“Is it Bluetooth?”
It’s a question we’re hearing more often from fitness instructors looking for a wireless microphone.
Usually, what they’re describing is one of the small wireless headset systems where the transmitter and rechargeable battery are built into the headset, with a small receiver that plugs into the sound system.
That looks quite different from the familiar fitness setup of a headset microphone connected to a bodypack transmitter.
But Bluetooth, 2.4 GHz and where the transmitter is worn are three different things.
And if you’re choosing a wireless microphone for teaching fitness classes, it’s worth understanding the difference.
Is a 2.4 GHz wireless microphone Bluetooth?
Not necessarily.
Bluetooth uses the 2.4 GHz frequency band, but plenty of wireless microphone systems use 2.4 GHz without using Bluetooth.
Professional wireless microphone systems operate at 2.4 GHz too, while others use UHF or other frequency bands.
So 2.4 GHz doesn’t mean cheap, consumer or unsuitable for professional use.
It simply tells us something about the radio technology being used.
Whether a microphone is suitable for fitness is another question entirely.
Where is the transmitter?
Every wireless microphone needs a transmitter.
With some compact wireless headset systems, the microphone, transmitter and rechargeable battery are incorporated into the headset assembly.
With the component systems commonly used in professional fitness studios, they’re separated.
The instructor wears the headset microphone, which connects by a short cable to a bodypack transmitter normally secured at the waist in a suitable mic belt.
The bodypack then sends the instructor’s voice wirelessly to the receiver connected to the studio sound system.
So putting everything on the headset doesn’t eliminate the transmitter or battery.
It changes where they’re carried.
Why do professional systems still use a bodypack?
There’s a good engineering reason for separating the components.
A fitness headset microphone has a particularly difficult job.
It needs to stay correctly positioned while the instructor moves, remain comfortable, reproduce speech clearly over loud music and cope with sweat, repeated adjustment and regular handling.
The transmitter has a different job. It contains the radio electronics, battery and controls required to send the microphone signal to the receiver.
Keeping them separate allows each component to concentrate on doing its own job.
The microphone stays on the instructor’s head.
The transmitter and battery can be carried securely at the waist in a proper fitness mic belt, where their additional weight matters far less.
What about the headset cable?
The short cable between a professional fitness headset and its bodypack is sometimes portrayed as something that needs eliminating.
In normal use, it really shouldn’t be a problem.
The instructor isn’t connected by cable to the sound system. They’re completely free to move around the studio.
The cable simply connects the microphone to the transmitter they’re already wearing.
With a correctly fitted mic belt and sensible cable routing, the bodypack is held securely against the instructor and the cable shouldn’t interfere with the class.
More importantly, separating the components means the transmitter, battery and radio electronics don’t also have to be carried on the headset.
Fitness is hard on microphones
Fitness presents a very different environment from a presenter wearing a headset microphone on a stage.
There’s movement, heat, sweat, regular adjustment and repeated putting on and taking off.
That’s why we think the microphone itself deserves particular attention.
The EMic is designed specifically for regular Group Exercise use, with a waterproof noise-cancelling capsule, sealed and reinforced frame, steel cable and sweat protection around the connection.
For instructors and studios putting a microphone through particularly heavy workloads, Aeromic takes that fitness-specific approach further.
And for indoor cycling, Cyclemic is designed specifically around the particular problems presented by spin classes.
The important distinction isn’t simply whether a microphone is wireless.
It’s whether the microphone has been designed for the job you’re asking it to do.
Personal microphone or professional fitness system?
An instructor buying their own microphone and a health club equipping a shared studio may have different requirements.
That doesn’t mean they necessarily need different standards of equipment.
For professional fitness use, our preference is a dedicated fitness headset used with a separate bodypack transmitter and receiver.
It’s the approach we use in commercial studios, but it can make just as much sense for an individual instructor, particularly if they teach regularly, work across professionally equipped venues or simply want equipment designed specifically for fitness.
Compact systems with the transmitter built into the headset are another option, particularly where keeping the amount of equipment to an absolute minimum is the overriding consideration.
For us, though, the component system remains the starting point for professional fitness use.
Why does that matter more in a health club?
A commercial studio microphone isn’t necessarily being looked after by one instructor.
It may be used by several instructors every day.
It gets put on, adjusted, removed and handed to somebody else repeatedly. Different instructors treat equipment differently and perspire differently.
And if something goes wrong, there’s quite possibly another class starting shortly.
That’s where having separate components becomes particularly useful.
Headset microphone. Bodypack transmitter. Receiver.
If the headset needs replacing, replace the headset.
If a bodypack develops a fault, deal with the bodypack.
If the receiver requires attention, that doesn’t automatically make the headset redundant.
For a busy commercial fitness environment, that’s a much more serviceable proposition.
Already have a professional wireless system?
This is worth checking before buying another complete wireless microphone system.
We regularly encounter clubs with perfectly serviceable professional radio systems where the headset microphone is the component that needs replacing.
That doesn’t necessarily mean the receiver and bodypack need replacing too.
And this is where MultiMic becomes particularly useful.
EMic, Aeromic and Cyclemic are available with MultiMic connectivity, allowing the appropriate version to work across a range of compatible professional wireless systems rather than unnecessarily tying the headset to one radio manufacturer.
The principle is refreshingly simple:
If the plug fits, it will work.
So the headset can be chosen according to the instructor and the job:
EMic for regular professional fitness use.
Aeromic for heavier Group Exercise workloads.
Cyclemic for indoor cycling.
And where the existing bodypack is compatible, you can continue using the professional wireless system that’s already there.
Which fitness microphone should I choose?
Start with the job rather than the radio frequency.
How often are you teaching?
What sort of classes?
Is the microphone yours or shared between instructors?
Are you teaching in professionally equipped studios?
Do you already have access to a wireless system?
How demanding is the environment?
For most regular professional fitness applications, EMic is where we’d start.
For instructors and facilities putting a headset through considerably heavier workloads, we’d look at Aeromic.
For indoor cycling, we’d look at Cyclemic.
And if you’re unsure whether one will work with equipment you already have, don’t guess.
Not sure what fits your wireless system?
Send us a photo of your existing bodypack and, ideally, a clear picture of the microphone connection.
We’ll identify what you’ve got and tell you which EMic, Aeromic or Cyclemic connection you need.
You may find you don’t need another wireless system at all.