Karaoke Forums

I'm looking for a decent quality single or dual wireless mic setup. It must be VHF.

I own the Nady DKW Duo and it works great, I'm glad I bought it, but I noticed that when I switch between a wired mic and the wireless, the wired is more sensitive and my voice sounds stronger with less effort.

The Nady will definitely be used by customers when I host and if I don't find a replacement I'll continue using it for my singing act. I'm just looking for something a bit better and more sensitive. I would still definitely recommend the Nady to anyone looking for an inexpensive wireless microphone, the difference isn't night and day it's subtle.

I think your search will be in vain at that price range.

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[color=#ffff55]Mickey J.[/color]
Alas for those who never sing, but die with all their music in them.
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Good buy or not? link

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Pick 2, you won't find all 3!

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Good buy!

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I think you got a great deal Karyoker.

To be honest, I wonder if what I'm looking for even exists. For $100 or less I may not find the quality and sensitivity I want. I figured I would check with the folks here and see what they suggest.

I'm considering the Audio Technica T252 and the Vocopro VHF-3000 as possible candidates. I've used both before. I'd really like to hear some experiences of people here with different mics before I buy.

Don't think you'll find what you're looking for in that price rangs....but...karyoker...you got a sweet deal.....same mic I use....outstanding response and durability!!


Donny "B"

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Something to think about

http://www.shure.com/proaudio/products/us_pro_ea_dtv

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Quickness of mind will deceive the eye

It was a good buy if the frequency is under 700Mhz.
If not the microphone is obsolete in Febuary.

In my opinion there are no quality mics under $100. The least expensive I could go is a AKG dual system but they are in the 700Mhz range.

Right now the least expensive option is a Shure starting around $300.

Although a lot of DTV stations are being planned they will be local low power (DTV does not take the power that analogue does) Low v 2-6 are 100kw and high v through UHF is 300kw. In close proximity to the tower you will get even harmonic distortion.

700 megs is almost LOS line of site transmission. 100 feet of co-ax will totally attenuate 1000 microvolts of UHF to 0. The same is true with building structure etc. I really dont see a crowding of the frequency spectrum yet...Or any problems unless you are directly under the tower. Time will tell..

As a CE we had more problems interference in long mic runs from the news set to the switcher room than wireless. That was a 300kw FM transmitter in addition to our 100kw TV.

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1) You may wish to check out Samson's 25 channel VHS if so inclined.


2) NOTHING has been set in stone for February. It's still being fought by the communications industry.


3) Even if the changes are passed, your mics aren't obsolete. Do to the short range of mics, no one is planning to restrict them, so if you have multi-channel UHF mics ( and you should for professional use) and you can find a channel that doesn't interfere WITH YOU, you are perfectly able to continue using your mics.

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Technically, all wireless microphone systems are illegal to operate unless you are a television station or a movie studio and have a license for every frequency you operate on. However, the FCC in the past has looked the other way if you're not interfering with any TV stations. However, the risk for interference will be much, much greater once the reallocation takes place and wireless and public safety radio's are operating in the 700 MHz band. Unlike the TV band, it's not going to be a matter of dodging stations, but rather avoiding creating interference for LICENSED users of the spectrum (when this happens, you could get a nasty letter from the FCC and a bill for thousands of dollars). I suggest you read this link as it pertains to on August 21st 2008 the FCC has proposed a ban on bases for wireless microphones that operate in the 698-806MHz range.
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20 ... dband.html

Here's some more good reading.
http://www.publicknowledge.org/node/1672

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Quickness of mind will deceive the eye

Very interesting reading, London! I'm not certain of the sources, but seems to jibe with what the FCC is trying to do.

The thing is, the amount of money and power fighting it is enormous. The thing is, most of what I read had to do with churches, halls and other individuals. The fact is, even though TV and other large comminication companies have broadcast licences, it doesn't change the fact that they all use equipment on those bands. ALL of the networks are fighting it, the cell phone industry ( lead by T-mobile) is fighting it, and the EUROPEAN sector is fighting it as well. ALL of the equipment manufacturers are fighting it.

It's not just the cost, but the bands in question are in use by so many major corporations that the economic ripples caused by the the change over would be enormous.

As for the mics themselves- THAT part of what I read was electronically off base.

With the range of most mics at 120 - 300 feet, the interference they can cause is negligible.

When CB was popular, the entire 27Mhz band was allocated to it. Yet the FCC allowed radio controlled toys to be manufactured that operated right in the middle of the band ( channel 14), and other devices were allowed on the band. Why? Short range.

