Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1500728
26 PRODUCTION SOUND & VIDEO – Summer 2023 a better offering, I made one myself. That's how the field monitor came to be. Once that started to take off, other sound pros asked me to make something for scripted work. That led to the release of the scene monitor. Then, people wanted something more substantial for scripted Directors and Producers. That became the elite monitor. Now, we have a line of headphones that are built specifically for these different jobs on set. Q: And that led to the development of the Microsone? Each piece of gear is a tool to accomplish a job on set. Microsone Discreet Audio Monitoring System is our new take on an earwig, so on-screen or onstage talent can monitor audio, take cues, be fed lines, listen to playback; all without having to stop the action. Q: An earwig is pretty common in an audio kit, isn't it? What makes this unit different from all the other devices on the market? Microsone was born out of frustration. I set out to solve as many of the issues of previous systems as I possibly could. Our system works by connecting the Microsone (the earbud, itself) to our Control Pack via Bluetooth. The Control Pack is an IFB receiver that can be fed by any analog transmitter that you currently use, so you're not tied down to a proprietary base station or frequency limited technology. So your long-range transmission comes from your transmitter to the Control Pack, and that audio is then retransmitted up to the user's ear. We were able to really modernize the whole earwig concept and pack it with advanced features. Like what? Give me some examples. The Control Pack can receive VHF (174 MHz-217 MHz) and UHF (470 MHz-608 MHz) audio. This enables you to have as many isolated channels as you can coordinate. There are four banks of frequencies with seven channels per bank you can manually program. The top-seated 3.5mm jack works as an output to be used with a wired headphone like a typical IFB, but it can also be used as a line input jack to feed a source directly in without RF. Since we use Bluetooth, you could pair the Control Pack to any Bluetooth headphone to use as a wireless IFB. Or you could pair it to a Bluetooth speaker and have an instant wireless video village speaker setup. So you can use the Microsone to listen to tunes at work? We have one customer who purchased a system because they work with a method actor who likes to have music fed into his ear to keep him in character. Now, he can have a Microsone paired directly with his own phone, and control his own music, even if he's off set in his trailer. Awesome. How do you handle volume control so you're not blowing out an actor's ear? The Control Pack has a volume knob that allows the user to set their own volume. They don't need to call out to the Sound Mixer to raise or lower their volume. If the production or talent's wardrobe doesn't allow them to wear the Control Pack on their person, it can just be stashed nearby since the distance from it to the Microsone is typical Bluetooth range (10'-25'). And what's the power situation like? What kind of batteries does the system use. The Control Pack powers off two AA batteries. With the Control Pack receiving UHF audio and retransmitting it over Bluetooth, you can expect about twenty-four hours of use. If you're using rechargeable AA batteries, those can be recharged internally