RIO RANCHO, NM — Lectrosonics recently released Version 5.1 firmware for the company’s Venue Wideband modular receiver system, which includes a “TalkBack” function that is compatible with the newly-introduced HH handheld transmitter. When the transmitter is set to TalkBack mode and the function is engaged (activated when the user presses the multi-function button on the HH transmitter), the audio will switch to a different, predetermined XLR on the back panel of the receiver.
This functionality enables the transmitter to control audio routing, which can be useful for situations that require real-time communication between talent, director, monitor engineer, or other band members. In order for the TalkBack functionality to operate on the Venue receiver, at least one empty slot (and, thus, an associated unused XLR) is required in the mainframe.
If more than one receiver modules are installed upstream to the empty slot and set to TalkBack compatibility mode, they will share the next available empty slot as a TalkBack active output. In the event that multiple upstream receivers enter a TalkBack state at the same time, their audio will be mixed on the shared TalkBack output. Hence, it is possible to have multiple transmitters using a common TalkBack channel XLR.
Karl Winkler, director of business development at Lectrosonics, commented on the new V5.1 firmware offering, “We’ve received numerous requests over the years for this kind of talkback functionality on our handheld transmitter. With the new HH handheld, we felt it was the perfect time to incorporate this feature along with the corresponding setup in the Venue receiver. So far, the response has been really great.”
The latest version of the Venue firmware can be downloaded and installed by users via USB, by visiting http://www.lectrosonics.com/LecNet2/lecnet2-firmware-updates.html.
