Sound Devices had a busy NAB this year. The Astral Mini Plus, Astral PowerStation Cell, and Viviana Cloud 2 integration with SD 8-Series recorders are all super noteworthy announcements. Here’s what stood out to us the most. (Spoiler alert: ETA TBA.)

Astral Mini Plus

The Astral Mini Plus is Sound Devices’ updated compact bodypack transmitter, built on the same ergonomic form factor as the original Astral Mini. It keeps what we liked about the Mini and adds some welcome upgrades.

The biggest addition is its IP67 waterproofing. The original Mini was water-resistant, but the Mini Plus is now certified as genuinely waterproof and sweatproof. Beyond its IP67 certification, you can simply feel that Sound Devices made this transmitter to last. They’ve been calling the Mini Plus “the Tank” for a reason: this thing is built to withstand pretty much whatever you can reasonably throw at it, whether in film & tv production, live sound for stage & theater, or anywhere else transmitters routinely get soaked in sweat or exposed to extreme elements.

As for RF, the Mini Plus has an expanded frequency range of 169-1525 MHz (compared to the 470-1525 MHz range of the original Mini). And yes, the original Mini can do SpectraBand after a firmware update, so this isn’t entirely new ground. But having this feature standard right out of the box is one less thing to worry about. One transmitter for anywhere in the world, regardless of local spectrum regulations.

Running for 8+ hours on a single XL-B14500 rechargeable cell, the Mini Plus can also take a second battery for extended runtime. And it includes a built-in USB-C port for topping off in the field, which is a nice quality-of-life upgrade over having to swap batteries mid-show or mid-day.

With the inclusion of GainForward, this means no gain control on the transmitter. You set levels from the mixer or receiver. This may take some adjustment if you’re used to working the other way, but it’s become a standard part of the Astral workflow and works quite well in practice.

The Mini Plus’s ePaper display is a great practical touch. The display is readable in direct sunlight and will even stay visible with the batteries removed.

The Astral Mini Plus is shipping very soon, and pre-orders are available now.

Astral PowerStation Cell

The Astral PowerStation Cell is a dedicated fast charger for the XL-B14500 and XL-B18650 battery cells used in Astral TX, Astral Mini Plus, and Astral HH transmitters. Each PowerStation Cell charges up to six XL-B14500 cells or four XL-B18650 cells at once.

This is really made for the mixer who’s fully taking advantage of Sound Device’s Astral ecosystem and needs to keep a track of a lot of batteries for a lot of devices. The Powerstation Cell’s compact form factor was designed for stacking and expansion, so you’re able to efficiently scale to however big your needs may be.

Do note, however, that the PowerStation Cell is not a transmitter dock. The existing PowerStation-8M handles charging by docking the Astral Mini bodypacks directly, but there was no clean solution for the Astral TX and Astral HH batteries short of charging them through the transmitters via USB-C one at a time.

For anyone running a fleet of Astral TX or HH units, the PowerStation Cell is a straightforward way to streamline your battery management and decrease your go-time worries. You pull the batteries, drop them in, and they’re ready for the next day without tying up your transmitters overnight.

The PowerStation Cell should be available soon. Pre-ordering is live now.

Viviana Cloud Integration for the 8-Series

Also at NAB ‘26, Sound Devices provided demonstrations of their 8-Series integration with the Viviana Cloud Box 2. This enables automatic upload to Frame.io and other cloud destinations directly from the Scorpio or 888, without any manual file management steps.

The Scorpio and 888 already had Frame.io Camera to Cloud support via Ethernet. But the Viviana Cloud Box 2 adds a hardware bridge that connects to the 8-Series via USB. This allows files to be uploaded to whichever cloud service you’re using as soon as they’re closed. Put the 8-Series in File Transfer mode, use the Viviana Cloud app to select what you want to send, and it goes.

For productions with remote post teams or supervisors monitoring from a different location, this kind of immediate delivery pipeline has become increasingly expected. Getting audio off the cart and into editorial (or into a production dashboard) the same day it’s recorded is something a lot of shows now want as standard practice. Viviana Cloud makes this simpler to set up on the sound side without requiring a laptop in the bag or a separate file transfer workflow.

