old Lectrosonics or new Saramonic - what to buy?

P

perplexia

Member
I'm looking at buying a wireless LAV system, and I have the opportunity to buy a used Lectrosonics 205D/200B for around $600, but it's block 25 (640Mhz - 665Mhz). From what I understand, people have three years to stop using this frequency range. I live in Canada, so I'm not sure what the regulations are here regarding 600Mhz.

I'm on a tight budget, so would I be better off buying a new Saramonic mic9 with the 500Mhz frequency? The 500Mhz frequency is more ideal than the 640Mhz - 665Mhz, but Lectrosonics is the industry standard and far more respected on a professional film set. I mostly do corporate videos. I'm interested to know what people think would be the better option.
 
Why not avoid UHF and encroaching bandwidth regulation all together? If it were me, Lectrosonics but yes, in the U.S. we have a drop dead date where that Lectro will become unusable. Not sure what the regs are in Canada either but you may be fine with the 600MHz block indefinitely, check into it with whatever agency there is the equivalent of the FCC is here. Then again, if you get the Lectro, make sure it is working flawlessly because it would cost a lot to fix out of warranty. Never heard of anyone using Saramonic? If you are going to buy cheap, buy cheap that sounds really good like the Røde. I just bought two, they sound great for the money!
https://www.amazon.ca/RØDELink-Digi...488152298&sr=8-3&keywords=rode+video+wireless
 
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The Saramonic appears to be a Chinese made Sony knock off and may be ok for a hobbyist. I'd get the Lectro though. Don't know about the legal frequencies in Canada, but in the US, the recently auctioned 600 MHz range will be legal to use for another three years (according to the FCC).
As PD stated, the RODE (or other main stream manufactured) GHz system is another option and eliminates finding open frequencies manually. With most new systems, a higher quality lav may need to be factored in to the budget, as the included lavs are often sub-grade.
 
You should check with Lectrosonics about band changing. I don't see yours on the list so I would contact them and find out if they can do a block switch and what it will cost. Providing they can do it for your model the price is generally about 1/2 the new price. That is still a hunk of change but better than buying new.

Either way you have a bit over three years till block 25 becomes unavailable in the US.

IF the WiFi wireless works for you that is a much cheaper solution and it seems to work a lot better than most people thought it would.

I ended up with some Lectrosonics UHF gear (in block 25 & 26) and it is by far the most reliable wireless system I have ever used.

I'm on the fence with block changing since i'm not sure it's cost effective for the amount of wireless work I do.
 
Thanks for the info! I didn't know about the Rode digital system. It's in my price range and looks like a great product. This complicates things for me now, because I don't know if I should buy the Rode digital kit or the Lectro 205. So many choices!
 
The Rode RX is smaller & lighter than the 205D if that's a factor. Also consider the power options, the 205D does not have the internal battery option, so 10-16 volts of external power is needed. I recall the Rode TX & RX can use off-the-shelf AA batteries.
 
Rick R said:
The Rode RX is smaller & lighter than the 205D if that's a factor. Also consider the power options, the 205D does not have the internal battery option, so 10-16 volts of external power is needed. I recall the Rode TX & RX can use off-the-shelf AA batteries.
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I shot 7 hours with the new Rødes at a convention a few weeks ago and that was mostly shooting, although I did shut down the Rødes when we had lulls in the action to save battery. At the end of the day, both receiver and transmitter still had over 60% battery life left. Very impressive. I used to have to buy bulk quantities of 9V and AAs for my last sets of wireless, that day would have burned through at least three sets of batteries to be safe. Nice to not be so concerned with battery consumption.
 
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Thanks, this has been very helpful. Without coming right out and saying "Buy the Rode digital system" it seems like the general consensus is that I should buy it. My problem is I'm so indecisive when there are two options that seem equally good, sometimes I need someone to come out and just tell me what to buy and why I should buy it.

The Lectro system I'm looking at comes with the wall wart power supply for charging it, and it also includes a Tram TR50 all for around $500-$550. The used Tram TR50 is worth $250-$300 on it's own. But I'm starting to think I should get the Rode system just to be current with new technology, and Rode is still a respected name among professionals. ...but it's such a hard decision!
 
perplexia said:
Thanks, this has been very helpful. Without coming right out and saying "Buy the Rode digital system" it seems like the general consensus is that I should buy it. My problem is I'm so indecisive when there are two options that seem equally good, sometimes I need someone to come out and just tell me what to buy and why I should buy it.

