bluetooth lav mic?

A

averan

Well-known member
anyone know of any prosumer bluetooth lapel mics?
the only thing i've found is by Sony:
http://www.sonystyle.com/webapp/wcs...gId=-1&productId=8198552921665908004#features

looking for a simple solution, with maximum signal and feature quality, for super easy miking of non-professional talent in fast-paced documentary situations.

i've found that very often in real-world documentary situations there simply isn't enough time to mic someone with a standard wireless lav and very often the subject is already uncomfortable enough with appearing on-camera.

a completely wireless solution is needed where i can just clip the small mic-transmitter unit onto their shirt and start shooting immediately. i don't need the 300ft range of uhf systems....just up to 10ft or so.

we all have bluetooth mics for our cell phones, why not have one designed specifically for run-n-gun ENG and documentary situations?
 
hard to boom when you're trying to shoot!
of course if i had a second person to handle audio this wouldn't be an issue.
or if i had all the time in the world and subjects that were comfortable on-camera.
or if i wasn't busy trudging through 9ft of snow in the middle of the mountains in snowshoes while dodging heavy machinery.

anything that gets me better audio than what is possible through my on-camera shotgun i will consider good enough.

we all wish we could shoot everything in the controlled environment of a sound stage with all top-of-the-line gear, but the reality is that it's not always possible to control every variable in a situation. and i often have to work in fast-paced environments with no additional support or crew.

so, to rephrase my question, can anyone recommend any truly wireless solutions for a 1-man crew that would make my job easier?
 
Believe it or not, many audio guys will actually leave the safety of the studio and sound-stage and capture audio in the big scary outdoors with you. Even if it's snowing!

In all seriousness, there are a couple things to consider.

1) Does it actually have to be wireless? I'm getting a very strong "I don't want to spend any money" vibe. If you don't actually need to be wireless, you can save some money and just buy a good wired lav.

1a) If you really do need to be wireless, Sennheiser's G3 gear is solid entry-level kit.

2) Do you absolutely have to own it? Renting is a great way to get access to top-quality gear at very reasonable prices. The major rental houses will ship anywhere.
 
I have also the feeling that you're trying to be "as sheep as possible" by eliminating "unnecessary" things.

Asking about 2000 - 3000 dollar are normal rates I guess...
 
averan said:
we all have bluetooth mics for our cell phones, why not have one designed specifically for run-n-gun ENG and documentary situations?
Click to expand...


The sound quality of a phone is pretty poor. Bluetooth operates in the 2.4 GHz
band, and 'shares' that band with WIFI as well as microwave ovens, and any other
'unlicensed' radio application that comes along. The 900 Mhz ISM band is no different. In that band there's industrial autoclaves, top end has pager spectrum 'bleed', and outside the US, cell phones...
 
holy cow!
you guys read too much into things.

i never said i wouldn't love to have a sound guy with me on ALL my shoots.
of course i would!!!

i also never said i was a cheapskate and didn't want to spend any money on gear.
i actually made it clear i was looking for a quality product, this usually means $.

thanks for nothing.
i'm concluding that no one here actually has a solution to offer for the situation i have outlined.

i would prefer that if you can't answer the question, don't bother posting.

obviously i freaking know that bluetooth signals will be lower quality than uhf.
obviously it's better to have a second person with you.

what i asked for was information about a specific scenario where neither a uhf transmitter pack or a boom operator are possible. you'll just have to accept that the reasons i have for those options being impossible are things out of my control and are limitations that i have to work with sometimes.

so instead of just ragging on me and how stupid you think my question is, why not help me out with an actual solution that fits the parameters of my described situation???

maybe the folks at the rebel's guide forum can help me better with some 'outside the box' thinking.

@JordanBlock:
thanks for the input. i've thought about wired lavs, but too limiting when i need shots without wires in it - can't risk getting wires tangled, can't be tethered while trying not to slip on ice, etc. just looking for something less than typical uhf systems but more than wired lav or no lav. it seems like what i'm looking for isn't available yet.
 
Yeah, if you're out in more dangerous conditions, I get not wanting to be wired. You do need to understand that on this board 90% of the people asking questions don't want to spend a penny on their sound, so its very easy to read into things that are posted. People are very very quick to cheap out on their sound and it bugs us. Sorry if that's not you.

The problem is, you basically asked us to recommend a bluetooth lav. Even if there is one on the market, it's not going to be able to give you what anyone here would consider to be even 'decent' sound, so we can't give that recommendation. You'd just be back in two weeks complaining that we told you to buy crappy gear. (Plus, it's going to be big and ugly and probably have one of those damn blue LEDs on it. Do you want that in the shot?)

I'm sorry, but if the people you're shooting are that weirded out by having a tiny mic and beltpack attatched to them, I really don't know what to suggest to help that. I'm rather amazed they're not worried about the camera stealing their soul.

I assume having them hold a stick mic with a transmitter plug is out of the question?

(On Edit)
Where did anyone suggest to you to stick with on-camera shotgun? The closer mic will win for sound level, but both those videos you link are pretty good examples of mediocre sound. If you think the result is good enough for what you're doing, go buy the damn thing and stop attacking people for trying to give advice.
 
Last edited:
"so, to rephrase my question, can anyone recommend any truly wireless solutions for a 1-man crew that would make my job easier?"

I'ts because of the words "1-man-crew" everyone here thinks it's a 1-man-crew for every scene and situation.

Maybe it's a goog idea to explain your specific situation ? So we can see if it's REALLY not possible to have a 2nd guy.
 
I 2nd Jordan. Most posters don't know what question to ask, so they phrase questions that they "think" is what they're looking for.

