Hanks wireless system

[Apache1]

Does anyone know which wireless system Hank used on the 50th Anniversary tour ?
he certainly did not use the Samon which he used on the 2004 Shadows Final tour.
John

[Apache1]

Sorry about the typo "Samson"

[s4wgb]

.

[John M]

And if memory serves me well, the receiver unit is about £2,500

[JimN]

And if memory serves me well, the receiver unit is about £2,500

<wince>

You can get a serviceable guitar lead for £15 and an excellent, state-of-the-art, one for about £75; better than any wireless system. Ask Justin...

JN

[rogera]

Regarding guitar leads, think carefully before paying a lot of money for an expensive 'state of the art' one if you are seeking to recreate the early Shadows sound.

In those days guitar leads never came in different qualities and those that were used on stage were usually quite long.

[Apache1]

Thanks everyone for your replys and information, Shure - trust Hank to have the best
John

[John M]

Re. the Samsons. Ive been using one for a few years now, as has our rhythm guitarist, and although Samson claim the units deliver good sound, there is one annoying foible.
At first I thought it was just me, then perhaps my unit has a fault of some description, but only within the last few days Ive discovered it seems to be a "built in" problem.
If you hit a solo note the sound appears to "swoop in" almost like a fast acting volume pedal. It also makes the G string notes sound somewhat shallow (both wound and plain strings) And Ive noticed it on the Shadows final tour DVD where Samsons are being used.

The very first note in Theme for Young Lovers shows this effect very well. There are other points during the disc but that one is the most obvious and most easily heard.
Im surprised that Hank didnt notice this as they must have used this setup during rehearsals, but maybe they were committed to using them.
At around £200 when the show was recorded they must have been relatively expensive, but now around the £150 mark, and if you can put up with the "swoop" Maplins are selling the Samsons under their own brand name for £79.
The £2000+ units would be built to a higher (hopefully) standard

Perhaps some of the more technically minded members can put forward a theory for this effect... I personally think there is some "companding" going on to maintain S/N ratios .. a bit like Dolby processing, but have yet to find any details in print which give an answer.

[cockroach]

Didn't Bo Winberg build a wireless system for the Spotnicks about 50 years ago?

When I saw the Shadows here in Australia in the '80's, Bruce's wireless unit packed up on stage and he swapped over to a normal lead....

Last year at a theatre concert, right on the first notes of our opening tune (Apache!) our lead player's wireless unit broke down, along with the wiring of his custom shop Strat AND his Amtech echo unit also malfunctioned - luckily his Vox amp was working -although it had played up at rehearsals a couple of nights before......so instead of playing rhythm, I took over and played most of the tunes in the set myself with the drummer and bass player until the lead player could sort his gear out!

Forget wireless, keep to a simple signal path!

[Santoinetwo]

Well seems nobody likes the wireless systems huh ! I have to say that I got fed up of trying to avoid my own lead on stage, and indeed my fellow guitarists lead. Tripping over leads onstage is not only dangerous but dam un cool ! I just wonder how many of you, have had the misfortune of setting up there gear and then touching the mike, only to receive a belt of 240 v because the venues earth is faulty. On safety alone that's one good reason to use wireless. I also love to mix with the crowds at gigs, Long lead? No I don't think so !! A good quality lead for recording is of course essential, and I have no problem with that. Live work for me is wireless, for freedom and safety. Some people say your guitar tone can be effected by wireless, and I'm sure there is some truth in that. Though nothing that couldn't be corrected on ones amp/rack I have graphic equalizer within my rack, but cannot remember the last time I needed to switch it inline.