Sennheiser has begun shipping its Spectera wideband wireless ecosystem to key customers across the markets including India. By putting the power of a multichannel system into a single 1U rack unit, and accommodating wireless mics, IEMs, and control data in the very same RF channel and a single bodypack, the bidirectional solution will offer unprecedented ease of use for both RF managers and the entire audio team.
The hardware includes the Base Station, the bidirectional SEK bodypack, in versions for the TV-UHF and 1.4 GHz bands, the DAD transceiving antennas (also in TV-UHF and 1.4 GHz versions), MADI cards and various accessories. The software for the ecosystem includes the LinkDesk software and the browser-based Spectera WebUI.
“As a growing and flexible ecosystem, Spectera will continue to be expanded and modelled on current and upcoming customer and user benefits, and we are extremely happy to start series production and shipping,” says Co-CEO Dr Andreas Sennheiser. “I would like to take this opportunity to sincerely thank all our partners for their contribution to shaping Spectera, and all our customers for taking this bold step into the future of wireless with us.”
“Spectera marks a leap in wireless audio, simplifying complexity while delivering unmatched flexibility and control,” Vipin Pungalia, Director – Sales Pro Audio, Sennheiser India, stated. “We’re thrilled to introduce this innovation to India and have forward-thinking customers onboard who are pushing the boundaries of live sound and production and helping us deliver the future of audio.”
True WMAS solution simplifies live audio productions
From the ecosystem’s small footprint in the warehouse, in transit and backstage, to the automatic coordination of all mobile devices in the 6 or 8 MHz wide RF channel assigned to it, Spectera solves many of the issues that owners and operators of narrowband multichannel wireless systems are faced with today. Setup time with Spectera is greatly reduced, because the extensive frequency calculation and RF cabling of narrowband systems, as well as the complex calculation of power levels for multichannel IEMs, are no longer required with this wideband solution.
Spectera allows operators to put both IEMs and mics in the very same TV channel – no separate bands with guard bands anymore. With Spectera offering permanent two-way communication, engineers have full remote control of the wireless system for settings and monitoring, including permanent spectrum sensing, also on the RF channel used by Spectera itself. Thanks to the ecosystem’s low spectral density, it is easier to reuse frequencies than with narrowband wireless, for example between neighbouring theatres.
Productions become totally flexible in the use of the frequency resources allocated to Spectera, and can choose between various Audio Link Modes to determine the ideal audio quality, latency, channel count, and operating range for each and every audio link. Mics and IEMs can easily be added during a show, and thanks to the RF components being part of the DAD transceiving antennas (and not the Base Station), the system does not require any boosters, splitters or combiners.
LinkDesk Software and Spectera WebUI
The all-new LinkDesk desktop application unlocks the Base Station with the correct, region-specific license, and turns a Mac or PC into a centralized remote control and monitoring centre, with an intuitive and user-friendly workflow for multiple Spectera Base Stations. The software gives the operator comprehensive configuration capabilities, routing and zoning features, such as a choice of Audio Link Modes with varying levels of audio quality, latency, possible audio links and range.
While LinkDesk is the recommended tool for any larger Spectera setup, an individual Base Station can also be monitored and controlled via the browser-based Spectera WebUI. Designed as a streamlined web interface, Spectera WebUI allows system access to the Base Station from any device – phone, tablet, or computer – for easy setup, configuration, monitoring, and firmware updates.
In future, Spectera will also be integrated into the brand-neutral SoundBase RF planning tool, allowing the coordination of both wideband and narrowband wireless in one software. A mode planner is already available via SoundBase Tools.
Product registration, idea hub and roadmap
By registering their Spectera in the Sennheiser customer portal, users will receive notification for software updates and release notes, and can always stay up to date with what is new for the ecosystem. The registration is open at my.sennheiser.com. The portal also hosts an idea space where customers and operators can submit the features and functionalities they would like to see implemented with Spectera. Users can also comment on submitted ideas, and upvote or downvote suggestions. All entries will be reviewed by product management and the technical teams. The Spectera roadmap in the portal will give customers an overview of what the team is working on right now, which features are targeted for implementation during the next six months, and what is part of the roadmap beyond that timeframe.