The Viviana Cloud Box 2 doesn’t have a firm release date yet. We’ll update when it does.

The post Sound Devices News from NAB ’26: Astral Mini Plus, Astral PowerStation Cell, and Viviana Cloud for 8-Series appeared first on Trew Audio.

Let’s be honest. While we all love the technological wizardry of Zaxcom devices, they sometimes make it easy to get lost in their specs and their product iterations. But make no mistake, their new DCiRX receiver is a true generational advance. So we’ll break down the basics for you and cut right to the heart of what makes this receiver special.

DCiRX – Direct Conversion

The “DC” in DCiRX stands for Direct Conversion, and this is the crux. Every standalone Zaxcom receiver before the DCiRX one (the QRX200, QRX235, RX200, URX100) uses an intermediate frequency (IF) architecture, where incoming RF gets down-converted to a fixed IF stage before the analog-to-digital conversion. The problem with IF-based designs is that they digitize a wide swath of spectrum in one go. A strong off-channel signal (a walkie-talkie, a nearby TV broadcast, a rogue LED wall driver, etc.) can hit that wideband converter and degrade everything in the window simultaneously.

Direct conversion skips the IF stage entirely and applies a hardware filter per channel before anything reaches the A-to-D. Only your frequency arrives at the converter. The DCiRX also has a tunable front-end filter adjustable in 1 MHz steps, which is much tighter than the 35–50 MHz windows on earlier Zaxcom designs. In a crowded RF environment, that’s a meaningful difference.

To be fair, Zaxcom’s MRX414 module already delivers excellent RF performance with an ultra-low noise floor and strong interference rejection, but the MRX414 lives inside a host device. It needs a Nova 2, an RX-12, or an RX-4 to do anything. The DCiRX is the first time this class of receiver architecture shows up in a self-contained, battery-powered package.

This is where things gets interesting for location sound workflows, as Zaxcom didn’t just build a better standalone receiver. The DCiRX is a an upgraded receiver that also records.

The Four-Track Recorder

While recording capabilities have long long been baked into Zaxcom transmitters, no prior standalone Zaxcom receiver has ever directly recorded audio. Enter the DCiRX, which records four tracks simultaneously to a microSD card (three ISO tracks plus a mix track) in either 32-bit float or 24-bit fixed WAV, with SMPTE timecode embedded. That means a single unit on a camera or in a bag is capturing a timecoded backup of everything passing through it, without any additional hardware. The 32-bit float recording is particularly useful for ISOs: it gives you effectively unlimited headroom in post, so if the scene went louder than expected, you’re not clipping on the card.

The Mic Preamp

The DCiRX accepts a direct microphone input via a 3-pin LEMO (either 5V unbalanced for a standard lav bias, or 48V balanced phantom for a condenser), providing a legitimate plant mic channel. The ADC spec on the mic input is a respectable 117 dB dynamic range. Combined with the wireless channel, you have two sources going into one box, both recording to the same card with the same timecode.

USB-C Interface

The USB-C port on the DCiRX outputs four channels of digital audio simultaneously (the two wireless receive channels, the mic input, and the mix track) to a laptop, mobile device, or compatible camera. Zaxcom has made specific mention of compatability with Blackmagic ProDock, a clear signal of who they’re targeting with this feature. The DCiRX spec sheet lists its dynamic range at 144 dB, compared to 116 dB for the analog output, which is a meaningful gap and a good argument for going digital whenever your destination supports it. For anyone already routing audio into a DAW on a laptop on set, the DCiRX eliminates the need for a separate audio interface entirely.

IFB Mode

On top of all that, the DCiRX also functions as a UHF IFB receiver. So if you need it for comms monitoring rather than primary production, it handles that too.

What the DCIRX Replaces

The DCiRX can be thought of a consolidation device. A run-and-gun documentary mixer or a small single-camera drama unit might have previously needed a standalone receiver on the camera, a separate miniature recorder as a backup, a preamp for a plant mic, and a USB audio interface for the laptop. The DCiRX replaces all four. At 5 oz running on three AA batteries, it’s a lot of capability in a compact form factor.

