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Author Topic: Wireless Volume Control  (Read 12844 times)

Steve Moland

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Wireless Volume Control
« on: June 05, 2017, 05:14:22 PM »

I need a wireless [non IR] volume control to place between my mixer and my power amp rack. I've been unable to find what I need.

Here is the context of the venue when I need it. 

I provide all the sound reinforcement gear when I'm the announcer/emcee for outdoor events, mostly road races and triathlons. Except for a few events I have no one at my mixer controlling the music volume while I'm out roving the venue using a wireless headset and belt pack worm behind my head inside my shirt collar. I get plenty of range because I mount my wireless receiver on an 8 foot stand that is above everyone's head height. IE. No bodies to get in the way to eat the wireless signal.

Given the 200-300' range I get, running back to the mixer when I need the music turned down is visually non-professional, especially when I'm interviewing people.

Sometimes I need only the music turned down and I realize what I'm asking for would turn down both voice and music but I operate with my voice volume always turned higher and just move my little mouth boom mic away or back in to control the level. Worse case I could also just feed the controlled music volume into a 2nd mini mixer and add my mic input at that point

Steve in NH
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Steve Moland
Announcers/Emcee and sound systems
Endurance Sports Event Announcing & Management
Road Races  -Triathlons
Adventure Races - Open Water Swims

Don T. Williams

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Re: Wireless Volume Control
« Reply #1 on: June 05, 2017, 05:25:02 PM »

I need a wireless [non IR] volume control to place between my mixer and my power amp rack. I've been unable to find what I need.

Here is the context of the venue when I need it. 

I provide all the sound reinforcement gear when I'm the announcer/emcee for outdoor events, mostly road races and triathlons. Except for a few events I have no one at my mixer controlling the music volume while I'm out roving the venue using a wireless headset and belt pack worm behind my head inside my shirt collar. I get plenty of range because I mount my wireless receiver on an 8 foot stand that is above everyone's head height. IE. No bodies to get in the way to eat the wireless signal.

Given the 200-300' range I get, running back to the mixer when I need the music turned down is visually non-professional, especially when I'm interviewing people.

Sometimes I need only the music turned down and I realize what I'm asking for would turn down both voice and music but I operate with my voice volume always turned higher and just move my little mouth boom mic away or back in to control the level. Worse case I could also just feed the controlled music volume into a 2nd mini mixer and add my mic input at that point

Steve in NH


Steve, you might look at replacing your current mixer with a small digital mixer.  The Behringer XR12 ($300.00 "street" price) comes to mind, and there are probably other choices.  Controls with a phone or tablet, but you may find you will need an external wireless router to replace the internal unit for the range and reliability you need.
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Scott Hofmann

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Re: Wireless Volume Control
« Reply #2 on: June 05, 2017, 06:04:41 PM »


Sounds like you need RDL's ST-VP2 ducking module:
The ST-VP2 can be wired into any line-level input of a paging amplifier. A line-level music source may be provided from a receiver, satellite decoder, tape or CD source. A line-level voice source may be provided from a telephone paging system at line level, or from a microphone which has been preamplified up to line level (See RDL STM-1, STM-2, STM-2X, STM-3, STM-LDA3 Microphone Preamplifiers). When a page is initiated, the module automatically senses the audio at the input, turns the music down to the desired level, and automatically fades the music back up after the page is completed. The VOICE input is completely turned off by the module until the next paging signal is received. Setup is made easy by two LED indicators at the front of the module. LEDs are provided to show correct operating level for each of the two inputs.

The music input provides an AGC/Compressor which transparently produces a consistent audio level for varying music sources and protects against excessive music levels which would otherwise mask the voice signal during voice-overs.
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Scott Hofmann

Steve Moland

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Re: Wireless Volume Control
« Reply #3 on: June 05, 2017, 06:40:05 PM »



The XR12 would probably be too modern technically to control when I'm out and about. Phones and tablets are cool, but they require too much picky detailed attention to operate and are mistakes just waiting to happen on bright days outdoors. I've often already got a clipboard in one hand.

Ideally the control would be a super easy boring old mixer style knob or thumb roller control in a little box I could mount on my belt. It's something I'd have to control without looking and almost use subconsciously like I do with the mute control for my head mic.
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Steve Moland
Announcers/Emcee and sound systems
Endurance Sports Event Announcing & Management
Road Races  -Triathlons
Adventure Races - Open Water Swims

Steve Moland

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Re: Wireless Volume Control
« Reply #4 on: June 05, 2017, 06:48:48 PM »

Sounds like you need RDL's ST-VP2 ducking module:

While that AGC/Compressor feature of the RDL ST-VP2 is something I'd like to have for other reasons, I need to be able to choose the music level on the fly depending on the situation of the moment, a level from off to louder than normal.
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Steve Moland
Announcers/Emcee and sound systems
Endurance Sports Event Announcing & Management
Road Races  -Triathlons
Adventure Races - Open Water Swims

Mike Caldwell

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Re: Wireless Volume Control
« Reply #5 on: June 05, 2017, 08:28:54 PM »

Short of going to a digital mixer of some form (some even have a built in ducking mode) and being what sounds like a one man operation the idea I have is that you carry the music source with you and transmit it wireless back to home base like you do with your wireless mic.

