Testing out the Switchcraft 318BT bluetooth 4.0 XLR audio receiver.
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Published 2016-03-03
I often do shows in music venues and bars with their own sound system. A lot of the time the 1/8" cables they use for laptops and mp3 players are crap, not long enough, or get stolen by other performers. The Switchcraft 318BT bluetooth audio receiver plugs into any XLR channel on a mixer. It can be powered by +48v phantom power or you can use a micro usb phone charger (not included).
For a bluetooth device, I was blown away by the audio quality. I was really worried the audio would sound like crap. Bluetooth audio has come a long way in the past ten years. If you play a 320kbit/s MP3 the sound quality will sound more like a 192-224kbit/s MP3. The receiver supports bluetooth 4.0 and all of my devices are bluetooth 4.0 and 4.2. I don't know how older bluetooth versions will sound like.
If you concentrate, you can hear how the audio suffers. But someone in the audience at a music venue of bar wouldn't even notice.
The audio quality as good as Apple's Airplay but setup is a million times easier, especially if phantom power is available.
All Comments (9)
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You need soundcue , it’s a life changer!
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Thanks for this George. Do you know if the receiver is summing both Left and Right or is it only playing one side? Also, how can I contact you to get some advice on how to connect Directly to the ethernet connection on an X air Behringer mixer? I saw you left a comment on someone's channel, but I need to go in depth (for Dummies!) cheers!
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Try in an open space or a building over a long distance with line of sight please
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Bluetooth phones have two different audio standards for bluetooth, on an android phone (that is capable) you can force the higher standard if the hardware will support it. This does sound worse when comparing jack vs bluetooth.
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Would I get sound if I connect this to the input of an audio interface just to stream Spotify?
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is there any lag on the sound ? Thanks
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The audio is (of course) mono.
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so it it can be powered by the phantom power why bother to plug it to a power suply??
