
New WMAS Standard Promises More-Flexible, Protected Wireless Operations Shure, Sennheiser establish early beachheads in what could be a game-changer By Dan Daley, Audio Editor
Wednesday, November 6, 2024 - 7:00 am
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story Highlights
The lengthy narrative around the arrival of Wireless Multichannel Audio Systems is seemingly at its end. In October, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) conferred its bureaucratic blessing on the RF technology that allows significantly denser multiplexing of audio channels onto a single wideband RF carrier. Referred to by the only slightly less unwieldy acronym WMAS, the new standard promises an easier and more flexible wireless workflow and greater protection for other services sharing the same frequency band. It is widely considered a game-changer for managing wireless signals in a narrower, denser spectral environment in the wake of multiple spectrum reductions over the past two decades.
The approval has also opened a new front in the wireless-microphone competition, one in which two of the sector's largest brands, Sennheiser and Shure, have quickly staked substantial claims.
Sennheiser's Joe Ciaudelli: With WMAS, you're using the same RF channel and the same amount of bandwidth for [multiple mics] as for one.
It is definitely the start of a new era of wireless-microphone technology, says Joe Ciaudelli, director, spectrum and innovation, Sennheiser. Noting the nearly six years the FCC spent considering the technology and the eight months, from February to October, it took to publish its finding in the Federal Register, he adds, We expect the competition to be rigorous.
Shure Senior Director, Product Management, Nick Wood puts the arrival of WMAS into broad context: Any change in the UHF TV bands is a really big deal given the changes that have happened over the past 20 years, most of which affected access to spectrum. This one is a great development because it changes what we can do with it, and Shure has been determined to push the envelope with spectrum efficiency. What can be done with the spectrum that we have and the WMAS regulations unlock a new innovation space for us. We want to use that to let the people who produce these events, including broadcast sports, to be able to do more with the spectrum they have that day and be able to say yes to one more wireless microphone.
Two Competitive Fronts Sennheiser's flagship WMAS offering is the Spectera line, introduced at IBC in September (the technology is already an ETSI standard in Europe) and demonstrated at the Americas Spectrum Management Conference in Washington, DC, last month. It features wideband, bidirectional bodypacks and a central unit that can handle up to 32 I/O. Its bidirectional wireless ecosystem supports data and audio control in a single RF carrier for all components and for such parameters as IEM volume, audio level and settings, RF health, and battery status. Sennheiser asserts that it is able to accommodate an entire production in a single wideband (6- or 8-MHz) RF carrier.
Shure's entry takes the form of a new iteration of the company's Axient wireless series: Axient Digital PSM combines its first digital wireless in-ear monitoring solution with its first WMAS-enabled product. It was announced Oct. 22 (although it had been selectively previewed privately two weeks earlier during the AES/NAB expo in New York, at which Sennheiser did not exhibit). Stereo capability enables Axient Digital PSM to operate as two discrete channels, allowing a stereo audio channel to function effectively as two mono IFB channels. Additionally, the capability to send Dante signals to the Audio Digital Transmission Exchange (ADTX) simplifies routing. The WMAS wideband implementation supports up to 28 channels per 6 MHz in the U.S. and 40 channels per 8 MHz in Europe; a narrowband mode provides access to more RF output power per channel while maintaining spectral efficiency at 17 channels per 6 MHz.
Changing the Game The new FCC rules will allow WMAS to operate in the broadcast-TV bands and in the 600 MHz duplex gap on both a licensed and an unlicensed basis and in other Part 74 LPAS (low-power auxiliary stations) frequency bands on a licensed basis. Power restrictions are 50 mW in the VHF-TV bands, 250 mW conducted power in the UHF band, 20 mW in the 600 MHz duplex gap (653-657 MHz), 250 mW conducted power in the 1435-1525 MHz band, and 1 W conducted power in all other bands, according to the FCC's website. WMAS will enable more wireless microphones to operate in the available spectrum (more microphones per megahertz of spectrum), providing additional options when more microphones are needed.
The WMAS rules do not alter existing spectrum rights or expectations regarding spectrum access and availability related to other authorized users' sharing the frequency bands with wireless-microphone operations (including, for example, broadcast licensees, Wi-Fi, and white-space-device users).
