Wireless System Transmitter

[Buster Arrieta]

What is the wireless system transmitter that you use in those shows on live broadcast?

[JasonMcKelvey]

There is only a small handfull of wireless systems that can be used in a professional multicamera system. Most shows still use wired triax for steadicam but wireless systems have come a long way. The deal maker/breakers in the technology is quality, delay and controlability. There are only 4 systems that I know of on the market right now that have remote control of the camera functions such as shading iris, paint, etc. These are Sony, Link Research, Thomson/GVG and Gigawave's D-Cam. Of these the 2 that have the picture quality that can match a wired camera are Link Research and Thomson. (BTW: Link Research makes the wireless system Hitachi uses for there system, which only works with Hitachi cameras. Link's works with most cameras.) Sony's picture is awful. And I experienced quality problems with the Gigawave D-Cam I used last Christmas on Steadicam for a 11 camera concert I directed. Of the Thomson and the Link Research systems, the Thomson might have a few points up on the Link R system. But, we come to latency, or delay. For sports it's not as big a deal, but for lip sync or instruments shots, it's crucial. Thomson's picture was stunning, but the delay was huge. The Link system has the lowest delay on the market right now with full CCU control. But, the Link system still has between 80 miliseconds and 120 ms of delay. In other words, you hear the undelayed audio first, then a hair later, you see it happen. Even under optimal conditions with the Link system, drum shots are not useable because of the delay. At the end of this year they will have a new system with wireless return video that will also be used to genlock the camera head itself, therefore lowering the delay by at least 10 ms or maybe even 20 ms. I have used a wireless triax system with steadicam (not as an operator, but as producer/director) and have done demos in my church as well as going to NAB to research these products. If you have any questions, I probably know the answer.

Jason