Finally I got round to comparing my best radio mic the Sennheiser AVX-MKE2 with the new Rode Wireless GO II.
Both have a place in my bag but you will need to watch the video to see who comes out on top.
Pro video blog…Produced by Philip Johnston DoP/Editor
%d bloggers like this:
Having used both of these Wi-Fi mics I find both of them issues if the line of sight gets blocked. Even turning the TX away from the RX like when a presenter turns his back or side away from the RX can cause problems. Again Wi-Fi reception can be an issue in or around buildings. As many a broadband Wi-Fi router owner can attest to. After all, these are low-powered Wi-Fi frequency devices so hard to expect performance from them that you might be getting out of 50mw broadcast mic TX. The sheer distance capability of wireless mics is the least of my concerns for interview situations. If I need distance coverage then we use broadcast spec dual diversity UHF mics with high gain receiver aeriasl. Or even with arial amps as we do quite often for football coverage when you need live broadcast audio that is in sync and with no drop-outs. The biggest problem by far when mixing wireless mics with a boom for interviews is that any delay can be an issue. This is is a definite issue with the Sennheiser AVX. The AVX is running 19ms propagation delay. This is virtually half a frame. Half a frame being 20ms in 50Hz countries. It sounds like an echo reverb. The Rode on the other hand is running a delay of 4ms. Far, far less noticeable. Most of the digital wireless systems in the UHF band are running in the order of 0.3-0.5 ms delay. This is within broadcast standards. With the Sennheiser, if mixing it with a boom you really do have to advance the Sennheiser audio track by half a frame to sync with either a cable or UHF wireless boom. Half a frame delay is well outside broadcast spec.
Other than the Sennheiser delay issue I find both are pretty amazing for the price. And as your review says the Rodent is a no-brainer price-wise. Matched up with a good set of Sennheiser MKE2 mics the Rodes are surprisingly good value for money. The fact that you can also use them as location placement wild track recorders without even turning a receiver on gives you even greater functionality. Something the Sennheiser can’t offer you.