Sennheiser's Take For broadcast-sports applications, Ciaudelli - who contends that Spectera is the most innovative product the nearly 80-year-old company has ever produced - notes a broadcaster's typical complement of one transmitter for a microphone and one receiver for an IFB. That, he says, can be condensed into a single transceiver using Spectra WMAS. There's a similar benefit for large-scale events, such as the Olympics, in which various echelons of wireless mics are in either active or on standby status as a production unfolds.
With WMAS, he explains, you could give the vast majority of the spectral resources to the mics that are currently on-air. The mics that are, let's say, on deck' you give just enough resources to make sure that they remain linked to the base station in a ready mode. You're using the
Most recent headlines
06/10/2025
France T l visions, France's leading broadcaster, has received the 2025 EBU ...
04/09/2025
Monumental Sports & Entertainment (MSE), in collaboration with Dalet, has been a...
30/06/2025
There's nothing quite like the magic of finding music that feels made just f...
30/06/2025
When it comes to new music, Spotify's team of editors across North America is always on the hunt for songs that make them feel, think, and move. They're...
30/06/2025
SBS On Demand boosts global news offering with launch of France 24 FAST Channel
30 June, 2025
Media releases
SBS is expanding its international news offeri...
30/06/2025
Star Studded Ensemble Cast Are Joined by Richard Rankin as Filming Begins on the Second Season
[June 12, 2025 - Boston, MA]: The Forsytes, Debbie Horsfield...
30/06/2025
The Artemis II Space Launch System core stage is integrated with the solid rocket boosters inside High Bay 3 of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASAs Kennedy S...
30/06/2025
RALEIGH, N.C. Capitol Broadcasting Co. has named Heather Gray vice president and general manager of WRAL-TV and WRAZ-TV here....
30/06/2025
The Virginia Association of Broadcasters has recognized Bill Sewell, Director of Engineering at WTKR & WGNT in Norfolk, Va. as the recipient of the 2025 J.J. Fr...
30/06/2025
The Society of Broadcast Engineers said its annual member drive resulted in the recruitment of 49 individual members....
30/06/2025
BURLINGTON, Mass. Avid today released its fully integrated news platform, uniting MediaCentral and Wolftech News in a single newsroom solution, and will demonst...
30/06/2025
WASHINGTON The Federal Communication's Enforcement and Media Bureaus have entered into a Consent Decree with Sinclair Broadcast Group to resolve a variety o...
30/06/2025
Eurorack sequencer module reimagined
California-based modular synth innovators Qu-Bit have announced the launch of a new module that offers a fresh new take...
30/06/2025
Berklee at Umbria Jazz Clinics to Host 40th Anniversary Concert The celebration will be held on July 10 in Perugia, Italy.
By
Colette Greenstein
June 30, 202...
30/06/2025
PremiumBeat Tips and Tricks
Brie Clayton June 30, 2025
0 Comments
When editing to impress, you'll need quality music, and if your studio happens t...
30/06/2025
Improved dynamic behaviour, improved audio quality & more
Techivation have announced the release of an upgraded edition of their very first premium plug-in,...
30/06/2025
German premiere with live flight demonstration: German industry team showcases e...
30/06/2025
Back to All News
Bel n Cuesta and Karra Elejalde Star in El ni o, the New Film ...
30/06/2025
Back to All News
A New Dangerous Troll Awakens: Netflix Unleashes Teaser for Troll 2Play Video
Play Video
Entertainment
30 June 2025
GlobalNorwayDenmarkSwe...
30/06/2025
The Focusrite Summer Sale is now on Don't miss unbeatable deals on Scarlett, Vocaster, and more.
Whether you're an artist, a producer, or a podcaste...
30/06/2025
All 8 episodes of Season 1 of 1923 will be available on RT Player from Tuesday ...
30/06/2025
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
52% report AI security spending is displacing tr...
30/06/2025
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Cannes, June 30th, 2025 - Thales Alenia Space, t...
29/06/2025
Handpan-inspired instrument announced
Roland have announced the launch of the Mood Pan, a unique electronic hand percussion instrument that has been designe...
