Maintaining the best wireless image quality on set can be extremely challenging. Signal strength and image quality are unique to every location’s RF (radio frequency) environment, and finding workarounds can feel like trying to solve a complex puzzle in record time. Fortunately, Bolt provides a range of solutions designed to shine in any production environment.

This blog post will help you get the most out of your Bolt wireless video system by showing you how to identify the types of disruption and their causes, troubleshoot your workflow, optimize your wireless video workflow to your environment, and better understand the ramifications of legal vs illegal frequencies.

Step One: Identify the Problem

Step One: Identify the Problem

The first thing you’ll want to do is to identify the type (or types) of video disruption you’re experiencing from the options below.

Blocking

Blocking

Identifiable as missing square blocks of 8x8 or 16x16 pixels caused by missing data. (Not to be confused with video compression microblocking — Bolt uses uncompressed video feeds.)

Tearing

Tearing

Appears as horizontal distortions in which sections of the image might appear to freeze previous frames or a series of adjacent pixel blocks.

Signal Drop

Signal Drop

Depending on your RX settings, dropped signal will either intermittently interrupt video output or result in a black screen accompanied by a “No Link” notification on your on-screen display (OSD).

Step Two: Identify the Cause

Step Two: Identify the Cause

Next, you’ll want to identify the source(s) of your disruptions from the following list of common culprits:

Co-located Wireless Devices

Co-located Wireless Devices

RF signals cover most of our planet, but the most likely sources of disruption are the ones in closest proximity:

Production-related Wireless Devices 

Production-related Wireless Devices 

  • Video (2.4, 5, and 6 GHz)
  • Lens Control (often 2.4 GHz or 900MHz)
  • Sound (often 2.4 GHz or 900MHz)
  • Lighting (often 2.4 GHz or 900MHz)
  • Production Wi-Fi (2.4, 5, and 6 GHz)

Unrelated Wireless Devices and Signals (5GHz and other frequencies)

Unrelated Wireless Devices and Signals (5GHz and other frequencies)

  • Weather Radars: Used for monitoring and forecasting weather conditions, weather radars provide data on precipitation, storm intensity, and wind patterns and are critical for predicting severe weather events and issuing timely warnings.


  • Military Radars: Used by defense organizations for various applications, including surveillance, target tracking, and missile guidance.


  • Air Traffic Control (ATC) Radars: Used for managing, monitoring, and tracking air traffic, ensuring the safety of aircraft during flight, and providing navigation assistance.


  • Maritime Radars: Maritime radars in the 5 GHz range are used by ships and boats for navigation and collision avoidance and to detect other vessels and land obstacles, especially in poor visibility conditions.


  • Satellite-based Radars: Certain satellite radar systems operate in the 5 GHz range for Earth observation, remote sensing, reconnaissance, environmental data-gathering, mapping, and military surveillance.


  • Experimental and Research Radars: Used by research institutions and universities for various scientific and experimental purposes. May operate over the DFS channels for research in atmospheric science, telecommunications, radar technology development, and more.

RF Bleed

RF Bleed

Bolt will always remain on your selected frequency/channel, but many cheap or poorly insulated devices merge into other frequencies.

High Power Output

High Power Output

Bolt adheres to government-regulated power output restrictions for health and safety reasons, but some wireless video manufacturers push power output beyond the safe range.

Physical Obstructions

Physical Obstructions

Radio frequencies struggle to penetrate a variety of materials, listed below from least to most obstructive.

  • Wood: Can diminish signal range 
  • Glass: Can reflect (bounce) signal around a space
  • Water: Can reflect (bounce) signal around a space
  • Humans: Made mostly of water—see above
  • Concrete: Can completely block RF signal 

Misuse or Illegal RF Usage

Misuse or Illegal RF Usage

Be aware, be mindful, and take precautions: Some manufacturers abuse frequency restrictions. See the “Legal and Illegal Frequencies” section below for more detail.

Legal and Illegal Frequencies

Legal and Illegal Frequencies

Some wireless video device manufacturers misuse frequencies, abuse regulatory best practices, and even use illegal frequencies. 

In an emergency, government entities need to have access to clear frequencies for critical communication. Some manufacturers ignore these rules: For example, some video device manufacturers use Dynamic Frequency Selection (DFS), which automatically evacuates certain 5GHz frequencies if it determines a medical or military device is using that same channel. 

Even worse, some manufacturers utilize illegal frequencies that are only allocated for medical, military, or marine use. They mask which frequencies are being used by deceptively naming them “Channel 1”, “Channel 2,” or something equally generic. Using these types of devices puts users at risk of government fines for disrupting community safety. These fines can amount to tens of thousands of dollars.

Bolt offers all the tools you need to be successful, even in the most challenging RF environments. Its powerful hardware and software tools can automatically locate and switch to the best frequency in your environment or let you manually configure your wireless workflow based on your needs.

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