in the middle of a shoot my mic went dead. i use senhieser one receiver, one lav w/transmitter, 1 transmitter to be attached to be attached to a hand held mic.

i did some trouble shooting and here is what i know:

1. the lav transmitter is transmitting the signal.

2. the receiver is getting the the signal. the RF meter on the receiver is at max and the AF meter is dancing to show the sound that is coming into the mic.

3. i can here sound coming thru the headphones though it is alot lower than normal.

4. the on-screen meter on the cam lcd shows nothing until i ramp the levels to max and set the cam (in the record setup menu) from 50db to 60db. even then the meters will only read -50db at best.

what would you say i need to do next to further trouble shoot?

""" What you do with what you have, is more important than what you could do, with what you don't have."

> > > Knowledge + Action = Wisdom - J. Corbett 1992 """"

Are you sure your levels aren't too hot for the camera? If you're overloading, that can translate into extremely weak sound rather than extremely loud.


www.derekmok.com

This is good. I like this one.

[rolling up sleeves]

What is the model number of the receiver? How, exactly, does it connect to the camera? What powers the receiver?

Koz

on the receiver it says sennheiser ew 100 g2.

""" What you do with what you have, is more important than what you could do, with what you don't have."

> > > Knowledge + Action = Wisdom - J. Corbett 1992 """"

it connects thru xlr to the cam (dvx100b).

""" What you do with what you have, is more important than what you could do, with what you don't have."

> > > Knowledge + Action = Wisdom - J. Corbett 1992 """"

btw MOK i have ran the mic the exact same way with 2 frequency changes over the last year and a half. it was working when we started the shoot and with out any intentional changes it stopped working.

""" What you do with what you have, is more important than what you could do, with what you don't have."

> > > Knowledge + Action = Wisdom - J. Corbett 1992 """"

OK, while I dig through the Sennheiser literature, any chance you changed the receiver delivered analog audio level from Line to Mic?

Koz

One more. You are using the non-diversity camera-top receiver, right? There is an audio adapter to go from the unbalanced 1/8" audio jack to the XLR Male connector on the camera?

What happens if you plug your headphones (you do use headphones on sound shoots, right?) plug your headphones right into the 1/8" jack on the receiver? Or your iPod earbuds if you don't have headphones. Is your show there if someone talks into the mic at the other end?

It won't blow-dry your hair, but you should be able to just hear it.

Koz

"OK, while I dig through the Sennheiser literature, any chance you changed the receiver delivered analog audio level from Line to Mic?

Koz"

I have one of those G2 Evolution sets (they are some cheap crap) and the menu system is arcane in the extreme. You would really have to be intentionally setting out to change the output of the RX from line (default) to mic. Doing it unintentionally would be a one in a billion occurance.

How are the receiver batteries? Do you have phantom power feeding that audio channel on your camera? That can cancel out a powered audio source.

I was gonna say...anyone check the batteries / connections? You should ALWAYS have fresh batteries on standby & a tester on hand - goes without saying. I would also suggest that if a shoot requires a lav that a back-up lav be at the ready. Sometimes wires kink & break - that is unforseen.

When life gives you dilemmas...make dilemmanade.

<<<Sometimes wires kink & break >>>

That's where I was going with that. After you determine that you can hear the performance with your headphones plugged right onto the wireless receiver, then plug the adapter in and jam the headphone plug between pins two and three of the male XLR. If it doesn't sound the same as it did at the 1/8" connector, then the adapter cable is broken. If it does sound the same, then the camera is mis-adjusted or in trouble.

Koz

sorry for the slow response i was out of town with a rental mic set on a shoot.

Quote
koz
One more. You are using the non-diversity camera-top receiver, right? There is an audio adapter to go from the unbalanced 1/8" audio jack to the XLR Male connector on the camera?

when i plug the headphones into the receivers 1/8 i can hear it crystal clear.
i have always left the phantom power on. however during this dilemma i have tried both ways.

Quote
Tim
How are the receiver batteries? Do you have phantom power feeding that audio channel on your camera? That can cancel out a powered audio source.

the batteries are fresh and at full. And you are right, you would have to really try something special to set them differently tan default, so no chance of an unintentional change.

Quote
Joe
I would also suggest that if a shoot requires a lav that a back-up lav be at the ready. Sometimes wires kink & break - that is unforseen.

i do keep extra everything for shoots. but i only have a 129 dollar replacement for the g2's. the back-ups are extra crappy and normally requires me do at least 2hrs of seasoning in protools.
the sennhieser mics cost me 800 buck and hardly requires more than 30mins simmering in the Digi-pot.

Quote
koz
That's where I was going with that. After you determine that you can hear the performance with your headphones plugged right onto the wireless receiver, then plug the adapter in and jam the headphone plug between pins two and three of the male XLR.

could you give me a remix of this trouble shot. i am not quite getting it. i am understanding that if the xlr adapter is pluged in as normal that by creating conductivity between the 2&3 pin will give me sound.
btw koz i am posting this before i try so i will try it the way i understand it to be if i am wrong just correct me.

""" What you do with what you have, is more important than what you could do, with what you don't have."

> > > Knowledge + Action = Wisdom - J. Corbett 1992 """"

Koz i cant get any sound thru the headPH no matter how i touch the 1/8 headPH plug to the xlr males.

the other question here is if the cable is bad then how is it that i can hear what the lav is picking up when the xlrs are plugged to the camera and the headPH are in the cams headPH out?

i mean i do hear what the lav is hearing its just really low.

""" What you do with what you have, is more important than what you could do, with what you don't have."

> > > Knowledge + Action = Wisdom - J. Corbett 1992 """"

Did you check the phantom power switch? I don't know which camera you're using but if it's a broadcast camera, the switch will be right next to the XLR in. Do not feed phantom power out to a powered source.

new cable problem solved.

""" What you do with what you have, is more important than what you could do, with what you don't have."

> > > Knowledge + Action = Wisdom - J. Corbett 1992 """"