44 l June 2013 livefeature 63
Sennheiser put on quite a show at the Digital 9000 launch in Hannover last year
www.psneurope.com
Systems operable in a 8MHz band with Shure ULX-D
KEY POINTS
l Digital microphones’ dynamic range capacity among its chief
selling points l Wired digital systems given momentum by the AES42
standards initiative l Sennheiser Digital 9000 among those systems leading the
charge for digital wireless l There is a general feeling that more needs to be done to explain the technical benefits to pro users
soon could be, predicting that the necessary technology will be in place “within five years”.
individual technologies have trickled down into other products – notably the ULX-D Digital Wireless System, which delivers 24-bit/48kHz digital audio combined with spectrum-efficient RF performance. Indeed, a high- density mode in the ULX-D systems allows for 63 systems to operate in only 8MHz of spectrum such as channel 38. Pointing towards greater integration possibilities, the system also offers support for Audinate’s Dante networking technology. “Nothing is stopping people
from adopting [digital] – it is just that it is new technology,” says Tuomo Tolonen, applications and product planning manager at Shure UK, who records “tremendous level of interest” in Axient and related products. Nonetheless, he does concede that “it won’t be possible to realise the [full] benefits of spectral efficiency in digital systems until everything is digital”. He also urges users to think
carefully about their own requirements rather than simply thinking digital is better than analogue. “If you get a major production using digital systems you may not wish to cram all the channels into a tight bit of spectrum, because if you then get interference, rather than losing one channel you could
“The pressure is big to go digital, but I still see that A-D conversion at the receiver output will be available and asked for in
the coming years” Alex Lepges, Audio-Technica
lose 20,” says Tolonen. “How high profile is the event, and is your job on the line if it doesn’t go to plan?”
RESERVATIONS? WE HAVE A FEW… Among the manufacturers who have been slower to join the fray with digital systems of either kind, there is a general ‘wait and see’ feeling, although some do pinpoint specific reservations… Roman Perschon, CEO of
Lewitt GmbH, points out that in the studio, digital microphones might not necessarily find favour with analogue-smitten performers. “Some artists are really into analogue gear; the more vintage, the better. Analogue technology is not an endangered species – we see a lot of room for further improvement here,” he says. However, “a professional digital Lewitt studio microphone is nevertheless a question of time”. Alex Lepges, Audio-Technica wireless product manager, is
also keeping an open mind, acknowledging that “the pressure is big to go digital, but I still see that an FM-based transmission with A-D conversion at the receiver
output will be available and asked for in the coming years.” He also underlines the fact
that digital wireless has its share of challenges too: “While analogue wireless microphones suffer from artefacts generated by the
compander and some noise coming in which can be reduced to a certain extent by the use of pre- and de-emphasis, the digital wireless microphone instead is in need of either bitrate reduction (digital audio data compression), more complex symbols which lead to reduced operating range, or more occupied bandwidth on the radio spectrum. In any
case the digital wireless microphone has a noticeable latency which is significantly higher than just an A-D conversion at the output of an analogue wireless receiver.” Christian Poulsen is CEO
of DPA. In his view, at present and in normal everyday usage, “the benefits of digitising all the way through, from the mic head, are not sufficient [to justify user investment].” For this to change, there needs to be a further evolution of processing technology that would facilitate “all kinds of sound manipulation in the mic possibilities. There could be built-in advanced processing to enhance sound quality or remove noise…but the processing is not there yet.” Poulsen is optimistic, however, that it
EARLY DAYS If not quite at the beginning of this particular journey, we can still just about see the starting point in the rear-view mirror. As Riekehof remarks: “The digital microphone technique is still very new. There will be a lot of interesting things in the future. One important change is the connection directly to an audio network like Ravenna.” For easier workflows alone, digital microphones surely have a bright future. In the shorter-term, however, users will need to be reassured – particularly with regard to the ongoing spectrum crunch and what this might mean for wireless operation – if they are to be encouraged to invest in greater numbers. Integral to this process will be conveying one of the repeated messages of this article – that it’s really not one or the other, and that digital and analogue systems can co-exist efficiently and effectively. n
www.audio-technica.com www.dpamicrophones.com www.lewitt-audio.com www.line6.com www.milabmic.com www.schoeps.de www.sennheiser.co.uk www.shure.co.uk
Schoeps SuperCMIT digital shotgun microphone
t
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60