Radio Lav Issues

[Stevo_90]

 

 

 

Hi guys,

I've had a couple of issues with radio lavs where they emit a sudden, loud bang for no discernible reason. My guess is that it's a violent movement in the capsule, does anyone know what causes it and therefore how it can be avoided?

[WiLL]

It's normally an idicator of a fault somewhere in the mic lead, a partially broken wire or loose connection to the capsule. Although likewise it could be a faulty connection in the transmitter itself. Some simple diagnosis would be to move the lead, capsule and transmitter through a range of motions to try and replicate the fault, or swapping out lead and or transmitter.

[Ynot]

My experiences show that the majority of such faults lie at the body pack end of the cable - often where the cable goes into the plug itself. And the reason behind that tends mainly to be that too many people (often because they think they'e 'helping') wrap the mic cable around the pack, thus putting tension and a 90 degree bend on that cable, and repeat treatment this way weakens/breaks the very thin inner core.

 

I tend to threaten firing squads for those I discover using this particular practicewith my venue's mics..!!!

[Shez]

Also worth checking that the mic's connector is securely attached to the pack. In the case of Sennheiser evolutions, the 3.5mm locking connector needed to be screwed in quite firmly to ensure that it can't move (which can cause intermittent contact and bangs) particularly if the pack has previously been handled roughly (dropped / dangled on its cable) which doesn't do the contacts inside the socket much good.

[paulears]

apart from Trantec TS259s which used to do this when the red wire fell off the beach of the capsule!