In a nutshell
The Audio Limited A10 RF system is an evolution of the English brand's (purchased in early 2018 by the US Sound Devices company) first digital RF system then called RMS 1010 and released in 2015. It consists of the A10-TX pocket transmitter powered by two LR6 AA batteries or cells and the True Diversity standalone dual-channel broadband A10-RX receiver compatible with the SuperSlot format.
Unlike standard frequency-modulated analog RF systems, the A10 digital RF system works mainly in amplitude modulation over a wide UHF band 470-694 MHz divided into 4 sub-bands: A 470-548 MHz, B 518-608 MHz, C 594-694 MHz and D 534-629.8 MHz. It is possible to place up to 20 frequencies on 8 MHz or even 15 on 6 MHz in 25 kHz steps.
Both the RF modulation signal and the digital encoding use brand specific codecs. It is therefore not compatible with any other digital RF system.
Digital transmission is less subject to intermodulation and requires a lower signal-to-noise and signal-to-interference ratio than analog FM transmission. On the other hand, a saturation of the reception signal leads to a loss of sound signal! This excludes the use of amplified antennas too close from transmitters. To avoid this problem of audio signal interruption during reception, it is possible to set the transmission power between 10 mW, 20 mW and 50 mW.
The A10-RX receiver is a dual channel True Diversity receiver. This means that it includes for each channel two fully independant RF receivers (making four in total for both channels) and a circuit that selects or combines the best signal from each of the two receivers per channel.
The modular base system allows either to include it in a SuperSlot compatible RF multi-coupler rack (Sub-D 25 base), or to use it autonomously via a two XLR male breakout cable for outputs and a 4-pin Hirose for power supply.
Each output is menu-selectable as AES3+ or balanced analog (output level +2 dBu, maximum +14 dBu, or -10 dBu or even -22 dB).
The time code generated by the A10-TX transmitter is not separately accessible on the receiver. With the delay of digital transmission this would make no sense.
A large, easy-to-read OLED display, which can be rotated in both directions, provides status control of both transmitters, and provides access to an user friendly menu for frequency settings, output levels and parameters, and a scan function of available frequencies. 2 LEDs per channel indicate the status of the transmitter battery and the quality of the reception signal.
As the A10-RX receiver is compatible with the SuperSlot format, it is now possible to configure and control the settings directly on the Cantar-X3 (firmware 2.72.C4 minimum) using an Aaton Hydra adapter or by modifying the Lectrosonics Octopack or PSC RF Six Pack.
The digital transmission of the A10 system involves a delay of 2 ms that can (or cannot) be compensated by an appropriate setting on the recorder.
The A10-RX receiver, although compatible with SuperSlot, has a large footprint on its upper part that can cause problems in its rack integration. It also consumes a lot of energy: 3W with a single channel, 4.4W with two active channels!
Unlike standard frequency-modulated analog RF systems, the A10 digital RF system works mainly in amplitude modulation over a wide UHF band 470-694 MHz divided into 4 sub-bands: A 470-548 MHz, B 518-608 MHz, C 594-694 MHz and D 534-629.8 MHz. It is possible to place up to 20 frequencies on 8 MHz or even 15 on 6 MHz in 25 kHz steps.
Both the RF modulation signal and the digital encoding use brand specific codecs. It is therefore not compatible with any other digital RF system.
Digital transmission is less subject to intermodulation and requires a lower signal-to-noise and signal-to-interference ratio than analog FM transmission. On the other hand, a saturation of the reception signal leads to a loss of sound signal! This excludes the use of amplified antennas too close from transmitters. To avoid this problem of audio signal interruption during reception, it is possible to set the transmission power between 10 mW, 20 mW and 50 mW.
The A10-RX receiver is a dual channel True Diversity receiver. This means that it includes for each channel two fully independant RF receivers (making four in total for both channels) and a circuit that selects or combines the best signal from each of the two receivers per channel.
The modular base system allows either to include it in a SuperSlot compatible RF multi-coupler rack (Sub-D 25 base), or to use it autonomously via a two XLR male breakout cable for outputs and a 4-pin Hirose for power supply.
Each output is menu-selectable as AES3+ or balanced analog (output level +2 dBu, maximum +14 dBu, or -10 dBu or even -22 dB).
The time code generated by the A10-TX transmitter is not separately accessible on the receiver. With the delay of digital transmission this would make no sense.
A large, easy-to-read OLED display, which can be rotated in both directions, provides status control of both transmitters, and provides access to an user friendly menu for frequency settings, output levels and parameters, and a scan function of available frequencies. 2 LEDs per channel indicate the status of the transmitter battery and the quality of the reception signal.
As the A10-RX receiver is compatible with the SuperSlot format, it is now possible to configure and control the settings directly on the Cantar-X3 (firmware 2.72.C4 minimum) using an Aaton Hydra adapter or by modifying the Lectrosonics Octopack or PSC RF Six Pack.
The digital transmission of the A10 system involves a delay of 2 ms that can (or cannot) be compensated by an appropriate setting on the recorder.
The A10-RX receiver, although compatible with SuperSlot, has a large footprint on its upper part that can cause problems in its rack integration. It also consumes a lot of energy: 3W with a single channel, 4.4W with two active channels!
