WSM

[liamk40]

Hi Guys,

 

So I've done a few productions with Sennheiser radio mics and have used WSM to monitor the mics/receivers at FOH. I've come to the conclusion that its become somewhat useless... Let me explain:

 

- I'm FOH and should anything happen to a mic I will jump on comms and inform stage (most productions I work on do not have a no. 2)

 

- 9/10 times its a capsule problem either the capsule is broken or loose (WSM can't tell me that).

 

- The mics are set to auto lock and the packs are always in belts/pouches so I know the cast are not fiddling with settings.

 

- In the event that someone has to fix a problem, no matter what the case, they will have to get the mic and transmitter to fix it.

 

So as I say, me having WSM at FOH seems fruitless, if it's a caspule problem I will hear it straight away, if its RF interference I will hear it as either modulation or white noise, and if the mic is off I won't get anything. Battery level is never a problem because new batteries are used for each show (obviously).

 

So bascaily I just want to you know your thoughts on this. Do you agree? What would be an actual advatange of using WSM?

 

Cheers

[david.elsbury]

If you don't want it, don't use it? I did a show a few years ago with 12 channels of RF and I put all the recievers backstage with the A2/ stagehand, and monitored them at FOH with Workbench (Shure kit)- extremely useful then :)

[MarkBarl]

We find WSM useful at FOH. Pre show and after interval we can see that we have all packs received, (we will obviously check each line for audio as well on cans but WSM also gives an indication of AF) It is also useful to be able to monitor battery usage and alert the ASM in an emergency. It is another tool you can use to identify a problem. Are pops or crackles AF or RF based, clues can be taken from WSM.

 

As previously mentioned though, if you don't like it, don't use it.

[ninjadingle]

Last show I did we didn't have sufficient channels on the snake to have the receivers backstage, so they went FoH. Having WSM backstage was a small lifesaver when a mic popped - I was able to see which pack was overloading and found the right cast member to correct the problem (she hadn't plugged her headset in fully) - how quickly could you identify 1 mic out of 20 that's doing that? (we use an 01v96 so no channel metering). The sort of thing that you don't know how you lived without it until you've relied on it!

[Bazz339]

Hi Guys,

 

So I've done a few productions with Sennheiser radio mics and have used WSM to monitor the mics/receivers at FOH. I've come to the conclusion that its become somewhat useless... Let me explain:

 

- I'm FOH and should anything happen to a mic I will jump on comms and inform stage (most productions I work on do not have a no. 2)

 

- 9/10 times its a capsule problem either the capsule is broken or loose (WSM can't tell me that).

 

- The mics are set to auto lock and the packs are always in belts/pouches so I know the cast are not fiddling with settings.

 

- In the event that someone has to fix a problem, no matter what the case, they will have to get the mic and transmitter to fix it.

 

So as I say, me having WSM at FOH seems fruitless, if it's a caspule problem I will hear it straight away, if its RF interference I will hear it as either modulation or white noise, and if the mic is off I won't get anything. Battery level is never a problem because new batteries are used for each show (obviously).

 

So bascaily I just want to you know your thoughts on this. Do you agree? What would be an actual advatange of using WSM?

 

Cheers

 

 

Many of us will be used to sorting out radio mic problems without the aid of sophisticated monitoring.

 

However, if it is available, I would rather have it.