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Well, as someone who had no need for wireless, who thought they were just for rockers to run around on stage, I am lovin' this thing. Last night I was on an extremely crowded stage with a pop-funk big band (Tower of Power, EW&F, etc), and I happened to be positioned on the end right at the stair entrance/exit. NO PROBLEM for people to come and go around me. No cord to trip on! Just before a tune, I realized I left something down on the floor just off stage. With a cable, I'd normally have to turn around and turn down the vol, unplug, go down and retrieve the item, come back and plug in, and turn back up. Time consuming and distracting. With the wireless, in seconds I just discreetly stepped offstage, grabbed what I needed and stepped back up into place in time, with nobody noticing. The gig was 3 hrs, and I never even had to worry about the charge. They say it lasts 4-5 hrs, some reviews say in reality it's even more.
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02-19-2019 10:47 AM
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No more cable to trip over makes wireless ideal for a klutz like me. Even in my home. Line6 G10 here.
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I've been hankering to get a wireless rig.
Sorry for the questions...
Was this the first wireless system you tried? How is the sound quality? Have you checked it against a high quality cable? Was it immune to external noise onstage? Have you noticed any odd things like Attack Decay Sustain or volume changes?
Since it's USB chargeable, have you tried connecting it to a cellphone type "battery bank" to extend the run time? I use a dual 18650 battery bank to run my two Gopro cameras on my boat and I go from a few hours to literally all day without running out of power. I ask because some cordless stuff like cordless electric shavers, and drills are disabled while being charged.
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I also use the G10. One of its features is line-level output, using either 1/4" instrument cable, XLR, or both. That lets me go into my Clarus effects loop in, which gives a sound I prefer to using the amp's preamp. I also go direct to the PA at one place, no need for an amp at all. Just for grins, I've also connected to two amps simultaneously, one using an XLR/1/4" cable, one a standard instrument cable, and that works just fine. I don't normally need two amps, but if I did, it's certainly easy to do. One transmitter will also connect to multiple receivers simultaneously, should I want to do that. Not having a cable is certainly nice, but it's not the only benefit of the G10. I think having the multiple outputs makes it more useful than the Xvive, but I've never tried one of those, so I might be missing something. The G10 receiver is certainly larger than the Xvive's, if that's a concern, although it's not for me.
The G10 receiver comes with an AC power adapter and uses a standard USB micro plug. I usually use a small cellphone charging battery to power it, and that lasts for at least 8 hours. The transmitter charges in the receiver, and lasts at least as long, since it goes to sleep after 10 minutes or so of non-use. To wake it up, just hit a chord, or remove/reinsert it. You can't charge it in use, because there is no connection other than the plug. It only charges when inserted into the receiver, but I regularly use mine all day, off and on, from morning until midnight, and have never had it go dead. The sound quality is better than with a cable, by a lot. The newest model, more expensive, has an emulation for 10' and 20' cables, if anyone wants that. I can't imagine why, because turning down the treble control does that well enough. I haven't tried one of those, and I don't think I would prefer it.Last edited by sgosnell; 02-19-2019 at 12:03 PM. Reason: GNAPPI's post wasn't visible when I started
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I'll definitely be following this one. It seems like a great idea if it's quiet, especially for recording.
EDIT: I guess I should just ask are these systems quiet enough and high enough quality to use for recording?Last edited by Jim Soloway; 02-19-2019 at 12:58 PM.
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I have the same Xvive setup as the OP. It is dead quiet and I have used it for some test recordings through the line out on my amp to a Tascam portable multitrack. I don't think that the results would be any different if I went cables. I can't see any downsides at this point, but I need to devote much more time to recording in general. That is a huge weakness on my part, so take what I say with a grain of salt.
I want to just add that the latency is unnoticeable IMHO.
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Good news if there are no latency issues.
I tried rigging up wireless monitoring (BT headphones) using a taotronics BT TX/RX and the result was not usable. I'll pull the trigger on the Xvive setup based on this review.
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IME the G10 is quieter than a cable. Cables tend to be noise magnets from EMF radiation, but the G10 is completely quiet, unless I get a guitar with a single-coil pickup very near the amp and receiver. But that's no worse than what I get with a cable. I notice no latency at all. I tried using a bluetooth setup a few years ago and gave up because of the latency issues, but that's a nonissue with the G10, and I suspect with other modern wireless systems.
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Wireless is really quite amazing - isn't it?
The Xvive is the only one of the three, under $200 wireless units I haven't owned yet. I had the Line 6 G10 for almost two years. I bought the new Boss WL-20 about three months ago because, like the Xvive, there's no base unit to be concerned about plugging in; just the transmitter and receiver which snap together for charging. Boss advertises a 10-hour run time - I tested it when it came out of the box and sure enough, it measured 10-hours - and the yellow-and-red warning lights came on and went off right on schedule, as well.
I know that Lawson owns the Xvive and has written that he's been very pleased.
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The advantage of the "base unit" or receiver is that it's a DI box, so there is no need for another one. Not everyone needs a DI box, but if you do, having one that's also a wireless receiver is very handy. Everything involves some sort of tradeoff, and not everything works best for everyone. It depends on the tradeoffs that make sense for each.
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My friend was wireless one night, and in the middle of a ballad, Radio Moscow started drifting in and out. It sounded awesome.
