Could silver sequins be causing microphone reception issues?

[Dejoux]

I'm having reception issues with an actor's wireless lav that I think may be due to a sequin dress she's wearing. The fact that the mics are older models and that she's wearing 3 other layers of clothes for quick changes doesn't help either, but I have a feeling that the issue is with the sequin dress.

Does anyone know what the composition of silver sequins may be? I understand that they're mostly plastic, but how would a manufacturer create the silver coloration? Would it make sense that they use a fine metallic powder mixed in with the plastic? Could this be causing a Faraday Cage effect?

I don't think it's a range issue, the receiver is ~60 feet away with a clear line of sight of the stage. This is our 3rd show this season and I have not run into an issue like this yet. Then again, it could be due to the fact that she's wearing 4 layers of clothing over the transmitter...

Any insight or ideas as to what the issue may be would be appreciated!

Thanks!

 

[Footer]

Static would be my first bet. During quick changes the rubbing fabric can cause static which can cause havoc on the wireless gear. Spray the costumes down with anti static stuff and see if that helps.

 

[themuzicman]

I doubt the sequins are the issue. Did you run your frequencies for intermod?

 

[FMEng]

You said the mics are "older." Are they old enough that they are VHF instead of UHF? If the sequins have a metalic film, it would have more effect on a VHF system than a UHF one. It might be worth trying a quick test with the beltpack outside the costume.

The other thing to check is frequency coordination. You may be camping on a channel with a TV station on it.

Muzicman has a good point about intermod, too. If it's intermod, the problem would disappear when the other wireless mic transmitters are turned off. If you have more mics on this show than the others, that would make sense.

 

[Dejoux]

I checked for intermod and I'm all clear in that regard, and they're not so old that they're VHF. I did test the pack on myself outside of any costumes and I had no issues there. I have a feeling that the culprit is static since it's only in this situation that I'm having these reception issues, we ran the same mics in our previous show without any like problems. Our costume department picked up some Shock Guard spray so we'll try that in our next rehearsal. Thanks everyone for the help! I'll update with the results of the Shock Guard

 

[Calc]

Double check that with all the extra layers, she's not just crumpling the antenna into a ball.