|
Strengths: Crystal clear sound with few dropouts and 2 separate channels
Weaknesses: the 200UPR Receiver is very heavy. No mono/stereo output switch. The 2 transmitters accept only mic level inputs.
Summary: I bought this system 4 months ago because I had to shoot 2 weddings and a concert and the old Azden Pro I already had was clearly not going to cut the mustard. Plain and simple, I wanted better sound, fewer dropouts, and needed 2 channels/transmitters. The Samson, Audio Technica, and Sony versions offer only one transmitter. The Sennheiser Evolution G2 100 Series while offering 2 transmitters for the same price has only a single channel receiver (meaning I could only use one transmitter at a time.) But the Azden 200UPR Receiver provided me with two channels.
At the wedding ceremonies, I gave the handheld transmitter (51XT Plug-In ) to the sound man running the church PA and he patched a “mic-level” out from his mixing board into that transmitter (approximately 75 feet from my camera.) I connected an omni-directional condenser mic to the 10BT Body Pack on a small mic stand located close to where it could pick up the vows and not have the groomsmen or minister kick it. It worked great and gave me the backup of a second channel. And guess what? I needed it. Even after a sound check the sound man neglected to send the CD music during 2 critical points in the ceremony. If I only had one channel from the board, I would have been screwed. Also, always bring the manual with the frequencies. The church had 10 wireless mics and you don’t want to use the same frequencies. Likewise, I recorded a concert with a similar set up (One from the board and one on stage) and again it saved me.
As for the design flaws:
1. the Azden receiver weighs a ton! The receiver weighs more than the Panansonic PV GS400 camcorder I used. But not enough to make me unhappy. During the reception I used a Shure SM58 mic with the 51XT Plug-In transmitter and it sounded great. But make sure the person using the mic puts their hand around the mic and NOT the transmitter which can cause some interference.
2. There is no mono/stereo output switch on the receiver. Thus, if you only use one channel you’re recording only one channel on your camcorder. While there are ways to deal with this in the post production, from the receiver I took a 1/8 inch stereo male plug to 1/8 inch mono connected to a mono to stereo adapter and that into my camcorder. (There are other ways just note something needs to be done if you want to record from only one channel onto the two tracks on your camcorder.)
3. Finally, there is no mic/line level switch for the transmitters which is crazy because it would have made this system unbeatable for both pros and prosumers. All the other similar systems have one. So what does this mean? Well, while there is a level control on the transmitters it does not solve the problem of a line level which is too hot for the mic level (distorted sound). Anyone who would buy and use this system knows that you always try to patch into a mixing board whether it’s a church, DJ, lecture, concert, or whatever. However most boards will only give you a line level. But until Azden has an epiphany and makes the change there is an acceptable work around. Use the 51XT Plug-In module and attach an in-line line-level to mic-level attenuator. Get a switchable 10/20/30db switch (Usually 30db should do.)Since most line-level mixing board outs are high impedance (meaning you will also need a 1/4 inch phono cord) you will also need to attach an in line low impedance to high impedance transformer. Got it? So while the module/attenuator/transformer and 1/4 inch phono cord is about a foot long it will work fine.
In sum, this Azden system offers great sound and the option of 2 channels but requires you to prepare by weight lifting and using acceptable work-arounds.
 100% of People (7/7) found this review helpful. Was this review helpful or unhelpful for you?
 There are no comments for this review. Post a comment.
|
Report this as 