At this year's NAB, Sennheiser showed off their new AVX system, which is designed to make it easy and simple to get high-quality wireless audio:
Ultimately the goal of the AVX system is to make capturing superb-sounding audio in an ENG-type situation as painless as possible, though you can certainly use it for other applications (the NAB event is a perfect example of where this sort of system should excel). By operating in the 1900MHz range, ideally there will be less interference than other systems, but you do lose some range with this one compared to Sennheiser's more expensive and more professional offerings (range is around 100-150ft. depending on environment).
AVX comes in a few different packages depending on what you need, with prices ranging from $350 to $1,300 (batteries coming in under $100). A few of the packages give you essentially everything you need to get audio right out of the box, and all of these items (if they aren't already) should be available near the end of June 2015:
- Sennheiser BA 10 Rechargeable Battery Pack (for Mic): $50
- Sennheiser BA 30 Rechargeable Battery Pack (for Transmitter): $50
- Sennheiser AVX Bodypack Transmitter: $350
- Sennheiser AVX Handheld Microphone Transmitter: $460
- Sennheiser AVX EKP Camera Plug-On Wireless Receiver: $500
- Sennheiser AVX Camera-Mountable Lavalier Wireless Set (ME2 Lavalier): $900
- Sennheiser AVX Camera-Mountable Handheld Wireless Set: $900
- Sennheiser AVX Camera-Mountable Lavalier Pro Wireless Set (MKE2 Lavalier): $1,050
- Sennheiser AVX Camera-Mountable Combo Wireless Set: $1,300
They also produced some videos introducing the AVX system. First, here's a short film:
And three other videos that explain some of the features of the new wireless system:
No Film School's complete coverage of NAB 2015 is brought to you by Color Grading Central, Shutterstock, Blackmagic Design, and Bigstock.
