Wireless Video Transmission - Teradek vs. Everything Else

[DustinSchmidt]

I'm curious what people are using nowadays for their wireless transmission. I'm in the market to buy a wireless system and have been sitting on the fence waiting to see what's best and how things shake out. There are way more options on the market than there used to be, but it's still the major players who dominate.

Teradek for near zero latency, but I always hear of connection issues, even with their newest offerings of the Bolt 6 and Bolt 4k. Of course it depends on where you are and what else is stepping on the signal. And of course they are pricey.

I see the higher end offerings from Vaxis in use where I'm at as well. Almost as good as the Teradek in terms of latency, better transmission stability it seems, but they don't have the integrated ecosystem that Teradek has with SmallHD tools. Vaxis is also pricey for their high end stuff.

DJI is kind of the new kid on the block with phenomenal transmission and rock solid stability it seems with their new DJI Transmission system, but much slower in terms of latency. Although I just saw that system in use on set with our focus puller last week and everything worked without issue. We certainly weren't doing any crazy fast focus pulls or tracking fast action though. Decently affordable.

Would love to hear what people on this forum are actually using. Not what they've read about elsewhere, but what you own and use on a daily basis and how you like it, or don't like it for that matter.

 

[Bassman2003]

I have used the Accsoon Cine Eye 2 for quite a few live sporting events in a live switch with other wired cameras and it has performed well.

 

[Run&Gun]

I don’t do a ton of wireless video, so I’m still running a Teradek Bolt 500 XT system. I’ve probably had it at least five years, now.

 

[Nick M]

I use a bolt 500xt setup as well. Haven't had the need for 4k wireless yet, and priority is zero delay so there's been no need to upgrade. The ability to add LUTs to the bolt system means the less video oriented folks on set will get a reasonable representation of what the final will look like and I don't need to micromanage monitors.

Nearly all my wireless needs are smaller sets, well within the max range of even the 500 system so I haven't had any drop out issues, even in some tricky situations (out of line-of-sight, concrete block walls) but I know this isn't everyone's experience with them.

Like Run&Gun I've been using it roughly since product launch, so it's paid for. As long as a client isn't demanding 4k monitoring for some reason, I'll keep using it. Even then, it could make more sense to rent for a one-off situation like that or if more range is needed for a particular project.

Probably just need to evaluate your typical use cases and determine what features you can/can't live without. Make your decision based on that. Maybe the correct answer for you is to not buy anything at all. Like many people, I got caught in a cycle of regularly upgrading gear because it felt good. It was difficult for me, but try to look at it from a business perspective. "Will this pay for its self, will it make me more money?" If you can't charge more for it, does it at least solve a problem on set that would otherwise cost you more time/money.

 

[DustinSchmidt]

I use a bolt 500xt setup as well. Haven't had the need for 4k wireless yet, and priority is zero delay so there's been no need to upgrade. The ability to add LUTs to the bolt system means the less video oriented folks on set will get a reasonable representation of what the final will look like and I don't need to micromanage monitors.

Nearly all my wireless needs are smaller sets, well within the max range of even the 500 system so I haven't had any drop out issues, even in some tricky situations (out of line-of-sight, concrete block walls) but I know this isn't everyone's experience with them.

Like Run&Gun I've been using it roughly since product launch, so it's paid for. As long as a client isn't demanding 4k monitoring for some reason, I'll keep using it. Even then, it could make more sense to rent for a one-off situation like that or if more range is needed for a particular project.

Probably just need to evaluate your typical use cases and determine what features you can/can't live without. Make your decision based on that. Maybe the correct answer for you is to not buy anything at all. Like many people, I got caught in a cycle of regularly upgrading gear because it felt good. It was difficult for me, but try to look at it from a business perspective. "Will this pay for its self, will it make me more money?" If you can't charge more for it, does it at least solve a problem on set that would otherwise cost you more time/money.

Mine are pretty much all smaller sets as well. I'm not necessarily looking for 4k transmission and monitoring, I'm only rolling with 1080 monitors, but we are certainly moving into a higher resolution monitoring world. I suppose I could buy an older, used Teradek for cheaper but I like to buy once, cry once. I tend to keep most of my gear for awhile.

Great points though and I agree with you that if you can't charge the client more then what's the point of just trying to have the latest and greatest. This is definitely more a case of solving a problem in terms of saving time on set and making things easier on my end.