Sennheiser’s Evolution Wireless Digital

With over 40 million streams, New Zealand-born country-pop artist Kaylee Bell now considers Sennheiser’s Evolution Wireless Digital microphone systems an on-tour essential. Fresh from supporting Ed Sheeran on the six-date New Zealand leg of his Mathematics World Tour, Sennheiser EW-D has become a constant companion — with the band having previously chosen Sennheiser equipment for its reliable sound and dependable quality.

The self-managed musician kicked off 2023 by winning an Australian Golden Guitar Award for ‘Vocal Collaboration of the Year’, and now embarks on her own tour — the 16-date ‘Boots ‘N All’ debut tour of New Zealand — where the same wireless convenience will take her full live band shows to the next level.

Since setting themselves up with Sennheiser’s wireless system, the band has changed how they approach live performance. “As a performer — especially on the Ed tour, with the stage being so big — we had the freedom to run everywhere, which was amazing. Having such a minimal stage setup allows us to have so much more fun as a band. It gives a sense of unity, and being able to move around freely really allows our personalities to come through,” shares Bell.

From the production perspective of the band’s audio technician, Nick Campbell, the initial engagements with Ed Sheeran’s team were revelatory. “When asked about our setup we realised that all we needed onstage was a drum kit because everything else was now wireless,” he said. “All of our vocal mics and guitars, and all the backline that we have sitting off-stage are wireless, which they were really happy about as it made things a whole lot easier.”

During the tour, the team were able to bond with Ed Sheeran’s stage management crew. Kaylee’s front-of-house engineer Josh Anderson shared some insights saying, “They just don’t have issues on their shows. They are very particular about what they take on the road, and because of this they are able to run a very reliable set-up. The fact they use Sennheiser speaks volumes.” 

When chatting with Dave White, Ed’s RF and looper tech, Campbell gained an understanding of how shows of that magnitude work, and how the scalability of a Sennheiser setup like that could tie into it. Campbell says, “We can rock up to a pub with this gear and play to 50 people, or at the other end of the scale we can show up and support Ed Sheeran with the exact same gear and have more or less the same set-up time.” While the introduction of wireless may have reduced set-up times, it’s not all about convenience. The Sennheiser gear has also helped to reduce touring costs as the entire rig can be taken on the road in a 23kg pelican case.

Kaylee’s band have been using Sennheiser’s EW-D, but will now extended UHF range and channel count as they transition to the EW-DX on their ‘Boots ‘N All’ tour. By simplifying their workflow with its scalable transmitter and receiver options and automatic multi-channel RF set-up, the EW-DX is setting the standard in the live audio industry. “We don’t lose tone going wireless, all of our guitars have the same great level of consistency. This is the first thing we consider when adding new gear into the rig, so there will be no loss of quality as we move forward with the EW-DX,” says Anderson.

Also helping Anderson and Campbell to deliver an all-round professional sounding production are the G4 in-ear monitors that have been paired with Evolution Wireless Digital microphones, as well as the Smart Assist app which allows remote adjustments to be made from around the venue.

The Evolution Wireless Digital family of products brings a level of consistency and range that helps Kaylee and her band to transcend genres, and float across country, rock and pop. Kaylee finishes by explaining how Sennheiser enables this amalgamation saying, “There is a strong reliance on guitars to create a ‘rock’ element to our shows, but it’s also important to be able to deliver something quiet and reflective by breaking down a song with some beautiful acoustic guitar.”

Kicking off on 4 May 2023, Kaylee heads on her national NZ Boots ‘N All tour, for event dates and ticketing information visit here.

Photo credit: Mike Braid