in my area. maybe just a personal thing

hope it helps

[museav]

The title of the thread notes the Audio-Technica 2000 series but in your post you seem to be addressing the A-T 700 system. That difference in models would likely make a big difference in the responses.

Being in the lower UHF bands may avoid the '700MHz band' issues but it does not necessarily guarantee anything else since you could have interference issues on those frequencies just like any others.

[Hughesie]

Originally Posted by museav

since you could have interference issues on those frequencies just like any others.

plus it compresses the amount of channels you can use and if you have a lot of venues near you, you will get start getting issues when they have to change their freq band