EUROPE – Cyndi Lauper’s Girls Just Wanna Have Fun Farewell Tour got an assist from a wireless setup crafted by Germany-based RF-Alliance that included RF Venue’s new CP Stage antenna and 4 ZONE active antenna combiner. The production included a Main and B-Stage layout, roaming artists and 34 wireless audio channels.
More details from RF Venue (www.rfvenue.com):
RF-Alliance is a Germany-based and internationally active consultancy firm specializing in radio spectrum management and wireless technologies for entertainment applications. Though a young company, its staff consists of highly qualified technicians with decades of experience in wireless audio for large events, including the planning and on-site implementation and operation of complex wireless microphone and IEM setups. Technologies from RF Venue, a global leading manufacturer of wireless audio essential accessories, are key tools for RF-Alliance co-founder and RF technician Dominik Feltes. Feltes recently selected RF Venue’s innovative new CP Stage compact, circularly-polarized antenna plus RF Venue’s 4 ZONE active antenna combiner to overcome the inherent RF challenges of a high-profile arena tour involving a Main and B-stage layout, roaming artists and 34 channels of wireless audio transmission.
RF Venue’s tools enabled a level of flexibility and control that made a major difference in maintaining management across 11 UK and European shows in February and March for Cyndi Lauper’s ongoing Girls Just Wanna Have Fun Farewell Tour. “From gain staging each antenna zone independently to fine-tuning IEM coverage on both the main stage and B-stage, their gear was instrumental to our success,” said Feltes. “The 4 ZONE Combiner gave me precise control over multi-zone antenna management, especially with seamless transitions between the main stage and B-stage. And the CP Stage Antenna was a perfect fit for providing consistent IEM coverage across multiple onstage zones and backstage areas. Coverage was predictable across the tour’s IEM RF zones as the polar pattern in the specifications closely matches the real RF coverage.”
For distribution of 18 channels of Shure PSM1000 in-ear monitors, Feltes deployed three IEM combiners feeding three transmission antennas (two via a RF Venue 2X1SPLIT passive antenna splitter/combiner). The IP44 rated weather-resistant RF Venue CP Stage Antenna, selected for its tailored polar pattern and compact form factor, delivered clean, uninterrupted signal to the artist as she roamed the stage and downstage wings as well as the backstage area. “The CP Stage Antenna proved ideal for covering multiple planes of movement, from backstage to downstage side wings, without overreaching into the adjacent RF zones,” Feltes explained. “Its coverage footprint and physical design make it a smart middle-ground between a CP Beam and wider-field antennas.”
For the tour’s 16 channels of Shure Axient Digital microphones, the antenna network included a pair each of paddle and helical directional antennas with in-line amplifiers feeding the 4 ZONE Combiner, which then fed the antenna distribution amps. Feltes implemented external HF filters to eliminate intermodulation issues caused by high-powered production radios operating near the system’s frequency range and physically close to the antennas.
“We had zero RF issues during the entire leg of the tour,” Feltes continued. “RF Venue’s equipment contributed directly to that success, with consistently strong receiver levels and seamless handoffs between zones, even during complex roaming performances.”
Having worked internationally in wireless audio since 2012, Feltes notes that RF Venue products are a regular part of his touring toolkit: “We as RF-Alliance love working with RF Venue. The CP Beam is a classic, but I was particularly impressed by the performance of the CP Stage Antenna on this run as it fit all our requirements perfectly. It’s earned a permanent spot in my road case.”
For more information about RF-Alliance, go to www.rf-alliance.de