The Lectro system I'm looking at comes with the wall wart power supply for charging it, and it also includes a Tram TR50 all for around $500-$550. The used Tram TR50 is worth $250-$300 on it's own. But I'm starting to think I should get the Rode system just to be current with new technology, and Rode is still a respected name among professionals. ...but it's such a hard decision!
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Your money, your decision. You have to live with whatever you buy and try to get work done with it. I am the polar opposite of you, I gather data, figures and facts, make an analyzation of my needs and buy, usually in the same day. I rarely regret my buying decisions as I am conservative with money and what is actually needed to get the job done with the greatest ease, least hassle for the least amount of money. For me, time is money, why waste my valuable time vacillating about what I need to run my business? if a piece of gear will make me money, quickly, without a lot of hassle, I buy it. The Rødes were cheap and are already halfway paid off with one job and the one job that prompted me to buy them I am editing right now. I came across footage yesterday I shot a few weeks ago where my G3 and AT1800 were cutting out, both at the same time with extremely loud blasts of white noise. Forget that, I so wish I would have had the Rødes for that shoot. Would have saved me untold stress. You sound like a noob at pro sound for picture, maybe I am wrong? I know a bit about sound and I know enough to know, I am not a pro sound mixer and I don't want to mess with pro sound mixer chores like doing UHF trouble shooting and scans when they are not working. The Rødes, you turn them on, they work. No hassles, which is a smart business idea for me, being a video producer/cameraman. YMMV.

In LA, I have no problem charging $50.00-$75.00 per day, per wireless system. At $800.00 for a pair, these will make me a few thousand dollars quickly, a lot more of my shoots are needing wireless. I much prefer to hire pro sound mixers but I have some clients who like to cheap out. For them, they'll pay for the Rødes and usually, we will all be happy with the results.
 
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perplexia said:
Thanks, this has been very helpful. Without coming right out and saying "Buy the Rode digital system" it seems like the general consensus is that I should buy it.
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If you say so. I'm not one of the ones pushing you toward the Rodes however. Just to be clear, you are talking about the Rode RodeLink Wireless, yes?

I'm still quite leery of the wi-fi spectrum for audio. Frequency hopping is great, until there's not enough spectrum to hop around in.

If you don't want to take a chance on the Lectro units, the lowest level I personally am willing to go is the Sennheiser Evolution G3 series. The included me-2 mic is adequate, but you can step up the sound quality with an Oscar Soundtech 802, a highly respected Tram 50 clone. And you can get the 802 terminated for Sennheiser connection, and with an XLR power converter (also in Sennheiser). This will let you use the lav either wired, or wireless (and they sound even better wired, just sayin').

The thing about the Sennheisers is that we know they work. They've been around for decades and have gone through at least three generations. They are a darling of the indy movie crowd for a reason.

The wi-fi wireless mics haven't been around long, so we don't know where the "edges of the envelope" are. Which is why you don't find them on pro gigs. At least not yet. Pros are typically very conservative about this stuff because it effects their reputation and therefore their pay checks. Should wi-fi prove itself, the pros will adopt it.
 
Spend the extra $150 and buy the PDR's, great units

Spend the extra $150 and buy the PDR's, great units

Do you need wireless capability, if not have you considered a recorder?I'm a lectro fan and as a professional sound mixer I do need wireless and have invested heavily in lectro L/T series, UM400,UCR411, I sear by them. However I recently bought the lectro PDR units and I fully endorse them as an alternative to the ever shrinking UHF band. They retail for $750 and have timecode sync, run between 4-6 hours on one AAA batt, and so far I have had stellar performance from them.
 
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Buy the Lectro - as cheap as it is you won't regret it - and it comes with a quality lav
BLK 25 divided by 3 years is about 17 bucks a month -
 
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Bruce Watson said:
If you say so. I'm not one of the ones pushing you toward the Rodes however. Just to be clear, you are talking about the Rode RodeLink Wireless, yes?
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Yes, that's the one - the RodeLink Wireless Filmmaker Kit. Thanks for your input on this topic. Maybe digital isn't all it's cracked up to be.