Zaxcom’s QRX235 and RX200 remain the right answers for cart-based multi-channel setups, where you’re pulling eight or twelve transmitters through an MRX/RX-12 rig. The DCiRX doesn’t really compete with that workflow. But for those whose kit skews smaller and more flexible, this is the one you’ve been waiting for.

Finger crossed of course, but the Zaxcom DCiRX should be shipping imminently.

***

The post Zaxcom DCiRX: A Different Breed of Zaxcom Receiver appeared first on Trew Audio.

Lectrosonics microphones? Yes, Lectrosonics microphones.

The mad geniuses at Lectrosonics have spent more than fifty years making premier wireless systems. Their newly announced S1 shotgun and L1 lavalier microphones (both announced just ahead of NAB ‘26) mark a significant expansion into seemingly uncharted territory for the Lectro brand. But upon closer inspection, it makes a lot of sense. Let’s dive into a bit of how we get here, and of course, the specs of these new mics.

Røde Acquiring Lectrosonics

The location sound community paid close attention when the Freedman Group (the parent company of Røde) acquired Lectrosonics not long ago. Lectrosonics has always been a highly trusted name in professional wireless, and there was reasonable concern about what a change in ownership might mean for the brand’s direction. Well, we’re starting to get some answers, and so far, we’re more than pleased. Both of these new mics draw directly on Røde’s acoustic engineering and capsule technology, combined with Lectrosonics’ deep knowledge of what film and TV mixers actually need. Whether that combination delivers in practice remains to be heard directly (we’ll get our hands on a demo unit soon), but on paper the results are very compelling. And with the new IFBT2.0, it’s clear Lectro’s not abandoning their wireless devices.

Onto the mic details:

The S1 Shotgun

The Lectrosonics S1 is a short shotgun mic (8.4 inches long, 2.7 oz) machined from aircraft-grade aluminum and finished in a blue anodized coating, and it’s assembled at Lectro HQ in Rio Rancho, New Mexico. At 0.75 inches in diameter, it fits standard suspension mounts without needing to fuss with an adapter.

The S1’s capsule is a true condenser with RF biasing, which is the same approach used in the Sennheiser MKH series and widely considered to be the ideal design for location work. RF-biased capsules are inherently less susceptible to humidity than conventional DC-biased designs, which is a real-world advantage for exteriors, sweaty stages, and anywhere the weather might be less than cooperative. Self-noise is specified at 10 dB(A) and max SPL is 130 dB—strong numbers for a short shotgun in this category.

The line tube uses full radial symmetry, meaning the off-axis rejection and polar pattern are consistent regardless of how the mic is rotated in the blimp. This is an important detail for boom operators who don’t always have the luxury of perfect orientation. Current draw is under 2 mA from standard 48V phantom, which Lectrosonics specifically calls out for battery-powered mobile rigs. This is great for bag-based mixers who need to watch every milliamp.

Now in pre-order, the S1 is expected in the second half of 2026 at an MSRP of $1,639.

The L1 Lavalier

The Lectrosonics L1 lavalier mic is where things get genuinely new. Rather than a conventional FET-based capsule design, the L1 lav uses Røde’s Sonaura MEMS technology, which is a silicon diaphragm manufactured by the semiconductor company Infineon. Sonaura MEMS (Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems) is the result of a five-year, $10 million R&D effort. While MEMS microphones are familiar in consumer electronics, bringing that fabrication process up to studio-grade performance is a different engineering challenge entirely.

This brings real practical benefits for mixers, namely consistency. Traditional capsule manufacturing involves physical diaphragm materials that vary between production batches, requiring sorting and matching. The L1 is specified at unit-to-unit matching within 0.5 dB in both sensitivity and frequency response. For a mixer running four or six lavs on a cast, that kind of repeatability is meaningful, so no one has to chase tonal differences between mics in post.

Noise specs are notable with L1: an EIN of 11 dB(A) and an 83 dB signal-to-noise ratio. Lectrosonics claims this is quieter than any other professional sub-miniature lavalier currently available. That’s a bold statement, but the numbers back it up if accurate.

Moisture resistance is another strong point. The Sonaura capsule is inherently hydrophobic, and Lectrosonics has added a specialized internal coating and 0.4 mm laser-drilled cap ports that provide pressure sealing. With all of this, the L1 mic is rated to remain functional when fully submerged. Paired with the IP57-rated DSSM bodypack transmitter, the entire assembly is waterproof, which has obvious implications for reality film, reality television, and outdoor productions.

