Shure GLXD or Line 6 Relay G90?

On a side note, I just wanted to say that this was a very timely topic to pop up. I had a last minute need to buy a bunch of wireless mic systems for use in multiple countries and the biggest problem we always have is that places like Germany, Korea, Japan, etc. all have different authorized frequency ranges. I didn't even know about the products that were using 2.4GHz until I read this thread literally the night before this new "need" was dropped on my desk. That's why I was asking about international voltages for the power supply.

So basically instead of trying to figure out which wireless sets would be only useful for which country and figuring out how many and where they'd be located and then trying to calculate for redundancy and backup and then all the logistics and crap I just ordered one system (the Shure GLXD with the SM58 ) and was done with it.

Now the only question is whether this 2.4GHz stuff works as well as the old wireless stuff in the 8xx MHz range. It better or I'm going to get a foot planted in a very uncomfortable place by my boss. :)

Anyway, sometimes it pays to read the forum at work. At least that's what I'm trying to tell my boss.
 
shasha said:
On a side note, I just wanted to say that this was a very timely topic to pop up. I had a last minute need to buy a bunch of wireless mic systems for use in multiple countries and the biggest problem we always have is that places like Germany, Korea, Japan, etc. all have different authorized frequency ranges. I didn't even know about the products that were using 2.4GHz until I read this thread literally the night before this new "need" was dropped on my desk. That's why I was asking about international voltages for the power supply.

So basically instead of trying to figure out which wireless sets would be only useful for which country and figuring out how many and where they'd be located and then trying to calculate for redundancy and backup and then all the logistics and crap I just ordered one system (the Shure GLXD with the SM58 ) and was done with it.

Now the only question is whether this 2.4GHz stuff works as well as the old wireless stuff in the 8xx MHz range. It better or I'm going to get a foot planted in a very uncomfortable place by my boss. :)

Anyway, sometimes it pays to read the forum at work. At least that's what I'm trying to tell my boss.
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So let us know your first hand thoughts on the unit when you have time to test. I for one would be very appreciative of your opinion.

Thanks.
 
I don't have any Line 6 G wireless stuff to compare directly; but my issue with it was always battery life. I owned an X-Wire and that thing ate batteries like a candy addict eats Pez. lol. I tried a Line 6 when they first came out; I liked it except for the battery life. The other more recent (I do this every few years - try wireless, love the freedom of it but end up despising the battery life or some other issue and sell it) was the Shure SLX. Again, sold that after 6 months of it eating batteries like mad.

I am loving the GLXD. Flat out. Zero issues, the battery life is mind blowing (and I *mean* that) and battery life metering is accurate to the minute. It's by far the best I've ever seen on both fronts. I bought a backup battery so one is always in the receiver charging when I'm using it. I expect a very long life from this setup using two of these batteries. The backup battery was $29.

I will caution this - anyone claiming no tone change using *any* wireless is shooting smoke and mirrors; everything affects everything. Wireless units, again - ALL of them - do sound different than cables (and all cables sound different to other cables) but that is not a bad or a good thing; it's just reality. I have no issues with what the GLXD does with my tone. It is different; but it is not better. It is not worse. It's just me being honest. I'll do a comparison when I do a full review (I always use stuff for a few months before I do a full review).

My singer in my band just bought the Beta 58 wireless GLXD version for her vocals because of being impressed with my GLXD (and my subsequent rantings about how much I like it) so... take that for what it is worth. She had a Sennheiser for a long time, but was frustrated with.... you guessed it, battery life.

Shure hit a home run with this.
 
Scott Peterson said:
She had a Sennheiser for a long time, but was frustrated with.... you guessed it, battery life.

Shure hit a home run with this.
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Interesting. I have the first Gen of the Sennheiser Evo Series Wireless (Mic model 845), and I am constantly surprised at how long my battery life is.
The Gen I have uses 9 volt, so not sure if your singer had a newer model that used AA's.
I usually get 3-4 gigs (3 sets a night) with one battery.

My Line6 X2 Guitar wireless however, eats batteries like crazy.
 
dwg115 said:
My point on the above post (Which I should have listed) was that the older PGX14 already sounds closer to the cable then the Line 6 G series. I always thought if I were to get a wireless system it would be one of the G series but listening to that changed my mind somewhat.
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To be fair, my line 6 G55 has nowhere near that difference with a cable.


The cables that come with the line 6 stuff are crap, but easy enough to upgrade. The battery compartment on the transmitter can be a bitch as well. I also have a problem of dropouts if I set my rig to close to me. It took a while to figure that one out.

The Shure looks nice. I haven't tried it. I know the wireless mics sound great.
 
shasha said:
I just ordered one system (the Shure GLXD with the SM58 ) and was done with it.

Now the only question is whether this 2.4GHz stuff works as well as the old wireless stuff in the 8xx MHz range. It better or I'm going to get a foot planted in a very uncomfortable place by my boss. :).
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Some news on these systems, Shasha?
 
Sorry for necro reviving this thread, but anyone with the GLX-D can comment on the interference and range of the unit? It's rated at 100 feet inside and 65 outside, which is pretty bad compared to the Relay G50 and G90. I'm thinking going to the QLX-D because of this, but if the GLX is enough, I would save a lot of dough. My G50 just crapped on me, so gotta get something new.
 
100 typical and up to 200 ideal. I'd imagine its very similar in range to the L6 G50. Who knows how legit L6's specs might be too. I have the shure and love it. The 17 hr rechargeable battery is awesome. The new G70 from L6 has some cool new options but you are still stuck with batteries. I love using my wireless all the time and just recharging it before a show or not. I've played lots of gigs with 8hr battery life. I've never had range issues.... I've even had my rig in the basement and gone to the second floor and it was still working...

