Christopher Haws
New Member
Hello,
I volunteer at a few local High Schools who don't have huge budgets for purchasing equipment. For the past several years we have been using 2 way radios for communicating between sound, lighting, stage management, and our spotlight. The biggest issue we have is that 2-way radios are only half-duplex so only one person can talk at a time. This gets pretty annoying when we are trying to cue each other for entrances. exits, etc.
One of the schools in our district has a built in clear-com system which is a luxury to use. I have been looking into purchasing a system for our school that would hopefully function similar to theirs. After looking for several days, I have come to the conclusion that these systems are expensive! Since we really just don't have the budget, I am looking for a cheaper alternative.
Here are some unconventional solutions I came up with that are within our budget:
Lineapp Flux Smartphone App:
Pros:
- Full-duplex intercom
- Works on iOS and Android so all of our students can use it
- Fairly cheap (3 euro's per device per day)
- Supports groups so the stage manager can communicate with different groups or all groups
- Works over LAN, no need for an internet connection
- Works with any smartphone headset
- Works even when the app isn't open and when the smartphone is locked which saves a lot of battery
Cons:
- We don't like the per device per day licensing model. We would rather pay one time since getting approval with the school can take time
- Requires everyone to be connected to the same network
- WiFi's range isn't amazing, so there could be range issues
- Battery life could be an issue with smartphones
- Small latency (around 20ms). This wont be an issue for us, but could be for others
Self-Hosted Mumble Server:
Pros:
- Free
- Works on iOS and Android so all of our students can use it
- Works over LAN, no need for an internet connection
- Full-duplex (everyone can be talking at the same time)
Cons:
- Requires a computer to be hosting the server
- Requires everyone to be connected to the same network
- WiFi's range isn't amazing, so there could be range issues
- The push-to-talk feature in the app requires you to press a soft key in the app (cant use the button on the headset to talk)
- Without the PTT feature, everyone's mic is always hot unless you purchase headsets with an inline mute switch
- Small latency (around 20ms). This wont be an issue for us, but could be for others
2 Way Radios:
Pros:
- Pretty cheap (can get 8 radios for around $100)
- Long range
- Multiple channels
- No noticeable latency
- Decent battery life
Cons:
- Half-duplex communication is a real pain
- Anyone with a walkie talkie can interfere with our show
As a last note, can anyone explain from a technology perspective why intercom systems are so expensive? Is this simply a supply and demand problem or is there a technology reason for this? I am a software developer by day, so if you can throw me a technical answer I would really appreciate it!
Thanks!
Chris
I volunteer at a few local High Schools who don't have huge budgets for purchasing equipment. For the past several years we have been using 2 way radios for communicating between sound, lighting, stage management, and our spotlight. The biggest issue we have is that 2-way radios are only half-duplex so only one person can talk at a time. This gets pretty annoying when we are trying to cue each other for entrances. exits, etc.
One of the schools in our district has a built in clear-com system which is a luxury to use. I have been looking into purchasing a system for our school that would hopefully function similar to theirs. After looking for several days, I have come to the conclusion that these systems are expensive! Since we really just don't have the budget, I am looking for a cheaper alternative.
Here are some unconventional solutions I came up with that are within our budget:
Lineapp Flux Smartphone App:
Pros:
- Full-duplex intercom
- Works on iOS and Android so all of our students can use it
- Fairly cheap (3 euro's per device per day)
- Supports groups so the stage manager can communicate with different groups or all groups
- Works over LAN, no need for an internet connection
- Works with any smartphone headset
- Works even when the app isn't open and when the smartphone is locked which saves a lot of battery
Cons:
- We don't like the per device per day licensing model. We would rather pay one time since getting approval with the school can take time
- Requires everyone to be connected to the same network
- WiFi's range isn't amazing, so there could be range issues
- Battery life could be an issue with smartphones
- Small latency (around 20ms). This wont be an issue for us, but could be for others
Self-Hosted Mumble Server:
Pros:
- Free
- Works on iOS and Android so all of our students can use it
- Works over LAN, no need for an internet connection
- Full-duplex (everyone can be talking at the same time)
Cons:
- Requires a computer to be hosting the server
- Requires everyone to be connected to the same network
- WiFi's range isn't amazing, so there could be range issues
- The push-to-talk feature in the app requires you to press a soft key in the app (cant use the button on the headset to talk)
- Without the PTT feature, everyone's mic is always hot unless you purchase headsets with an inline mute switch
- Small latency (around 20ms). This wont be an issue for us, but could be for others
2 Way Radios:
Pros:
- Pretty cheap (can get 8 radios for around $100)
- Long range
- Multiple channels
- No noticeable latency
- Decent battery life
Cons:
- Half-duplex communication is a real pain
- Anyone with a walkie talkie can interfere with our show
As a last note, can anyone explain from a technology perspective why intercom systems are so expensive? Is this simply a supply and demand problem or is there a technology reason for this? I am a software developer by day, so if you can throw me a technical answer I would really appreciate it!
Thanks!
Chris