New York, NY (March 12, 2024)—Sound mixer Henry French navigates the mean streets of Manhattan with the help of RF gear from Lectrosonics.
“About 10 years ago, I was in Washington, D.C. working in a data center,” French recounts. “I had a friend, Olaitan Agueh, who was also a musician, and we had a lot of jam sessions together. I always wondered what he did for a living—turns out it was mixing. He brought me in to run boom and assist on A Shot Through the Wall, and I consider him my mentor, the guy who helped me break out of my nine-to-five life into what I do now.”
Agueh also facilitated French’s introduction to Lectrosonics. “We always geeked out together, talking about gear and techniques. He told me that in the film and TV world, Lectrosonics is the gold standard. My own using it over the years backs that up. I think part of the reason is that Lectro focuses only on wireless. Several other companies, whose stuff isn’t necessarily bad, ‘also’ do wireless on top of microphones, P.A. and other things.”
Production Mixer Jeffory Haddad Talks RF
Although his Lectrosonics DSR4 four-channel receiver is a relatively recent acquisition, French reports that it has been a lifesaver in the challenging RF environment of Manhattan. “I do a lot of work around Times Square and Columbus Circle,” he says. “RF-wise, it’s just a zoo. Cell towers, 5G, Wi-Fi of shops on the street, and even others on set using wireless, such as Hollyland rigs for video. I really appreciate how quickly I can scan on the DSR4. It always finds and holds on to frequencies no matter how packed the airwaves are.”
Two features of the DSR4 are especially relevant to the RF gymnastics of inner-city production. “First, each day I show up on set, I do a fresh scan using the SmartTune function, to see if anything about the frequency landscape has changed overnight. For each of the four channels, it will find the cleanest frequency band there is. I’ve worked NYC Fashion Week for [sneaker brand] Puma. You don’t necessarily know who you’re miking next or where you’ll be. You might hop in a cab to a different location across town and have a couple of minutes to get up and running. It helps that SmartTune is quick.”
French’s credits as mixer, boom operator or recordist include feature film A Shot Through the Wall, docu-series Bonded by Ball, the short Transit: A New York City Fairytale and documentary The Oxy Kingpins.
