Gain Drain

[mJohnson880]

So, I'm using the shure ulx transmitter/receiver combo. The manual says that we should be getting 8 hours out of our batteries. In fact, it's closer to two. Now, our transmitters are gained up MUCH higher than shure recommends (we're getting plenty of green lights when talking and yellow and red during the loud parts. So here is the question: does transmitter gain volume affect battery life?

 

[DaveySimps]

Brief answer, not really. What type of batteries are you using? Do you replace both batteries with brand new ones each time? How far are the receivers from the transmitters? With just the info we have so far, I think it has more to do with the battery stock you are using. I would never plan on getting 8 hours, but 6 hours should be easy to come by.

~Dave

 

[mJohnson880]

Duracell 9 volts. One per mic. As for distance, I can't judge very well so i'll spare you. The mics, when in use, are just over the width of a regulation basketball court. When the actors are offstage, the distance is farther. And we do use new batteries each show

 

[DaveySimps]

Are the mics new? Is this the first batch of batteries you have used with them? It is not inconceivable you got a bad batch of batteries. Have you tried contacting Shure directly? They are fantastic to deal with. Nothing like cutting out the middle man.

~Dave

 

[avkid]

Why are your gains so high?

 

[mJohnson880]

This is the mics second year of use, and they did it last time as well. We could squeeze two hours out of a battery, but no more. As for the epic gain, it's a high school production (already running) and I don't have the authority to just say things and just have them happen. Though, I will fix it for next time.

 

[MNicolai]

What is your measure for battery life? Low-battery indicator or the mic turning off?

If I went off of the battery meters on our ULX's, I'd be at low battery after 90 minutes, but I can get upwards of a few hours by ignoring the meters.

I try not to go behind 4-5 hours because then I enter territory where things can get screwy, and that's equivalent to roughly two nights; we never try for three.

My experience is that the low battery warning greatly underestimates the amount of juice left.

If your mic's are actually turning off after a couple hours, then you may have a legitimate problem with your beltpacks or battery stock.

 

[avkid]

Never trust the battery gauges on ULX until they start flashing.

 

[dannymusic]

I use a "battometer" before and after shows to get an idea of actual battery drain. Its been a very useful exercise/device to see how batteries get used.

 

[Blacksheep0317]

The "Epic Gain" could actually be having a bit of an effect on the battery life. If your in the "loud parts" the majority of the show and your transmitter needs to really work to keep squashing the bejeebous out of the signal before it can be sent, then yes, thats killing your battery life. Not so much now that I upgraded to shures UHX line (Spoiled? yes.. lol), but past practice has always been to count on twice the battery life for presentation mic vs. death-core scremo band. At least in my experience. Well see with this new rig though. Hasnt been used for presentations yet.

Regardless, try to do something about that gain. Its one thing to try and play the gain game with a wired mic when you really need to try and push something, but just by the nature of how RF and w/l mics work if your running the red alot during your shows something tells me that the mics arent exactly sounding walking though a meadow of spring flowers with bambi awesome. I find that the on transmitter compression is just awful.

 

[Eboy87]

Could just be a bad batch of batteries. We've all gotten them before.