Alto Stealth wireless review

To many ads? Support ODJT and see no ads!
IceBurghDJ

IceBurghDJ

DJ Extraordinaire
Apr 17, 2015
3,312
2,040
62
Western Pennsylvania
iceburghdj.com
Back in April I got the alto stealth setup. It came in 600+ mhz range, called Alto and they exchanged it at no cost for a 570mhz range unit. I even used the first one at a gig before returning it.

That first gig was a tent wedding and I wanted to test the stealth - so I ran one speaker off a wire as usual and the other was on the far side of a door way so used the stealth. Worked fine, never had an issue.

Used it at another gig just for fun once the 'new' unit came in.

Yesterday was the first 'need' to use it, outdoor ceremony and indoor reception. 90+ heat.

I used one yamaha dxr for the ceremony run wirelessly from a laptop near the ceremony location (a pergola about 100 yards behind the hall). I was again using one 'channel' of the stealth for a speaker in the hall, again to avoid running extra long wires along the edge of the dance floor.

As such the inside speaker was playing the ceremony 'broadcast' - 100 plus yards and through a wall, and the recevier was on the 'far side' of the speaker making the signal that much more 'blocked'. Reception was fine except when someone went through the door - open/close caused some static and drop out . Since there was no point to inside music (only the bridesmaids were in there before the ceremony) it wasn't an issue - but did allow them to hear the music (aka cues).

(after the ceremony I moved the transmitter back inside for the night).

Only thing I noticed was the speaker on the stealth was a touch louder than the wired one. Not sure why, didn't notice this at the first wedding with the 600mhz stealth. Easy enough to adjust the volume (at the speaker or on the transmitter).

If you need wireless speaker capability I can recommend the alto stealth whole heartedly.
 
  • Like
Reactions: sonic-vision
I wish Alto came out with the Stealth Pro, but apparently there was something majorly wrong with it. The speaker delay settings built in would have been useful.

One thing I like about the wireless IEM setup I use, is I can use a more potent transmitting antenna if I needed to go large distances.
 
  • Like
Reactions: DJ Bobcat
How large is 'large'? I'm not doing concerts..and my 100 yard test was abusive IMO - the transmitter was on the grass behind the pergola and the guests and pergola (and tables/chairs/umbrellas/brick wall) were between it and the inside speaker. I'd never do this if i wanted 'real' sound. Just happened to be setup so I got to see it work.

300 or more feet unobstructed with proper transmitter/reciever location would be an easy one.

Delay is one thing I lack.

Well, that and a 7 figure income.
 
  • Like
Reactions: DJ Bobcat
Thanks for the writing this up. I recently purchased the Stealth and used (or tried) to use it at 2 gigs. First one, I had the transmitter outside and was sending about 50 feet, with the receiver just inside a closed doorway with a stone building. It kept dropping out during testing so I ditched it and ran a cable. The next weekend, I needed it at an open air plaza for a 150 foot run. While I did figure out to use the squelch (which eliminates the noise on drop-outs), the unit dropped out more than it provided audio. This was an clear line of sight run. I packaged it back up and sent it back. Glad your experience was better than mine.
 
Odd...glad mine is behaving.

Did you try other channels? Mine is on 1 and that's working.

With my pocket wizards I find channels 3 and 4 to be the most relliable, had issues with channel 1 in many places. And the canon 580 flash is know for RF interference and I have that all too often - flash won't fire being the end result.

So maybe something in your gear is causing issues? My speakers are yam dxr12 and I just look the wire through the carry handle and let the stealth receiver hang antenna pointed down. Didn't want to velcro the 600mhz one that was going back and when this worked haven't bothered to do anything different. Maybe I found a sweet spot w/ no issues on the speaker?

the transmitter sits on my table amidst cables, GTD mic unit, cheap wireless DMX transmitter (which i've had 98% reliability from - had issues at a school dance trying to place lights on far side of dance floor).
 
IceBurghDJ said:
How large is 'large'? I'm not doing concerts..and my 100 yard test was abusive IMO - the transmitter was on the grass behind the pergola and the guests and pergola (and tables/chairs/umbrellas/brick wall) were between it and the inside speaker. I'd never do this if i wanted 'real' sound. Just happened to be setup so I got to see it work.

300 or more feet unobstructed with proper transmitter/reciever location would be an easy one.

Delay is one thing I lack.

Well, that and a 7 figure income.
Click to expand...
Not so much the distance (I don't think I would need much more than 150-200 ft) .. it's more of the available signal strength. With wireless mic setups (the IEM is a mic in reverse) you generally have antenna options .. 1/4 wave, half wave, parabolic, paddles, etc.
 
  • Like
Reactions: DJ TJ and DJ Bobcat
IceBurghDJ said:
Odd...glad mine is behaving.

Did you try other channels? Mine is on 1 and that's working.

With my pocket wizards I find channels 3 and 4 to be the most relliable, had issues with channel 1 in many places. And the canon 580 flash is know for RF interference and I have that all too often - flash won't fire being the end result.

So maybe something in your gear is causing issues? My speakers are yam dxr12 and I just look the wire through the carry handle and let the stealth receiver hang antenna pointed down. Didn't want to velcro the 600mhz one that was going back and when this worked haven't bothered to do anything different. Maybe I found a sweet spot w/ no issues on the speaker?

the transmitter sits on my table amidst cables, GTD mic unit, cheap wireless DMX transmitter (which i've had 98% reliability from - had issues at a school dance trying to place lights on far side of dance floor).
Click to expand...

I tried a couple, but after it failed under what I considered an easy situation, I got spooked. I have an extra GTD unit and plan to just use that for any wireless connects.
 
the alto is 399 or so - right between the other two options, and reviews are good and I've seen it used successfully by others. Seemed like the safer choice, so to speak.

And when you call alto you get american english speaking people - men even! I called before I ordered and then once i got the 'wrong' mhz. They sent a call tag for fed ex - so no cost to me other than drop the box off ata fedex locale.

Now I'm legal for years to come..or well, until the FCC sees dollar signs again.
 
  • Like
Reactions: sonic-vision
DJ Bobcat said:
I've seen VocoPro mic systems... Don't know much about the brand???[emoji4] Made in China, pretty much like ALMOST every other electronic component.[emoji1] The price isn't so bad that it might not be worth trying.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
I think the same company makes all those similar units .. VocoPro, GTD Audio, ATL Audio, etc., or they "borrow" each others schematics.
 
steve149 said:
I think the same company makes all those similar units .. VocoPro, GTD Audio, ATL Audio, etc., or they "borrow" each others schematics.
Click to expand...

I'm always a little wary of stuff running on the 2.4 GHz band. There's SO much running on that band, interference has to be a pretty big risk. I'm still tempted to try one.[emoji4]
 
you have every right to be. I already tried it for you. It doesn't work. 2.4 wireless mic systems are a joke.
 
TES3S said:
you have every right to be. I already tried it for you. It doesn't work. 2.4 wireless mic systems are a joke.
Click to expand...
Which one did you try? People seem to like the Audio Technica System 10 Pro.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top Bottom
Back