It's like walking into a hardware store asking for recommendations on what wrench to pound nails in with. It's not that you can't get recommendations on a good wrench, but any reasonable person is going to suggest using a hammer first.
 
thanks for your professional response JB.

i'd be ok with the transmitter/mic being visible, that's one compromise i'd have to make.
although i'm sure i could hide it a bit.

one of the challenges i'm trying to address is when working with normal everyday people who ALL get very nervous and shy when the camera comes out.
putting a stick mic in their hands is only going to make them feel very awkward and that much more self-conscious about being on-camera.
as much as i work to put them at ease, it doesn't help that all my gear makes it worse.
thus, my conclusion that something small and SUPER convenient to quickly clip onto them would be quickly forgotten about by the subject and make the whole process much more natural and easy, resulting in a BETTER video.

if the pros in here don't want to get involved in shoots like this that's fine.
i have a specific need and am willing to spend $ to purchase a piece of equipment if it would help fulfill my need.

what cracks me up is that 'pros' wouldn't recommend a bluetooth mic even if that mic would result in better audio than would otherwise be possible!
seems like the definition of a 'pro' in here is someone who is rigidly attached to their way of doing things and can't think of new ways to do things or adapt to unknown circumstances.
to me, a 'pro' is someone who can get the job done to the highest level possible, innovating if necessary to overcome the limitations of the situation.
 
I wish I had more info on this but I did notice on Ellen (please don't ask why I was watching Ellen) that she had a guest walk up to their seat and they clipped what appeared to be a bluetooth style lav to their shirt and the show continued. I rewound and looked and there was no wire that I could see, just a little lapel mic with a clip. I doubt they would use sub standard equipment for broadcast so there must be something out there that will meet your needs.

I don't remember why the guest didn't get wired up before hand but I think they performed and then came straight over to the chair. I have been meaning to research this but I have forgotten about it until now. If I come across anything I will post it here.

Cole
 
Gohanto said:
I 2nd Jordan. Most posters don't know what question to ask, so they phrase questions that they "think" is what they're looking for.

It's like walking into a hardware store asking for recommendations on what wrench to pound nails in with. It's not that you can't get recommendations on a good wrench, but any reasonable person is going to suggest using a hammer first.
Click to expand...

i understand.
which is exactly why i went to the trouble of explaining WHY i asked this question as well as giving the exact parameters of a situation where this sort of solution would actually be appropriate.
 
Cole said:
I wish I had more info on this but I did notice on Ellen (please don't ask why I was watching Ellen) that she had a guest walk up to their seat and they clipped what appeared to be a bluetooth style lav to their shirt and the show continued. I rewound and looked and there was no wire that I could see, just a little lapel mic with a clip. I doubt they would use sub standard equipment for broadcast so there must be something out there that will meet your needs.

I don't remember why the guest didn't get wired up before hand but I think they performed and then came straight over to the chair. I have been meaning to research this but I have forgotten about it until now. If I come across anything I will post it here.

Cole
Click to expand...

interesting. wish i knew someone that worked on Ellen's set so i could ask them!
thanks for the info.
 
dre83 said:
"so, to rephrase my question, can anyone recommend any truly wireless solutions for a 1-man crew that would make my job easier?"

I'ts because of the words "1-man-crew" everyone here thinks it's a 1-man-crew for every scene and situation.

Maybe it's a goog idea to explain your specific situation ? So we can see if it's REALLY not possible to have a 2nd guy.
Click to expand...

i can't take all day to share every detail of my work.
people will have to take me for my word as i actually DID state that i couldn't get a second person there.

seems pointless for people to try to tell me otherwise.

maybe everyone in here NEVER shoots alone?
maybe they always have 2 or more people on every single project they've ever done?
maybe all their projects are $10,000 or more and with 1 year's advance notice?
maybe they all have dedicated sound guys that do nothing but wait by the phone for that call to run out and help on a shoot?
if so, then their situation does not apply to me!

as i already stated, sometimes i cannot have a 2nd person with me.
sometimes i get called up the night before and have to drive 5 hours into the mountains, climb into an already crowded snowcat full of powerline workers with no room for an additional body and get out there to capture an event with no additional resources or time to arrange support.

for all other situations i have either the crew or the equipment to handle the audio professionally.
for this type of unique and specific situation, i do not.
thus, my question and search for a solution that could help me within the limitations i have described.
 
So are you shooting the same person for an extended period, or is it just little snippets with different people here and there?

If you're with one subject for any length of time, wire them as early as possible and maybe they'll forget it's there by the time you're really shooting anything. As for getting them comfortable on camera, I'm not really the guy to ask, but I'll take a stab at it anyways.

Perhaps they're just uncomfortable having a conversation with someone that's hidden behind a camera so they can't really make eye contact. That's where a bigger crew would be a nice thing, you (or an interviewer) could get out from behind the gear and engage the subject a little more naturally. But, it's not always an option, as you say.

I will readily admit that I have not watched nearly as much Ellen as Cole, so I can't say for sure what was seen, but I've seen plenty of shows where a guest will clip on a lav when they sit down, though it's always got a wire. The wires are small enough that they may not read on TV though.
 
A lot of the posters on this board ARE sound guys, not shooters, so we generally work with at least one other person. Someone has to point the camera or we have no idea where to boom! :)
 
lol! thanks Jordan. good point.

totally agree that when it's the same subject over a long time it's best to wire them early.
that works well for long-format docs.

this was a short doc, more like a commercial, with interviews with several different people.
and it was shot all at once, within a 4-hour period.
with a well-planned feature-length doc you usually have lot's of advance notice and can make arrangements ahead of time as well as have the luxury of other crew to help you out.

also agree that stepping out from behind the camera helps the performance of the subject greatly. as much as possible i try to do so, but on this shoot i had to go handheld the entire time and couldn't maintain constant eye-contact without losing my framing.
 
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