Your music would need to be on a portable source, phone, iPod, ect.

You would need a body pack wireless system, an XLR to the input connector style that your body pac uses adaptor cable.

To interface between the music source and the body pacs input cable get one of these http://www.rapcohorizon.com/p-377-ltiblox.aspx it sums the stereo music source output to mono and it has an old fashioned volume knob on it for fast easy control.

I have used that exact set up for a couple of sound jobs that needed a remote location for the music source playback. My wireless body pac system is an Audio Technica 3000 series.
It works great and sounds good, not quite like a hard wired connection but still perfectly good for what it sounds like your doing.

What wireless mic system do you have now? Adding another wireless system to the set up I would split the incoming antenna lines to feed both receivers from your remote antennas. Audio Technica makes an amplified two way splitter.



Erik Jerde

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Re: Wireless Volume Control
« Reply #6 on: June 05, 2017, 10:32:32 PM »

If you want it simple and reliable then get a DSP that has the ability to do a custom interface on a smart phone.  Give yourself one big button that toggles for you.  Just need reliable wifi then.

Thinking about it more, if you really wanted to go for it you could actually get a dsp that can take commands over the network.  Build a little IoT box with a physical control on it that connects with the dsp via wifi and relays the control to the dsp.

Not sure if BSS can do this but QSC Q-SYS sure could.  Just gotta decide how much money you want to spend.


You're not going to find a way to do this with the audio actually passing to you and then back out.  Not any good reliable way.
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Steve Moland

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Re: Wireless Volume Control
« Reply #7 on: June 05, 2017, 10:40:54 PM »

Short of going to a digital mixer of some form (some even have a built in ducking mode) and being what sounds like a one man operation the idea I have is that you carry the music source with you and transmit it wireless back to home base like you do with your wireless mic.

Your music would need to be on a portable source, phone, iPod, ect.

You are correct, most often I am a one man show. Quite often that's a good thing because I have to go with the flow of a changing timeline and script.

I currently have 2 SLX wireless setups with belt packs so that when I do interviews or work with a co-announcer we both have a mic. I have adapters for belt packs to receive 1/4 TRS, 1/8th inch ipod/phone feeds and even an XLR feed. I have used ipods through my 2nd unit but I prefer to be feeding my music from a laptop running off the same power source as the amps.

You mention carrying my own music source so as to control the volume. I tried that but to utilize it means I have to mess with an extremely unfriendly music device that I don't want to have to hold and seldom it has battery life long enough.

I'm often out there for many hours for half marathon and full marathons. My Shure stuff works for 4 to 5 hours and then a battery change takes 30 seconds. Once the phones and ipods run out of juice charging them becomes a logistical problem of use. Playing music on them sucks the batter down very fast.



 

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Steve Moland
Announcers/Emcee and sound systems
Endurance Sports Event Announcing & Management
Road Races  -Triathlons
Adventure Races - Open Water Swims

Steve Moland

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Re: Wireless Volume Control
« Reply #8 on: June 05, 2017, 11:27:06 PM »

If you want it simple and reliable then get a DSP that has the ability to do a custom interface on a smart phone.  Give yourself one big button that toggles for you.  Just need reliable wifi then.

Thinking about it more, if you really wanted to go for it you could actually get a dsp that can take commands over the network.  Build a little IoT box with a physical control on it that connects with the dsp via wifi and relays the control to the dsp.

I do appreciate these suggestions because the mention of devices I've never heard let's me get exposed to things I might find useful at some other time.

I may just have to build both ends of this and fortunately I've a friend that builds wireless into a number of devices he markets for a different industry.

Like I mentioned in some other responses, handling anything overtly in your hands like the smartest phone or tablet on the planet when you are standing from of 3000 people just has you looking silly, especially on a bright day when you just can't see the screen because of the glare and you twist and turn the device and you to attempt to see.

This needs to so simple to operate.

Nobody notices a quick thumb bump I do now to mute unmute my belt pack transmitter  because I'm often approached and asked things we don't want live over the PA system.

Likewise nobody would notice a quick thumb roll at my belt line of a simply mostly buried-in-a-slot-in-a-little-box volume wheel like on Walkmans.

To be honest I don't even like having to hold a mic in my hand whether wired or wireless.

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Steve Moland
Announcers/Emcee and sound systems
Endurance Sports Event Announcing & Management
Road Races  -Triathlons
Adventure Races - Open Water Swims

Mike Caldwell

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Re: Wireless Volume Control
« Reply #9 on: June 06, 2017, 07:08:15 AM »

At this point you may need to look at hiring someone to operate the system when your out in the crowd doing the roving interviews,
someone qualified who will be paying attention.

I would set it up so the operator is listening to your mic via PFL with head phones while both of the mics are turned down in the system, you give them the heads up of an upcoming interview, then do a count down 5 4 3 2 1, they fade the music and bring up the wireless mics. That kind of thing is done in broadcast all the time.

ProSoundWeb Community

Re: Wireless Volume Control
« Reply #9 on: June 06, 2017, 07:08:15 AM »


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