Even now, virtually every frequency currently used by VHF mics is allocated for other purposes, but the mics are FCC approved. Again, short range.

This sounds a bit too much like Y2K. I wouldn't start tossing your UHF mics quite yet...

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"No Contests, No Divas, Just A Good Time!"

" Disc based and loving it..."

Thanks Joechartreuse, I checked on the Samson Stage 5H microphone and it seems to be what I'm looking for. The transmitter microphone uses the Samson Q7 element which seems to be a decent mic from what I can tell. Do you own this mic or have you used it several times? Just curious why you recommended it.

I own two of them. They seem to have the best sound I could find at a reasonablr price for VHF. On top of that, the multi-channel function gives me the ability to work anywhere because I can always find a clear channel. Samson has afairly good name among the karaoke community, just behind Shure and Sennheiser. I figured that their VHF mic couldn't be too bad...Though I generally use UHF myself.

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"No Contests, No Divas, Just A Good Time!"

" Disc based and loving it..."

Wow, perfect Joe. I appreciate the info from someone who actually owns and/or uses a product that they recommend, thanks.

Any other comments or observations about the microphone handset itself as far as sensitivity or comparison to other microphones that you would care to make?

As far as Samson products in general, from what I have seen, their gear seems to be of good quality, durable and reasonably priced. We have a large Sam Ash store locally and quite a few local musicians, DJs and Karaoke hosts use a variety of Samson products. I've heard their speakers a couple of times and they sounded great, I was surprised and impressed. I'll stick with my Electro-Voice, and if I upgrade or add additional speakers they will most likely be EV.

No extra comments on the mics, except remember that they ARE VHF, so sound quality will not be as good as UHF- though better than any other VHF that I've tried. As for speakers, I'm an EV guy myself. Samson can't touch them..

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"No Contests, No Divas, Just A Good Time!"

" Disc based and loving it..."

I don't have any on hands experience with the Q7 element but I did have some old Samson R12's which actually had good sound quality, especially considering the low price of the mics. I remember comparing them to my Shure Beta 58's and I really didn't hear a pronounced difference. The Shure's would achieve a higher gain before feedback but hex we are comparing a 25 dollar Mic to a 180 dollar Mic. Certainly a good choice for someone on a tight budget. As far as the VHF vs UHF debacle, there are numerous articles on the net covering the subject and the general consensus is UHF has no advantage over VHF other than there is less chance of interference. UHF only came about because of the over crowding of the VHF bands. Newer doesn't necessarily mean better. Remember, UHF or VHF is only a means of carrying a signal and has no bearing on the actual quality of the sound of the Mic itself. What I'm saying is, if all aspects were equal between a UHF system and a VHF system, neither would have a substantial advantage over the other in a typical situation. UHF has less chance of outside interference because of its relative low range (which may change drastically in the States in the near future) and VHF has superior none line of site operation. Also with the 9v type Mics the VHF will be more battery friendly.
http://www.audio-technica.com/cms/site/ ... ndex.html/

http://www.sweetwater.com/expert-center ... 06/14/2001

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Quickness of mind will deceive the eye

Those articles were very informative, thank you. I'm determined to stick with VHF now even more after reading the Audio Technica article. With my Nady VHF wireless I haven't had any problems with interference, the range is just fine at around 100 meters, there is absolutely no difference in sound quality between VHF and UHF and the cost is MUCH lower and with VHF I don't have to worry about the upcoming debacle with UHF bands.

If I can't find something better than what I have for under $100 then I will gladly just stay with what I have. I found the Samson selling for around $50 for a single transmitter and base, so it's roughly twice the cost of the Nady DKW Duo which has 2 transmitters. At that price it's well worth it to me to give it a try. Hopefully it will be a bit more sensitive than the Nady, if not I'll have a nice backup and an additional wireless mic for hosting and for group singing at weddings or other parties.

My instinct tells me I'm going to be pleased with the Samson. At that price I can still buy an Audio Technica too and still be much less than Shure, EV, Sennheiser etc. I'm not going to pay $300 - $500 for a microphone, no way, no how.

Gotta add that sometimes VHF actually has an advantage, usually if you are playing outside. UHF mics work best line of sight.

London, my UHF mics all work on AA batteries- WAY cheaper than 9v.

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"No Contests, No Divas, Just A Good Time!"

" Disc based and loving it..."