29/06/2025
Back to All News
A Secret Society, Ritualistic Killings, and a Century-Old Curs...
28/06/2025
Johannesburg, 27 June 2025 - As the nation commemorates Youth Month
2025, the N...
28/06/2025
WASHINGTON In a press conference following the Federal Communications Commission's May Open Meeting, Chair Brendan Carr promised the agency would move rapid...
28/06/2025
STAMFORD, Conn. Charter Communications has awarded $1.1 million in Spectrum Digital Education grants to 55 nonprofit organizations that work to expand access to...
28/06/2025
LAKE FOREST, Calif. June 19, 2025
What's New:
Sonnet Technologies today announced the certification of its Echo 20 Thunderbolt 4 SuperDock as an Engin...
28/06/2025
MASV (massive.io), the fastest and most reliable large file transfer platform for media professionals, has been named an IDC Innovator in the IDC Innovators: Me...
28/06/2025
Grass Valley today announced that TV SKYLINE GmbH, one of Europe's top mobile production providers, has expanded its camera inventory with 30 LDX 135 UHD/HD...
28/06/2025
AgileTV, a European leader in TV and video technology solutions, signed an agreement with Austrian telco LIWEST to develop and implement its TV service in Austr...
28/06/2025
Music theory plug-in updated
Three months on from the release of the latest version of their renowned music theory plug in, Scaler Music have launched an up...
28/06/2025
The 48th Annual Indian National Finals Rodeo Shot with Blackmagic PYXIS 6K
Brie Clayton June 27, 2025
0 Comments
Filmmaker Cameron Mackey relied on Bl...
28/06/2025
Social, Streaming Don't Compete, They Compliment
Andy Marken June 27, 2025
0 Comments
I think we've all arrived at a very special place. Spir...
28/06/2025
Blackmagic Design Captures Filipino Rock Band Drama Singtala
Brie Clayton June 27, 2025
0 Comments
Blackmagic URSA Mini Pro 12K and DaVinci Resolve St...
28/06/2025
Enhance Videos Faster with Aiarty Video Enhancer - Offline, Sharp, and Natural
Brie Clayton June 27, 2025
0 Comments
If you've used AI video tools...
27/06/2025
By Jessica Herndon
One of the most exciting things about the Sundance Film Fest...
27/06/2025
K-Pop remains one of the biggest genres globally, and many fans just can't get enough of it. That's why Spotify has launched a new series of K-Pop perf...
27/06/2025
In our latest blog post, Rafael Rivera highlights the rising threat of online scams, and the important role cybersecurity plays in protecting families across ge...
27/06/2025
WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission has set deadlines for comments to a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) to codify certain foreign ownership re...
27/06/2025
WASHINGTON In a press conference following the Federal Communications Commission's May Open Meeting, Chair Brendan Carr promised the agency would move rapid...
27/06/2025
From grounded realism to bending, impossible geometries
Klevgrand have announced the release of a new algorithmic reverb plug-in which they say deconstruct...
27/06/2025
Learn to use REW for room analysis
Acoustic treatment is one of the most important factors in any studio, and with the extensive range of products available...
27/06/2025
SAN JOSE, Calif. The HDMI Forum has released Version 2.2. of the HDMI Specification with 96Gbps bandwidth and next-gen HDMI Fixed Rate Link technology to provid...
27/06/2025
MONTREAL Grass Valley has announced that TV Skyline GmbH, one of Europe's top mobile production providers, has expanded its camera inventory with the acquis...
27/06/2025
NEW YORK & CHICAGO FuboTV Inc. and Weigel Broadcasting Co. have announced a multi-year agreement for distribution of seven networks including MeTV, H&I, Movies!...
27/06/2025
NEW YORK A national survey of U.S. consumers shows 66% of us watch TV all or most of the time and also multitask while doing it....
27/06/2025
MIAMI Sunbeam Television has reached a multiyear agreement with Findal Media & Technology Group to broadcast the new ABC Miami beginning Aug. 4....
27/06/2025
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. AccuWeather has announced a deal with Perplexity, a AI-powered search and answer engine, that will bring AccuWeathers weather data and severe...