21Jan RodeLink 2.4Ghz Wireless mic Kit
It looks like Monoprice isn’t the only one getting into the 2.4Ghz audio transmitter game. Rode just announced the Rodelink wireless film kit, the setup includes a Rode Lav and 2.4Ghz audio transmitter/receiver kit with camera mounting and locking audio cables for $399.
Here are the specs for the Rodelink units:
- Series II 2.4GHz digital transmission
- 128-bit encrypted signal
- Up to 100m range
- One touch pairing
- OLED digital display
- 3 level gain control
- Omnidirectional lavalier microphone
- AA Battery or USB Power
The Rodelink looks pretty nice and I’m guessing a large chunk of the $399 price tag is the included lav mic. The 128 bit encryption is an decent feature, I hadn’t really thought much about someone monitoring an outbound wifi signal. Also “Up to 100m range” is an interesting statement, the Monoprice units only claim a max transmit distance of 164 feet or 50 meters. I suspect the Rodelink might be using a transmitter that’s larger than 5 miliwatts, if so, I wonder what battery life will be like. A higher watt transmitter could explain why they mention “USB power” in the press release.
The Rodelink wireless film kit is up for pre-order on B&H and it looks like they’ll be shipping in mid march. I wonder what other companies will be releasing 2.4Ghz wireless units in the lead up to NAB this year, it should be an interesting year for wireless audio.
January 21st, 2015 at 10:37 am
Interesting. I am partial to Rode products, as they have proven to be reliable and effective. The difference in cost between the Rode system and the $90 Monoprice 2.4Ghz system may be well worth it, if the Rode system performs better.
Will the 2.4Ghz frequency be something to contend with as the FCC sells off more bandwidth? I would hope that this isn’t the case, as it would be odd/foolish/uncool for companies to sell products that will become obsolete in the very near future.
January 21st, 2015 at 2:31 pm
2.4Ghz will most likely stay safe for at least 10 to 15 more years if not much much longer. There are simply too many wifi devices out there, eliminating the spectrum would be like making cars illegal in the current state of things.
January 21st, 2015 at 11:19 am
Is the 2.4 Ghz a new thing? What are the advantages?
Thanks DJ
January 21st, 2015 at 11:36 am
It’s not really a new thing (check out this post about it from a few years ago). Wi audio has been creating stereo 2.4Ghz transmitters in the $200 to $300 range for awhile, but the chip set and antennas have come down in price so much that they’ve become very easy to make and they’ve manage to get the encoder/decoder chips running fast enough that you are only dealing with 5 to 10 milliseconds of delay in audio from transmitter to receiver. The first generation chips used a lot of power or had longer audio delays unless you had access to patented designs.
August 23rd, 2015 at 3:15 pm
@Deejay, have you tried sending a stereo signal through (such as the Rode stereo videomic pro) and seeing if it sends a stereo signal?