CAME-TV: Clearcom interface?

[Jay Ashworth]

I've just had this stuff cross my eyes again, and if I've read their Facebook correctly, the base station available to work with it has a 4W connection available on the back, such that you could, with a little luck or cleverness, interface them to Clearcom 2W.

Is anyone doing this already with this line? $300 a seat ain't at all bad. It's better than $5000 a seat...

https://www.came-tv.com/collections/came-kuminik8

 

[themuzicman]

Adapting the Clearcom 2WR to this devices 4WR would cost more money than a 3-pack of headsets but it is doable and decently easy with the proper interface box. I'd suggest whatever interface box you're putting between this system and Clearcom would need gain control on both input and output as it looks like the Kuminik8 Hub has no independent volume controls, but I didn't dive into more than just pictures so maybe there/s I/O volume I'm not seeing.

This system is definitely a "you get what you pay for" type deal - the price is about $155/headset at least with B&H pricing, but I'd really start to question the build quality. I interface with enough groups that surprise me with their own Hollyland Solidcoms to know that the technology is theoretically going to be just fine - I was super skeptical of Solidcoms at first but they've proven to be decently reliable but I'd be worried about going cheaper and wondering how they would hold up. The other issue with these base-less systems is if the Control Headset user decides to wander away and they accidentally break the entire net.

 

[Jay Ashworth]

Adapting the Clearcom 2WR to this devices 4WR would cost more money than a 3-pack of headsets but it is doable and decently easy with the proper interface box. I'd suggest whatever interface box you're putting between this system and Clearcom would need gain control on both input and output as it looks like the Kuminik8 Hub has no independent volume controls, but I didn't dive into more than just pictures so maybe there/s I/O volume I'm not seeing.

This system is definitely a "you get what you pay for" type deal - the price is about $155/headset at least with B&H pricing, but I'd really start to question the build quality. I interface with enough groups that surprise me with their own Hollyland Solidcoms to know that the technology is theoretically going to be just fine - I was super skeptical of Solidcoms at first but they've proven to be decently reliable but I'd be worried about going cheaper and wondering how they would hold up. The other issue with these base-less systems is if the Control Headset user decides to wander away and they accidentally break the entire net.

I think AV Lifesavers has a stock box to do that, don't they? Two wire to four wire hybrid? I would expect that you would need transmit and receive volume controls come and maybe a balance control, unless it was a digital hybrid which is not impossible these days. In fact, that might be the easiest solution -- I know that they make hybrids to go from two wire to telephone, which is essentially what this is.

As far as the other issue, if I'm reading their write up correctly, if you have the hub, it serves as the master, and everything pairs up to it, so that problem goes away.

And in any event, it's still a lot cheaper than $5,000 a seat for freespeak.

 

[themuzicman]

I think AV Lifesavers has a stock box to do that, don't they? Two wire to four wire hybrid?

Sure, AV Lifesavers boxes are a possible solution if you have a Clearcom beltpack to spare but they don't make any proper 2/4 Wire interface - the reason they are so cost effective is because they put the job of nulling onto a surplus Clearcom device in your chain. You have the Beltpack Breakout Box which you attach to the headset port of a beltpack, or you can use the Beltpack TRRS adapter box again attached to a beltpack. Their Combo Breakout Input or Output but not both - a limitation because of the lack of nulling circuit.

I guess I tend to think of those devices as last-resort boxes as opposed to something like a proper 2WR to 4WR interface (Clearcom IF4W4/EF-701M, or even Hollyland's $500 2/4 Wire Converter) simply because if you're purchasing a system from scratch, the 2WR/4WR converters from Clearcom tend to just be the cost of the Clearcom Device itself because it's really just a deconstructed beltpack with some balancing transformers and attenuation knobs.

From what I'm reading in their literature, I can't find any mention of a Hub taking the place of a Master headset, just that the Hub expands upon the initial 4 headsets that the Master pairs with.

Honestly, for the price I'd be looking at things like Hollyland C1 Solidcom, which does compete almost directly on price and functionality with the company you've linked to. The difference though is that there's both an active and decently vocal userbase of Solidcom users so you can get community support, there's an ecosystem of products you can upgrade into to expand your system and make it more robust as budget allows, and they are medium easy to find extras if you need to rent some more in for a bigger project - they are the go-to intercom system for tiny low/medium budget ENG crews these days.

 

[Jay Ashworth]

> Sure, AV Lifesavers boxes are a possible solution if you have a Clearcom beltpack to spare but they don't make any proper 2/4 Wire interface - the reason they are so cost effective is because they put the job of nulling onto a surplus Clearcom device in your chain.

So, in other words, "No", AVL doesn't make a 2/4W hybrid. Got it.

> From what I'm reading in their literature, I can't find any mention of a Hub taking the place of a Master headset, just that the Hub expands upon the initial 4 headsets that the Master pairs with.

One of their diagrams appears to show some headsets homed on the master, and some homed on the hub; I drew an inference.

I didn't know Hollyland had base-station based stuff.