When paired with the DSSM, the L1 also gains a switchable sensitivity mode that extends max SPL handling to 135 dB, useful for theater and live performance applications where levels can get extreme. The L1 maintains a 5.4 mm profile, uses a Kevlar-reinforced cable, and includes an ID ring system at the connector for quick on-set identification across a multi-mic kit.

The L1 is available now in black with LEMO connector. White, browQ n, and beige colorways, as well as a 5-pin connector variant, should be available later in 2026.

***

The post A New Era: the Lectrosonics S1 Shotgun and L1 Lavalier Microphones appeared first on Trew Audio.

DPA Microphones has at long last entered the digital wireless arena, with their N-Series Wireless ecosystem, and the timing couldn’t be better. As the industry moves away from legacy analog systems, the DPA N-Series is positioned as a premium contender in the digital wireless space, for those who require a step up in both sonic transparency and RF flexibility when compared with the competition.

A High-End Alternative to Evolution

While there are a number of very capable entry-point systems for digital wireless, the N-Series caters to the professional who needs a bit more under the hood. With the N-Series, you get a slightly higher price tag, but that investment is justified by the massive 400 MHz tuning range. This wideband agility, coupled with the ability to remotely control and monitor transmitters via the DPA Audio Controller software, puts it in a different league for those requiring a more future-proof system.

Fully Digital, Fully Transparent

For the N-Series, DPA custom-engineered their own digital codec to ensure that the wireless link is a perfectly transparent conduit that doesn’t color the sound of their legendary capsules. To achieve this feat, the N-Series transmitters feature specialized high-quality microphone preamps and state-of-the-art A/D (Analog-to-Digital) conversion. By optimizing the input stage specifically for the impedance and sensitivity of DPA’s own lavaliers and handheld capsules, the system prevents the “veiled” sound often found when high-end mics are bottlenecked by generic wireless electronics.

The N-Series also boasts an extremely impressive 126 dB dynamic range by leveraging stacked converter technology, allowing the system to handle a massive window of sound without needing a traditional gain knob on the transmitter. For the user, this means the codec captures every nuance, from the subtle breath of a vocalist to the percussive peak of an instrument, with the same linear accuracy you’d expect from a studio-grade wired connection.

Digital processing usually comes at the cost of time, but the N-Series codec clocks in at under 2.9ms of latency. This is critical for avoiding phase issues and ensuring that performers hear themselves in real-time with zero echo or disconnect.

The combined result of these features is a system that doesn’t just transmit audio, it preserves the DPA signature all the way to your rack.

Designed for Stability, Not for the Bag

It’s important to note that the N-Series is not yet optimized for the location sound or bag mixer. The N-Series’ N-DR1 receiver is a dedicated rackmount unit that is not 12V DC power-able, making it a stationary solution rather than a portable field tool. Also, the N-HH1 handheld unit, while a very capable handheld, does not feature a dedicated push-to-talk button, which is crucial for “Voice of God” applications on location.

Who is N-Series Wireless For?

The N-Series shines brightest in fixed environments where audio quality is top priority:

• • Professional Event Performers: For residency musicians and high-end hospitality artists, this system provides set-and-forget reliability and wireless sound that’s virtually indistinguishable from that of hardwired DPA capsules.

• • House of Worship Production: For sanctuary tech teams looking to upgrade from aging analog gear, the N-Series offers a robust, interference-free, highly affordable digital solution.

By bridging the gap between entry-level digital and six-figure touring rigs, DPA has created a system that touts elite features at a surprisingly affordable price. The N-Series is an excellent choice for the professional venue or artist that needs a dependable wireless system and doesn’t want to compromise on clarity or features.

Shop the full range of DPA N-Series Wireless devices on trewaudio.com.

The post DPA’s Gone Wireless: The N-Series Wireless System Sets a New Standard for Professional Performance appeared first on Trew Audio.

