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Everything Else, Review

Why use Sony’s UWP-D Radio Microphones?

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There are LOTS of choices now when it comes to radio microphones. Some are better than others. Some may be smaller, some may be cheaper, some may be really terrible! So, given there are so many choices and the Sony UWP-D series isn’t amongst the cheapest, why choose them over some of the cheaper options?

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Sony’s URX-P41D on an FX6 using the MI Shoe


Perhaps you are looking at some of the new miniature digital microphone kits from other well known brands such as DJI or Hollyland, or perhaps even Sony’s ECM-W3, all of which to be fair, do actually work pretty well, especially when you consider their low cost. So, why use the UWP-D series?

The vast majority of these smaller digital microphones use frequencies in the same range as used by Wifi and Bluetooth. By using these shared and licence free frequencies these devices can be made cheaply. But because the frequencies are shared and licence free the power levels that can be used are very low and there is a high risk of interference from other devices that are also using the same frequencies. Generally interference isn’t normally an issue unless you are somewhere crowded but with almost everyone carrying a mobile phone with WiFi and bluetooth enabled, if you are in a crowded place such as a large event, conference, performance etc, then interference can become a big issue. Range can be seriously reduced or in the worst case you may simply find you can’t get them to work at all.

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The Sony URX-P41D attached to a Sony FX3 via MIShoe

 

The other thing about the very high frequencies used by these small devices is that they are easily blocked by solid objects, including people. So, if the presenter is wearing the transmitter on their front and they turn away from the camera so that their body now comes between the transmitter and receiver, the signal can be blocked or  degraded.

A further issue with these low cost digital systems is the time it takes to encode the audio to digital, transmit it and then convert the digital data back to a useable audio signal. It takes time, and this introduces a delay into the audio. This delay can affect the lip sync of the recorded audio or make it impossible to mix the delayed wireless audio with any un-delayed audio from a wired microphone – the timing difference leading to an echo or phase issues that can make the audio sound strange.

For me, as a professional film maker these issues are significant. Not being able to mix different types of microphones without an echo or phase shift is a huge problem as often I will have a mic on the camera for atmos sound as well as the radio mic on the talent, and I need to be able to mix these different sources and I don’t want to have to spend time shifting the timing of each audio track separately in post. 


A further issue is the rechargeable nature of the cheaper radio mics. What do you do if you forget to recharge them before the job? What do you do if you’ve been shooting all day but have yet to finish and the batteries have gone flat? You can’t simply pop in a fresh set of AA batteries as you can with the UWP-D series. Additional battery cases (BATC-4AA) can also be purchased if you wish to make changing batteries in a rush even easier. 

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UTX-B40 with it’s included 2x AA battery case (part number BATC-4AA)


All of the above reasons are why I still prefer to use my UWP-D microphones whenever I can.

The latest versions have a removable battery case that takes two AA batteries, so battery swaps are quick and easy. The receivers can be connected to any Sony camera with an MI Shoe using a cheap adapter that slots into the shoe and then the receiver is powered from the camera and the audio passed directly to the camera with no need to use any cables. If you are using an FX6 with the single channel URX-P40D or dual channel URX P41D you will get an indication of the signal strength of the transmitters on the LCD/Monitor, very handy indeed.

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UWP-D Transmitter battery level indication on Sony FX6

 

The UWP-D series use a hybrid of analog and digital technologies. The transmitters and receivers use a digital compander system to process the audio so that any loss of quality during the analog transmission is minimised. The URX-P40D and URX-P41D can output using either analog or digital. Most of the more recent Sony A7 and FX series cameras can now accept the digital input which helps to reduce background hiss and noise.

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The URX-P41D is a dual channel receiver. It has two separate receivers and these can be switched on and off independently.  There is also an additional 3.5mm socket for a wired microphone and this additional input can be mixed with the radio mic channels. It also has a headphone socket and this is very handy for troubleshooting any audio issues as it allows you to check what the radio mic receiver is receiving before the audio is passed on to the camera or recorder. There are two threaded 3.5mm sockets that can be used with the included 3.5mm to 3.5mm or XLR cables to feed the camera or recorder if you are not using the MI Shoe.

They are also very easy to use. Pairing is simple, on the URX-P41D you just press and hold the scan/sync button on the receiver to put it into the pairing mode. It will scan for clear frequencies and then when it has found them it will ask you to pair with the transmitters using NFC. Simply hold the first transmitter against the receiver and it will automatically pair, vibrating when it is done. Then you hold the second transmitter against the receiver and it will then pair with that one. The URX-P41D also has an IR port on the side for pairing with the previous generation of UWP-D wireless transmitters that pair via infra-red.

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URX-P41D – you can see the IR pairing window on the side.



As well as the compact belt pack transmitter (UTX-B40), there is also a handheld microphone (UTX-M40) and a plug in transmitter (UTX-P40). Most of my own personal experience is with the belt pack transmitters, but I have used them all and they all work really well.

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The latest Sony UWP-D transmitters


The URX-B40 transmitter is compact and sturdy. It has the same AA battery holder as the receiver and a pair of good quality alkaline AA batteries will run it for around 8 hours. It has a simple but effective removable wire belt clip. These have been dropped, sat on, pulled out of pockets by the mic cable more times than I can remember and never given any issues. The supplied microphone is pretty good. None of my clients have ever found the audio quality lacking and I feel that it is perfectly acceptable for news or documentary production. Perfectionist’s may prefer to use a different capsule, but for me it does what I need it to do.

I have been using various versions of the UWP-D radio mic systems for years and the first versions I got all those years ago still work fine today. The latest receivers with the digital MI Shoe output have a lower noise floor and having the signal strength displayed on the screen of my FX6 is very useful.  A decent radio mic system isn’t a small investment, but these should last many, many years. They won’t introduce phasing and timing issues as many of the lower cost digital systems can. The range is great and they can be used in crowded venues or at large events without being worried about interferrence from phones or other devices that use WiFi. 

