OT: Infrared mic/receiver anyone?

JackW wrote on 3/20/2009, 4:03 PM
Anyone had experience using an infrared system to acquire audio for video? Is it a viable alternative to wireless now that the FCC has sold most (all?) of the frequencies?

What's the audio quality like? Would it be usable for camera acquisition in a small conference room setting? I know conference facilities use IR with base station and built in speakers; are there any systems that are designed for on-camera operation?

Jack

Comments

farss wrote on 3/20/2009, 4:29 PM
IR would seem attractive as it could have a very high bandwidth, the problem with IR is it's pretty much line of sight only. The latter also means it's pretty much interference free....until something breaks the beam.
How audio is carried has no direct impact on quality.
Bluetooth could be an option, at least one conference mic system seems to be using it.

Bob.

musicvid10 wrote on 3/20/2009, 6:02 PM
We use commercial IR quite a lot in the classroom, the range is a little better than Bob mentioned because of beam reflection (if your back is turned to the receiver it still works), and the quality is quite good for voice. Battery life before recharge is quite good too. I wouldn't use it for music or critical applications, though.

The only existing UHF frequencies I am aware of that can no longer be used legally in the US are in the Sennheiser "C" band (700+MHz) range. "A" and "B" are still perfectly legal afaik even if getting a bit crowded by DTV, and there is renewed interest in VHF because of frequencies vacated by analog channels that won't be filled for many years to come. Even though there's been a lot of talk, I don't think the "whitespace device" issue is going to impact anyone significantly in the foreseeable future.