I've used a borrowed ew100 G2 system for a few projects, and it's always worked great. No issues ever. But it was borrowed, and I had to give it back, so I think it's time to buy a wireless LAV of my own. For the same money, the Lectro/Tram is far and away the more professional option I have at this point, but not necessarily the most convenient in terms of ease of use. I'll have to buy a BDS to power the receiver when I'm outside, since it doesn't take a battery. Still, it's hard to pass up the opportunity to own Lectro gear.
 
sylvanimate said:
Do you need wireless capability, if not have you considered a recorder?I'm a lectro fan and as a professional sound mixer I do need wireless and have invested heavily in lectro L/T series, UM400,UCR411, I sear by them. However I recently bought the lectro PDR units and I fully endorse them as an alternative to the ever shrinking UHF band. They retail for $750 and have timecode sync, run between 4-6 hours on one AAA batt, and so far I have had stellar performance from them.
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I recently bought the Zoom F4 recorder, and it's worked very well for me. The Lectro PDR units look cool. Thanks for mentioning them.
 
I bought a Saramonic UwMic9 wireless kit (the newest UHF one). Tested it out at home. Returned it the next day. The audio quality was simply not up to par with my Sennheiser G3 kits. It's fine for hobbyists, but it's just not high enough quality for professional work, in my opinion.

Instead I bought the Rode RodeLink Filmmaker Kit. Works and sounds perfect. Couldn't be happier.
 
Jaime Valles said:
I bought a Saramonic UwMic9 wireless kit (the newest UHF one). Tested it out at home. Returned it the next day. The audio quality was simply not up to par with my Sennheiser G3 kits. It's fine for hobbyists, but it's just not high enough quality for professional work, in my opinion.

Instead I bought the Rode RodeLink Filmmaker Kit. Works and sounds perfect. Couldn't be happier.
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Good to know. I think I've ruled out the Saramonic as an option. It's come down to the Lectro 205 or the Rode.
 
The Lectrosonics you are looking at doesn't sound like that great a deal. Assuming you can do a block switch it's going to cost somewhere around $600 - $1100 to get the system switched. So three years out or so you are going to have to pay twice what you paid for it to keep using it. You don't have any wireless now so you are not tied to a system so there is no reason to tie yourself to a system that is going to go obsolete in three years. What parts of the system might be worth used is only a factor if you are planning on flipping the system. This is also not a great price, I have seen similar for Lectro's that are in orphaned blocks. Plus you will have to invest in a battery pack of some sort or be locked into only shooting close to AC power. For essentially the same price you can get a Sennheiser system that won't be orphaned in three years, and for a lot less you can get a WiFi system.

In your shoes I would probably go WiFi.

The reasons would be less money now for something I'm not sure how much I will need. You can use it to travel. Any RF wireless system will need to be researched and possibly be licensed to operate in other country's where the WiFi does not. If you find you use it a lot and need greater range etc. then you are not out a lot and the WiFi is a good backup. If you find it's only an occasional use then WiFi may be all you need. Either way you come out ahead. And you get to wait out the current volatility of the RF situation.

If I went RF I would go with Sennheiser (still in your shoes). $1000 or so in three years is more than you will be comfortable spending just to keep using the Lectro and while an over all "better" unit it is not three times better, IMHO, and that is about what the price difference will be long term.
 
"you can step up the sound quality with an Oscar Soundtech 802, a highly respected Tram 50 clone. And you can get the 802 terminated for Sennheiser connection, and with an XLR power converter (also in Sennheiser). This will let you use the lav either wired, or wireless (and they sound even better wired."

- Yes, the OST 801/802 shape & size is identical to the TR50, if fact the mounting accessories are interchangeable. The 802 has less of a presence peak than the 801 for mounting outside clothing. A 'clone' yes, but it's not a Chinese POS.. hand made in NJ USA.
I have no business interests in OST, if fact, I was acquainted with Ted Rapp (RIP), the TR50's original designer when he was based in Nyack NY.
 
i worry that with a system operating in the wifi band, even if you only use it occasionally, what if on those rare occasions it doenst work for whatever reason? and its your only audio option that day? then youre super screwed and probably out a client.
 
Josh Bass said:
i worry that with a system operating in the wifi band, even if you only use it occasionally, what if on those rare occasions it doenst work for whatever reason? and its your only audio option that day? then youre super screwed and probably out a client.
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Funny you mention that Josh, that's exactly what almost happened to me on a golf course shoot I did three weeks ago. Except both mic systems we were using were UHF. All of the sequences were three camera setups with two talent, one camera with a super wide establishing shot, the other two with crossing singles. We had no sound mixer and no way to boom the sequences. We were repeatedly blasted with white noise, RF hits and dropouts, even after re-scanning twice, Sennhesier G3 and an Audio Technica 1800, both in different blocks. Wish I would have had my Rødes then, I don't like UHF anymore, I constantly have issues with it no matter which country or part of this country I am shooting in.
 
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