All that being said I don't play massive venues except once in a blue moon. I do play the bigger bars around chicago though and run to the other side of the stage and have no problems.
 
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Cool thanks! I always play with a wireless. At home, practice, live, recording, etc. I just want to be sure I'm making the right move.
 
I have been using the Line6 G90 with my AxeFX system for the past year, and it's been flawless. I've played big venues in several states, and not have a single problem. Typical range seems to be at least 200 feet, and I've been much further from my rack at some venues just to see if / when it would lose signal. If I ever needed to play a gig from the parking lot next to the club, apparently that's perfectly do-able :)

It doesn't sound exactly like a cable. The different is very subtle. I've done some A/B testing using my direct wired / wireless, and made a few adjustments with the cable simulation. It seems to me the G90 has a brighter, fuller range, which makes sense, as there is only about twelve inches of actual analog cable involved. The A/D and D/A conversion seem very good. My guess is that the actual cable is rolling of a little of the high end, which makes it sound "warmer". For me adding a bit of the cable simulation brings the wireless signal closer to the wired tone.

If I was in the market for a wireless system, I'd definitely look at both the Shure and the Line6 offerings. There are plenty of satisfied owners of both systems on the forum.
 
My main band has run into density issues with the G- series from Line6. Just not near enough channels for us there. We're moving to Sennheiser ew 572 G3 for instruments, and ew 300 G3 for IEMs. We're at a point where we're using all available channels for instruments/mics on wireless, and seating 400-800+ in our venues. Besides running out of channels, we're consistently having issues with drops and interference, even well before we ran out of channels. In some instances, we could have the transmitter sitting within a foot of the receiver, and you can see the LEDs on the receiver go dark for 1-2 seconds. Not acceptable.

For my 2nd project, which is much smaller, we haven't had major issues with the Line 6 stuff though. Some small quips here and there - enough to be annoying, but never interrupted show. We're only using 4 channels total here.
 
FWIW, and to revive this thread again, I would NOT recommend the Line 6 G70 which is the successor to the G50. Nothing but constant connection issues and at the worst possible times. It's just too sensitive to interference, I'm afraid. I was on the most current FW and used the channel scan method. In 3 out of my last three gigs trying to use it, it did not work. It did work fine at one bar we were playing on the outdoor patio. I finally sold it recently. I had the G50 before the G70 and it actually was a better unit. The G70 is the most recent tech. I think they should go 5Ghz as the 2.4 band is pretty loaded. Having said that, the G50 was 2.4 and the Shure GLX is as well and not a lot of folks talking about issues there.
 
It's been a year. I still have my Line6's laying around and fiddle with them now and again. Still won't trust them for live / performance use at all. Good to have around the house though, especially for some of the wonky electronics projects I get myself into.
 
My G90 has been flawless as well. I haven't measured the actual battery life as I'm a paranoid individual. I always put fresh batteries in prior to a gig. They last the gig (4-6 hours constantly on) as well as several practices afterwards.
 
I have used my G-30 flawlessly live and in my studio for over 5 years. I cannot hear the difference between it and a cable -at all. HOWEVER, they are cheap -but functional.
Having said that I just checked out the Shure GLX-D Dam I need one.
A rechargeable onboard battery,..awesome!
 
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So as not to confuse, the G30/G50/G90 family is the "old" Line 6 tech and is still being sold. The G10/G70/G75 is the new wireless model/tech as of last year. Based on my experience, the G70 worked for me 30-40% of the time. The other 70% I had to kill it on stage and go back to cable. From reading on the internet, this is similar to other folks experiences even with a FW update they offered to help improve it. I owned the G50 prior to the G70 and never had an issue albeit I did not use it a ton...but I was batting 100% with that one. The one thing I did like about the G70 was the sound which was also a plus on my old G50. I'd still have the G70 if it were more reliable. Now I'm trying to decide if I pick up a wireless system again and it will be between a G50 and Shure GLX this time around.
 
I have had NO issues with my G90 over the last 5+ yrs.. it's rack mounted because I switch between bass and guitar gigs, so my input is always the same.

@selta - if you have reached the density/saturation level, it's time to upgrade your antenna systems both in and out.
Same applies to going with 572's and IEM G3's.
We run 4 * L6 systems inbound and 3 G3 IEM's out. The L6 are my G90, the rest are floorboard mounted so no interference with appropriate channel selection. SO far, no Interference with the G3 IEM xmitters housed in the same rack next to each other, again with channel separation.
We do have the drummer using the P16M - hard wired to the X32 mixer, and one guy still on wedges.
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We have about 17 people on wireless. Even the G90 only has 14. Also, constant and terrible interference in 2.4GHz, so we just go with quality systems that, since we upgraded, have not had a single issue at all. No interference, no drop outs, more channels than we'll ever need. It's been a win/win for us, and we're not looking back at all.

As I mentioned before, watching the LEDs go dead on the receiver (not the transmitter) when they were within arms' reach of each other was the last straw. Pretty ridiculous that they had a drop out like that. With that show, drop outs of that nature are not just an annoyance, but they really throw a lot of things off (audio queues for some of the other performers and so on). It's a risk we can't, and are not willing, to take anymore. Line6 stuff just let us down too many times.
 
selta said:
As I mentioned before, watching the LEDs go dead on the receiver (not the transmitter) when they were within arms' reach of each other was the last straw.
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That is normal.. there IS such as thing as being TOO CLOSE with wireless.. right?
 
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