Review

Sony Second Generation Dual Channel UWP-D Radio Mic Receiver.

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DSC05650-copy-1024x875 Sony Second Generation Dual Channel UWP-D Radio Mic Receiver.
Sony URX-P41D UWP-D Dual Channel Radio Mic Receiver

 

I’ve been using Sony’s UWP-D series radio mics for more years than I can remember. In those years they have proved to be absolute workhorses and they have never let me down. The audio quality is very high, the transmission range very good thanks to the use of a diversity receiver and you have the added benefit of being able to attach the receiver to most of Sony’s more recent cameras via the MI Shoe.

When you use the MI Shoe the mic receiver is powered by the cameras battery and the audio passes into the camera via the shoe. If the camera has XLR connectors then these can be used to connect additional microphones allowing you to record from up to 4 audio sources without needing a mixer.  

 


If you want to get 2 channels of wireless audio into the camera you can either use 2 receivers and connect them via the XLR inputs or put a single channel receiver on the MI Shoe and then connect a second receiver via XLR. But an even neater way is to use one of Sony Dual Channel receivers.  I already have the previous dual channel receiver, the URX-P03D and I really wanted to see how this new version compares.

 

The URX-P41D a new dual channel receiver that replaces the previous model, the URX-P03D. It is slightly shorter but a little fatter than the previous receiver so overall similar in size and weight, but features some really nice new features. You will also be pleased to know that it is completely compatible with the previous generation of UWP-D transmitters including the UTX-B03 belt pack lavalier mics. It even includes an Infra Red port for wireless pairing. You can even bypass Sony’s digital compander, allowing it to be used with microphones from other brands. However to get the very best out of this receiver you want to use it with second generation UWP-D transmitters such as the UTX-B40 belt packs or UTX-P40 plugin transmitter.

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URX-P41D on an FX6 using the MI Shoe

 

The UTX-B40 belt pack transmitters are smaller than the previous generation and have a couple of new features that are quite handy. The first is the ability to set the audio gain to auto. Auto gain set the audio to a high gain level and then uses a limiter to ensure the the audio doesn’t clip or distort. This mode can be useful for presenters that talk quietly but may become much louder if they get excited. Another nice feature is the use of NFC for pairing rather than infrared. 

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You can see the pairing IR port for backwards compatibility on the side of the receiver

 

Pairing a transmitter to the receiver is very easy. You simply press and hold the NFC Sync button, the receiver will then scan for a clear channel. Once it has found a suitable clear frequency a message pops up on the nice clear OLED display to pair the RX and TX. This is done simply by holding the transmitter and receiver together so the NFC logo on each are facing each other. The receiver will then vibrate to confirm the pairing process has finished.

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The dual channel receiver has 2 on and off switches, one for each channel. So if only using one channel the other can be switched off to save power. There are separate 3.5mm sockets with locking rings  for each channel and the receiver is supplied with two locking 3.5mm to XLR cables. In addition there is a Y cable that connects both 3.5mm outputs to a single stereo 3.5mm plug. this is handy for cameras or other devices that only have a 3.5mm jack plug input. As well as the outputs there is a 3.5mm headphone socket.

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In addition to the outputs, rather curiously there is also a 3.5mm microphone input socket, the previous P03D also has this extra input. This additional input allows you to connect a 3rd microphone to the receiver. This third microphone is then mixed with the other 2 channels. This might be handy for some applications where you absolutely must have 5 sources feeding the camera but don’t have a mixer, but because this extra input is mixed with the wireless channels I think it has only limited usefulness. 

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When you want to connect the receiver directly to a Sony camera via the MI Shoe you have to use an adapter called the SMAD-P5 (Sony accessories have such easy names to remember, apparently it stands for Sony Multishoe ADapter). The SMAD adapter for the new second generation receivers is neater and more compact than the one used by the first generation.  It connects to a socket hidden under a rubber cover on the underside of the receiver. If you are using the URX-P41D with an FX6 as well as the MI-Shoe powering the receiver and providing the audio connection you get the added benefit of the receive signal strength of both channels being displayed on the cameras LCD screen.


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The UWP-D radio mic system is a hybrid Analog/Digital system. The transmitters and receivers use a digital compander system to process the audio to ensure as little loss of quality as possible during the transmission process. The companded signal is then transmitted from the transmitter to the receiver using analog FM. The frequencies these radio mics use offer greater range and are much less affected by obstructions or reflections than the 2.5Ghz band commonly used by many lower cost all digital radio mics.  I typically get over 100m(300ft) range. The digital compander is particularly good at preserving the sibilance in human speech. Often “S” sounds and other sharpe notes can become muted with lower quality radio mics, but the digital compander in the UWP-D series does a very good job of maintaining a wide frequency response. 

One particular advantage the new UWP-D  receivers bring over the previous generation is the ability to output the audio either conventionally as analog audio or digitally. To take advantage of the digital output you have to use the MI Shoe and your camera must support the digital output. There isn’t a huge boost in audio quality when you use the digital out, but you do get a little less background hiss and the audio is less likely to suffer from other electrical noise from the camera. It’s certainly a nice feature to have, but if your camera only has an analog input the audio quality is still very good. 

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You can see the W1 and W2 signal strength indications from the attached URX-P41D towards the top left of the FX6 LCD. In this example on one channel was in use.

 

These second generation UWP-D radio mics are fully compatible with the previous generation, so you can upgrade just your receivers or add new transmitters if you wish. I think these are great and I would recommend anyone looking for a good quality professional radio mic system to at the very least have a close look at the Sony UWP-D series.