At the launch of the latest addition to its product suite, the Sennheiser Group left nobody in doubt that it has bold ambitions for Spectera, the world’s first bi-directional wideband digital wireless ecosystem. The product was unveiled at three separate locations across the globe, Hong Kong, Nashville and the main event, Amsterdam, at the opening of IBC2024. The choice of venue was notable. A former tram depot, de Hallen, in the city’s Oud-West district, has been repurposed as a communications hub for the 21st century – connections are still made there, but are no longer limited by the constraints of yesterday’s technology. A fitting place to debut a groundbreaking development which aims to build on more than six decades of innovation.
Simplicity is at the heart of the solution, which, says Dr Andreas Sennheiser, joint-CEO and co-owner (with brother Daniel) of the group that bears his name, aims to usher in, “A new era for how people work with audio gear.”
Explaining what he believes represents nothing less than the future of pro wireless audio, Sennheiser explains the ethos behind its design, which is rooted in the simplicity and reliability demanded by today’s audio professionals. Spectera is, he says, “both easy to set up and easy to use, integrating within and streamlining existing digital workflows”. The solution, he continues, is “Based on a simple principle: it allows connection of audio hardware and software devices.” Throughout its operational life, Spectera will benefit from continuous updates of both hardware and software. “We don’t have to worry about what is coming in the future,” he adds.
The technology aims to change the way people think about the pro-audio landscape, overcoming the limitations that have shaped wireless innovation for over six decades. By taking a new approach, the company has designed an ecosystem that is both interoperable with existing infrastructure and evolves to meet the changing needs of audio production. Its bidirectionality enables both audio signals and control data to be handled simultaneously via a single RF carrier. Spectera’s modulation and multiplexing capabilities provide robust protection from RF dropouts and interference, and full system redundancy ensures continuity and quality is maintained.
In what the company says is a first of its kind, Spectera offers SEK bidirectional bodypacks which handle both mic and IEM in a single pack, able to transmit and receive audio signals simultaneously with latency as low as 0.7ms. Sennheiser Lithium-ion batteries provide up to seven hours operating time, depending on the audio link selected.
LinkDesk, a brand new software application, enables full monitoring and remote control of all connected system devices. Latency, channel count and audio settings can be managed in addition to battery charge status and RF health. An intuitive desktop solution designed with ease-of-use at its heart, it offers continuous RF spectrum scanning while providing assistive behaviours and smart notifications, empowering users with full system oversight and control of the audio.
Enabling the system to operate is Sennheiser’s transceiving DAD antenna, transmitting and receiving bidirectional audio and data simultaneously on a single RF channel. Integrated RF components and a single cat5E connection eliminate the need for any additional components or cabling, effectively building in simplicity. The base station provides 64 wireless audio channels (32 input and 32 output) in a single-rack unit. Four antenna ports offer either extended zone coverage, redundancy or additional spectrum capacity via two RF channels that can be deployed.
As is the case throughout countless other industries which rely on technological innovation, there is an overarching need for simplification. With IP adoption and wider digitalisation advancing at an exponential rate, the requirement for interoperability and connectivity grows ever greater. Describing the company as having, “One foot in the creative world and one foot in the high technology world,” Sennheiser recognises that by embracing developments such as Spectera, the media and entertainment industry will be further enabled. “It is allowing the person to concentrate on the creative side, rather than mastery of technology,” he adds.
Sennheiser is quick to point out that Spectera represents a starting point, a redefinition of the possible upon which tomorrow’s audio production professionals can build. “The future will bring greater integration and automation, to simplify technology even further.” he believes.
In creating Spectera, Sennheiser sees a natural overlap between simplicity and sustainability, with one having an inevitable impact on the other. “Sustainability was not the primary driver behind its development,” he says, “but it is a commercial benefit.” By minimising the complexity of the infrastructure, companies are able to drive efficiencies, which have an impact on both the balance sheet of a business and its carbon footprint. “This reduces every piece of technology flown around the world,” he explains, “And by simplifying, we also reduce the need for technicians to travel.”
The launch of Spectera has created a palpable buzz in the pro-audio environment, just as WMAS (wireless multi-channel audio systems) is beginning to reshape the technological future. Offering a concluding thought, Sennheiser relates what he, personally, sees as he peers over the horizon. “Collaboration,” he says, with clear conviction. “Collaboration at company level is something the industry greatly benefits from.”
This article appeared in the December issue of TVBEurope, available to download here.
