Wireless IFB On The Cheap

The producer, director and a few others have the ability to break the flow and speak to you. It can be very helpful. It can be very confusing. I’ve heard both.

ifb-replacement

Equipping my new studio sometimes gets frustrating. I want to make the right decision. Facts aren’t always available.

The best example is a wireless IFB system. IFB stands for “Interrupt Feedback” or “Interrupt Foldback.” It’s that earpiece TV people wear.

Your earpiece plays what’s on TV. The producer, director and a few others have the ability to break the flow and speak to you. It can be very helpful. It can be very confusing. I’ve heard both.

IFB systems are expensive. I didn’t like that idea. They’re also bulky. Clipped to your pants waistband an IFB receiver adds extra girth when wearing a suit.

I think I’ve found a solution. It’s a Bluetooth transmitter and receiver. Though both are made by the same manufacturer and look the same, they’re not normally marketed as a pair. They are reasonably cheap.

I might be able to create a wireless IFB for under $60. That’s hundreds, possibly thousands, of dollars saved!

Even better the unit is tiny. The receiver at the top of this entry is 2.5″ long, 1″ wide and around .25″ thick. Other than coins there’s nothing in your pocket smaller.

It won’t work in a studio with more than one person. Bluetooth adds a slight but noticeable delay. A ‘live’ person would echo.

In my situation an extra 1/30 or 1/15 second wait to hear the ‘distant’ anchor is inconsequential.

This solution seems too good to be true. It very well might be, but a quick test tonight worked. Call me hopeful.

Another Broadcast For Slooh

The image at the top of this entry shows some of the asteroid’s movement through the sky. We captured this with Slooh’s telescope in Chile. You’re seeing an object the size of an aircraft carrier from millions of miles away!

I hosted another broadcast this morning PDT for Slooh.com. Near Earth Asteroid 2014 HQ124 won’t hit Earth, but it will be in the neighborhood the next few days. That’s good reason for us to go live.

The image at the top of this entry shows some of the asteroid’s movement through the sky. We captured this with Slooh’s telescope in Chile. You’re seeing an object the size of an aircraft carrier from millions of miles away!

After the broadcast I stopped to ponder our own technological achievement. We had participants on from the East and West Coast, plus England and Australia. We used images taken in Australia and Chile.

We had the right experts and pictures with lots of insight, coordinated in Hartford, CT where our producer/director sits.

We’re about to make a huge technological leap which should bring up the quality of our transmissions greatly. Noticeable change.

It’s all pretty exciting and, for me, nerdy fun.