Shure just unveiled their upgraded SLX‑D+ wireless ecosystem at the recent NAMM 2026 show, marking a major evolution of its widely adopted SLX‑D devices. The improvements of the new SLX-D+ ecosystem include: expanded control, broader frequency tuning, and enhanced reliability to users across broadcast, ENG, live performance, worship, and content‑creation environments. Designed to simplify the complexities of modern RF management, the SLX‑D+ ecosystem builds on the strengths of its predecessor while integrating advanced features previously reserved for high‑end systems.

A centerpiece of the new platform is its dramatically expanded tuning range—up to 138 MHz across all components (region dependent)—allowing broader deployment across diverse RF landscapes and reducing the need for multiple system variants. This wide tuning gives engineers and operators more flexibility when working in congested environments or working across different regions. The increased range also supports higher channel counts, enabling larger systems to operate smoothly with improved spectrum efficiency.  

Also new to SLX-D+ is ShowLink® Ease, a streamlined adaptation of Shure’s advanced Axient Digital ShowLink technology. This enables real‑time, two‑way communication between transmitters and receivers, allowing remote adjustment of gain, frequency, and parameters without physically accessing the hardware. ShowLink Ease offers fantastic benefit to production crews and venues with limited staff and/or tight turnaround times. Once paired, transmitters automatically reconnect to their receivers each time they power on, minimizing setup steps during recurring events.

To enhance reliability even further, SLX‑D+ introduces automatic interference avoidance, giving the system the ability to detect RF issues and instantly deploy a clean frequency across both transmitter and receiver without manual intervention. This ensures continuous connectivity in unpredictable RF environments, addressing one of the most common challenges in wireless audio workflows. The system also incorporates Shure’s digital feedback reduction (DFR) algorithms, which actively suppress unwanted feedback in real time, especially useful in settings where acoustic conditions can be difficult to control.

Security and remote management have seen major upgrades, as well. With AES‑256 encryption, SLX‑D+ protects audio transmissions for applications requiring secure communication, such as in broadcast, government, and corporate environments. Additionally, Shure’s Wireless Workbench and WWB Mobile app now integrate more deeply with SLX‑D+, offering Wi‑Fi or Bluetooth‑based monitoring, setup, and parameter control from anywhere in the venue.

SLX‑D+ offers a wide array of devices and potential configurations, including single, dual, and quad receivers, handheld and bodypack transmitters, plug‑on adapters, and multiple charging options. This makes the ecosystem adaptable for installations, rental houses, touring rigs, and educational facilities alike.

And SLX‑D+ is cross-compatible with legacy SLX‑D gear (although with reduced functionality). This backwards compatibility allows engineers and organizations to upgrade gradually, rather than having to replace all of their gear at once. Please note that the original SLX‑D models are being phased out as of early 2026.

SLX-D+ devices and bundles are now available for order at Trew Audio. Browse and shop the gear here: https://www.trewaudio.com/product-tag/slx-dplus/

The post The New Shure SLX‑D+ Wireless Ecosystem: A Smarter, More Flexible Era of Digital Audio appeared first on Trew Audio.

The post Location Sound Corp (LSC) Merges with Trew Audio appeared first on Trew Audio.

The post Insuring Your Gear: Blanket vs. Itemized Coverage appeared first on Trew Audio.

The post Trew Audio acquires Pinknoise Systems appeared first on Trew Audio.

This is our last update from NAB2016, thanks so so much for following along, we hope you’ve enjoyed the pictures and video!  These email updates will be archived at both http://www.trewaudio.com/audioflow/ as well as our facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/trewaudio/ – Feel free to go back and check them out if you’ve missed any!  They should all be up by the end of the day.  Thanks again! Sanken Sanken introduces the CSS-50 variable stereo short shotgun microphone.

Sennheiser 3D audio technology from Sennheiser.

EK 6042 from Sennheiser. Two-channel true diversity camera receiver.

The post NAB2016 Live Updates: Sanken and Sennheiser! appeared first on Trew Audio.

Audio Technica Audio-technica System 10 digital 2.4gHz. Camera-mount wireless systems.

Audio-technica System 10 digital 2.4gHz. Camera-mount wireless systems.

Orca Ktek

The post NAB2016 Live Updates: Ktek, Orca, and Audio-Technica! appeared first on Trew Audio.