Members abzurd Posted August 28, 2010 Members Share Posted August 28, 2010 So I received my Line 6 XD-V70 yesterday and will use it for the first time tonight. Below is a quick YouTube of "opening the box". I go through what's included and initial impressions of the design and build. At some point may do some sound files. Already having another Line 6 wireless mic and, initial impression about the signal are as expected. Simply put, it's pristine. There's no difference in noise floor with the mic muted, off or on. Combined with the StudioLive mixer, you can't tell when the channel is muted or not. It's just dead quiet. When the micrphone is on there is no added background hiss as a signal is passed. I'll list the things I like, and a few nit picks in a later post. [YOUTUBE]bOKYsv3GFEk[/YOUTUBE] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members twostone Posted August 28, 2010 Members Share Posted August 28, 2010 Dig the interchangeable capsule nice feature to have Thanks for posting Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jguitarguy27 Posted August 28, 2010 Members Share Posted August 28, 2010 Looking forward to your review! I'm very interested in this mic... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jgthatsme Posted August 28, 2010 Members Share Posted August 28, 2010 I'm also looking forward to your review. Please let us know how it compares to your Line 6 X2 XDR955 wireless system. I own the X2 XDR955, but since I don't sing I don't want to upgrade/update unless there's really an appreciable difference. Plus, the external power supply is a big turnoff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members abzurd Posted August 29, 2010 Author Members Share Posted August 29, 2010 OK, just back from the gig .... what a doosie ... see other thread . The short story on the microphone ..... it's fantastic. It is superior to the XDR955 in both handling noise and sound quality (from a mic element standpoint). I used it with no modeling, which is the one I liked best when flipping through them all. Easily the best mic I've ever used, wired or wireless. It had very good detail, needed next to no eqing and achieved very good gain before feedback without needing to be as close to the mic as the Audix OM5. This let it pickup the tambourine and cowbell better and allowed me to work the mic more easily than the Audix. With the Audix there's very little room to work the mic, like 2 inches at most. Things I like:- The mic feels good in your hand - The flat windscreen. It's also relatively small - Professional looking receiver - Of course the signal quality. Imperceivable from wired - The capsule is very nice. I was bummed about having trouble with my Audix OM5 not working with it due to the 3rd party adapter ring not working with it, but I'll probably stick with the Line 6 capsule Nit-picks:- Manual is pretty weak. Not that there's much to it, but there is a reference to a more in depth manual, but it's not on the Line 6 site yet. - Battery life indicator, which seems like a great idea, doesn't work well. It has a countdown of approximately how many hours and minutes are left of battery life, but it goes down more quickly than "real time". At the beginning of the night It said 7 hrs. 2 1/2 hours of total use later it said 1 hour 20 minutes remaining and the indicator on the receiver was red which tells me it's either not very accurate or it was about to go. It's too early to tell what the real battery life is. I used the included "no name" batteries that came with it, but I also switched it to "low power" 1/2 way through the show as I am usually not more than 10 feet away from the receiver at any given time. - I don't think it's cool to claim it will accept Audix capsules without a disclaimer that it requires a $90 3rd party adapter ring from Rat Sound. Even with the ring mine didn't work. I blame the ring though as I had trouble using it with my Shure mic. Still if ever there was an appropriate place for a * this is it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members agedhorse Posted August 29, 2010 Members Share Posted August 29, 2010 If this is an accurate prediction of battery life, 3-4 hours on a set of batteries is a deal killer for many users. Certainly for me. Too bad, Do all mic elements other than theirs require the 3rd party adapter ring or just the Audix? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jgthatsme Posted August 29, 2010 Members Share Posted August 29, 2010 The battery issue is indeed a sad surprise. Hopefully it was just due to using the batteries that came with the mic. I use Energizer Max batteries purchased in a bulk pack from my local Sam's Club for my XDR955 and the battery indicator is very accurate (which isn't to say that I'm fond of all the glittery and flickering lights on the receiver). Please let us know how it works when you use a set of better quality batteries. And say 'hello' to Geddy, Alex, and Neil tonight for me! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members abzurd Posted August 29, 2010 Author Members Share Posted August 29, 2010 If this is an accurate prediction of battery life, 3-4 hours on a set of batteries is a deal killer for many users. Certainly for me. Too bad,Do all mic elements other than theirs require the 3rd party adapter ring or just the Audix? Only the Audix requires a ring. The body of the microphone is identical in size to that of the Shure. I'm not sure what diameter the Heil elements are. I really can't give an accurate battery life indication as I don't have a clue how good the batteries were that Line 6 included. The ones included with the 955 died within 20 minutes of use. For TV remotes, any old battery will last 6 months to a year, but IMO, if you can't include fresh, name brand batteries for a wireless mic, just don't include them. You really can't win including sub-par batteries in this situation. The 955 lasts around 2 shows (so probably 6 hours total). The XD-V70 is more powerful though so I'm not sure if that means a higher battery drain or if they increased the efficiency of the power use. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jguitarguy27 Posted August 29, 2010 Members Share Posted August 29, 2010 The Line6 website claims 8 hours of continuous usage from two alkaline batteries. I would find it hard to believe that they would make that claim while knowing it's really only 3-4 hours. I bet it has to do with the crappy batteries they give you...at least that's what I'm hoping, because this issue is the only one holding me back at this point. You have to figure that Line6 would know better than to release such a product with battery life as short as that, as that would make it extremely inconvenient to working musicians. Please update this thread once you're able to test with better quality batteries. I'd be curious to see how Procells would work... Justin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members agedhorse Posted August 29, 2010 Members Share Posted August 29, 2010 Please do a real world test using known good alkaline batts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members abzurd Posted August 30, 2010 Author Members Share Posted August 30, 2010 I'm guessing it doesn't matter, but would I be able to simply bring the microphone to work, turn it on and let it stay on until it dies? I wouldn't have the receiver with me. How many hours do the high end wireless units from Shure and Audio-Technica get? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members agedhorse Posted August 30, 2010 Members Share Posted August 30, 2010 It may not matter all that much though the drain will be the static load ofthe transmitter plus whatever additional that the modulation causes (my GUESS is not all that much). My UHF U1's and 2's get about 10 hours reliably and usually 12 or so. My AT-5000's in low power mode get about 8 or 9. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CMS Author Craig Vecchione Posted August 30, 2010 CMS Author Share Posted August 30, 2010 Doing some quick adding, I've got about 6 hours on a fresh set of Duracells, so I'll leave it on tonight and see how much longer they go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members abzurd Posted August 30, 2010 Author Members Share Posted August 30, 2010 I'm in the middle of a test using the "power save" mode right now. I'll report the results when the batteries die. It's been going for 2 1/2 hours and the microphone indicates 6 hours and 20 minutes are remaining. It started at 9 hrs so that means it's been fairly accurate as the indicator moves in 20 minute increments. Tomorrow I'll test the high power setting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members abzurd Posted August 30, 2010 Author Members Share Posted August 30, 2010 So 4 hours in and the meter has been accurate. I have 5 hours left. Again, this is with the low power setting, which is appropriate for what I'm going to be using it for. I'll seldom be more than 15 feet away and never more than 50. Side note - I'm finding my 2.4 Ghz keyboard is not as responsive as normal and lagging badly at times. I'm wondering if the microphone is interfering with it. Don, if you're following this thread I have a question. As you know, we are using other Line 6 devices. All the older 5 channel systems and we are using all channels. Are channels 1-5 of the XD-V70 the same as the 5 channels on these older units? I'm assuming so as we had trouble with one last weekend and it was on channel 1, the same channel my microphone was on. I ended up moving my mic to channel 12, but he'd already switched to a cable for the rest of the show. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jguitarguy27 Posted August 30, 2010 Members Share Posted August 30, 2010 On another note, have you noticed any excessive bleed on this mic Abzurd? That seemed to be one of the complaints about the older Line6 wireless mic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jguitarguy27 Posted August 30, 2010 Members Share Posted August 30, 2010 One other thing...do you happen to know the distance limits of the low power vs. high power? And does the mic need to be in line-of-sight with the receiver? Do you know how much leeway you have with that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members dboomer Posted August 30, 2010 Members Share Posted August 30, 2010 Sean ... thanks for the video. You missed one little feature. On the back of the battery compartment is a physical lockout switch. Once you set it the performer cannot change any settings. We might be a little heavier than the other because the body is metal leaving only the battery cover plastic (you can't block the internal antennas with metal;) ) Battery life: You'll get a solid 8 hours on "high" power and 10 hours (or more) on "low". I would never hold out much for the ones that come packed with units. Who knows how long they've been sitting. Battery meters: Are interesting. If you run the unit for 2 hours it should show about 6 hours remaining when you switch it off. But if you don't turn it on until tomorrow, the meter will start probably at 7 