Sound mixer Nico Pierce
USA - Bad Sport is a new documentary series covering the most infamous misdeeds in the sports world. Sound mixer Nico Pierce recently wrapped work on its debut episode Hoop Schemes, which chronicles the 1994 point-shaving scandal that engulfed Arizona State University basketball. For the episode’s many interviews, Pierce relied on Lectrosonics Digital Hybrid Wireless, chiefly SMV and SMDWB transmitters paired with SRc receivers slot-mounted in his audio bag.
“I went to school at DePaul University in Chicago and actually got my degree in audio post-production,” recalls Pierce. “I had to take a lot of production classes as well. When I moved out to L.A., probably the first year I was doing 50/50 production and post. After that, I realized I liked being on set and working with people instead of hunkering down in the studio all day. At DePaul, I used a lot of older Lectrosonics stuff — 185s and 187s — because it was what they had at the time, and I was already aware of it as one of the best brands out there. As soon as I had the money, Lectro was what I bought for myself.”
The wideband reception capability of the SRc receivers was the first feature Pierce found invaluable as production embarked on the road. “We spent a week in Phoenix and a week in Vegas, shooting 12-hour days to get the episode done,” he says. “This was my first time filming outside of the L.A. area since being in school, so being unfamiliar with the blocks and availability in these cities, going wideband let me not worry about finding frequencies.”
That process was made quite easy by the tight integration of the SRc receivers with Pierce’s Sound Devices 688 field recorder and SL-6 powered slot-mount frame, which can accommodate up to three SRc units for a total of six channels of reception. “So, with the receivers mounted in the SL-6, the 688 becomes aware of them and I can scan for frequencies right from its screen,” he explains. “Basically the 688 displays the results that the SRc modules find. I can then zoom in and tweak frequencies if I need to, but once an SRc channel finds something, it holds on and doesn’t let go. I’ve never had a problem with audio dropping out or anything like that.”

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