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I don't think it's very likely for radio signals in the gigahertz range to travel halfway around the world. Very short wavelengths have a very short propagation distance. Thus wifi signals are only usable at distances of a few hundred feet in the best of conditions, and this is the same frequency band. And your phone/tablet/laptop doesn't start using random wifi signals, it locks onto one. Things have come a long way from the days of 'short-wave' radio. And from the early days of wireless instrument connections of just a few years ago.
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I’ve used my x-vive in the brew pub I often play at, seems to surprise and delight patrons when I walk around doing a solo (to a loop pedal) and ask them how their drinks are, what are they eating, etc.
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I just finished a weekend pit job, so I tested the battery life. Not a really accurate scientific test, but I think I got between 6-7 hours out if it. Definitely 6.
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Here's another contender that I just stumbled across.
LeadLess™ - The Ultimate Wireless Guitar System
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Great price! Looks like the Boss offering. Even a similar model name, ws-20 vs wl-20.
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I don't know if these are accurate statements but the Xvive claims <6ms latency. The Rowin states 12ms latency. The Boss says 2.3ms latency, but doesn't swivel like the other two. Line6 says <2.9 and also does not swivel.
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It would be cool if they integrated it with a magnetic pickup. I've seen it done with soundhole pickups:
Amazon.com: Wireless Pickup FS-1 Acoustic Guitar Sound Hole Pickup Free Hole Wireless Transmission, dual pickup, with playing board?wireless guitar pickups system?tonewood amp : Musical Instruments
Then you could use it with acoustic archtops without output jacks. It would be bulky, but perhaps most of the electronics could be hidden under the pickguard.
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I’ve recently started using a high quality cable again, but had used the Xvive for years prior. Mostly on stage, never tried using with recording. It didn’t play nice with active electronics and would cut out in some environments. A bit of a pain to change channels when there was interference, especially on the fly. To my ears there seemed to be an impact on tone that I didn’t really notice until returning to a cable. On the plus side was convenience and ease, it had barely noticeable latency, charge lasted 6+ hours, though after several years less.
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The downside that I see to some of these is having yet more things to charge by USB. Good grief, I already have a dozen things plugged in charging by USB ports or lightning ports pretty much all the time. Most of the outlets in my house have a power strip plugged into them and five things plugged into those!
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Yes that is correct about charging. Also, this week I LOST the little transmitter piece somewhere in my house. Pulled it out, set it down somewhere, God only knows where. I can't imagine losing a 10' cable in the house.
Originally Posted by Cunamara
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Well, that's a drag. Too bad you can't push a button on the receiver and have the transmitter beep (or vice-versa). Originally Posted by Woody Sound
I find a significant difference in the sound between the Xvive and a high-quality cable – the wireless system has way more treble. I have to turn the high-mid and high knobs to zero on my Bud when using the Xvive.
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I bought a Boss WL20 when we started to play live again last summer, so I could stay as far away from everybody as possible. It let me hide in plain sight in my back corner of the stage, which is unfortunately next to the outer wall beyond which are the regional rail tracks (electric) and a cell phone tower. Even some humbuckers growl and buzz, but the Boss rig is silent. It does drop out for a fraction of a second at times, but there are 3 Shure WiFi IEM transmitters on stage, all within a few feet of me and on both sides.
Overall, the Boss has been great. I did try a few other systems at GC before choosing it, and I heard no difference among them. A friend bought one just before Covid hit us and brought it to a blues show we played together. He sounded exactly the same as he always did, with a great range of tones from his LP through the CS Champ that he loves so much. I thought about it for the next year and finally bit the bullet.
The convenience has already been noted by WS & others, and this a serious benefit that you don’t think about until you’re free. I charge it overnight after using it, and it’s gone 6 hours with no issues. Just realize that it’s a fairly big chunk hanging out of your guitar, even if you use a right angle adapter or get one with a foldable plug. The first time I put my Tele on the stand on stage with the Boss plugged in, the stand was set low enough for the dongle to hit the ground. Fortunately, I realized it while seating the neck in the holder and did not fully let go. But wireless is great and I do love it.
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A wireless system is brighter than a cable, because there is no loss to capacitance. It's easy enough to lower the treble, but harder to add it back in once it's lost. I prefer the sound of the wireless over cable, because the wireless passes the full spectrum of frequencies, unlike a cable. But if anyone doesn't like wireless, cable is always an option. I carry a cable along just in case the wireless system fails, but I've never needed to use it. I have both a Line6 GT10 and an Xvive system. Each has its pros and cons. The Line6 has a bigger receiver, but it's also a DI box, with both 1/4" and XLR out. I power it with a small USB battery pack, which I got as a PR gimme, intended for charging phones. It lasts all day. The Xvive is smaller, but has to be plugged directly into an amp, so no DI for that. I find that the Line6 is more reliable, and almost never cuts out, while the Xvive does cut out momentarily much more often. I believe it's due to interference from other 2.4GHz devices. Shielding it from my router helps. I really do enjoy not having a cable running across the room, in the way of everything and subject to getting yanked, which never helps the guitar.
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Boss makes two versions - the WL20, which gently rolls off the highs like a medium length cable, and the WL20L, which is flat. They’re otherwise the same. I got the WL20. You pays your money and you takes your choice Originally Posted by sgosnell
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