hours remaining. It will come down in 10 minutes or so. This is because Alkaline batteries "rebound". I'm sure Andy will chime in. It's just an alkaline thing. The battery meters actually measure battery voltage and are not just simple timers. They should be very accurate. Audix capsules: Most (but maybe not all) of Line 6's official printed and website material spells out that an adaptor ring is needed. I'll get that tied down. Personally I would avoid putting an Audix capsule on either our XD-V70 nor on the Shure mic. They are very noisy. XDR955: Do not interfere at all with XD-V series. They are way far apart in frequency. Other interference: Part 15 devices (sounds like your foot pedal, wi-fi, anything else) share space. As you add more RF in this band it takes them more time to work. XD-V however remains unaffected, but a lot of other devices were designed long ago before this was considered. I would almost always recommend running XD-V on low power if you do not need more than 100 feet of range. It will help minimize competition. Realize these devices compete with themselves without us. The more you add, the more competition there is. Also a little distance helps a lot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members dboomer Posted August 30, 2010 Members Share Posted August 30, 2010 One other thing...do you happen to know the distance limits of the low power vs. high power? And does the mic need to be in line-of-sight with the receiver? Do you know how much leeway you have with that? For high power expect 300 feet or better and about 100 feet for low power for the XD-V70. 100 feet for the XD-V 30 (high power only). All manufacturers quote range as clear line of sight (which almost never happens). It depends on what the blocking is. Water and metal are pretty much the enemy. Don't plan on going through many walls. With all wireless ... you should get the receiving antennas above head height (kinda like tweeters with speakers). Pros use paddle antennas for a good reason:thu: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members agedhorse Posted August 30, 2010 Members Share Posted August 30, 2010 Battery life: You'll get a solid 8 hours on "high" power and 10 hours (or more) on "low". I would never hold out much for the ones that come packed with units. Who knows how long they've been sitting.Battery meters: Are interesting. If you run the unit for 2 hours it should show about 6 hours remaining when you switch it off. But if you don't turn it on until tomorrow, the meter will start probably at 7 hours remaining. It will come down in 10 minutes or so. This is because Alkaline batteries "rebound". I'm sure Andy will chime in. It's just an alkaline thing. The battery meters actually measure battery voltage and are not just simple timers. They should be very accurate. Comment #1... ship the units with the best batteries you can. Poor batteries leave a poor initial impression with the customer and may lead to more returns because of such inaccurate impression. Comment #2... Look at your battery meter afteryou finish using the mic and decide to change batteries at that point. Batteries do indeed rebound in voltage but the effect is short lived. This can lead to inaccurate conclusions about the number of hours to expect from used batteries. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jguitarguy27 Posted August 30, 2010 Members Share Posted August 30, 2010 Thanks dboomer for the info. I might order one today.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members abzurd Posted August 30, 2010 Author Members Share Posted August 30, 2010 On another note, have you noticed any excessive bleed on this mic Abzurd? That seemed to be one of the complaints about the older Line6 wireless mic. I've commented on the older mic having too large of a pickup pattern for loud, small stages, which unfortunately is the majority of the users. It's a catch 22 though as those lacking experience, and or confidence, don't get close enough to the microphone, so in that respect it's a friendlier mic. It just don't do exceptionally well on gain before feedback. The XD-V70 is MUCH better. It's a very good balance of tight pattern, and forgiveness if you're not exactly on top of it. Audix OM5, OM7 would be examples of microphones that you must be right on top of. The V70 will pick up the tambourine and cowbell, if I get it relatively close to the mic. I'll mention too that I really belt it out so I set the gain lower than some people may. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jguitarguy27 Posted August 30, 2010 Members Share Posted August 30, 2010 Just ordered one guys. I will also post feedback on the mic when I use it this weekend. I've owned Shure and Sennheiser wireless systems, so I will be able to compare it against those. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members abzurd Posted August 30, 2010 Author Members Share Posted August 30, 2010 Alright then, independent testing says 9 hours on "power save" with regular alkaline batteries. I used Rayovac's. On another note, Rat got back to me about the Audix adapter. I'm sending mine back for a replacement. They've redesigned it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members dboomer Posted August 30, 2010 Members Share Posted August 30, 2010 Alright then, independent testing says 9 hours on "power save" with regular alkaline batteries. I used Rayovac's. Truly fresh batteries would register 10 hours. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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