WFMT(FM) in Chicago, a commercial radio station with a classical and fine arts format, utilizes Shure microphones and wireless technology.
“We’re sort of a hybrid radio station, commercially licensed and owned by a not-for-profit. What sets us apart from any other station in the country is the amount of live remote broadcasts that we do,” explained WFMT Director of Operations Don Mueller. “We had 30 live broadcasts from different venues across the city in April alone.”
To accomplish this, Mueller explained, “Shure is actually a core part of our sound. We use the SM81 as our announcer microphones. It’s a natural presentation, like listening to the announcer face-to-face. It doesn’t sound hyped. We settled on the SM81 years ago, specifically because it has such a great ability to accurately reproduce the human voice.”
WFMT has also added Shure PSM 1000 personal monitoring systems. “We’ve used in-ear monitoring for artists, of course, which is what the system is designed for,” Mueller said. “But where it has really helped is with our reporters at events like the Grant Park Music Festival in the summer. They use wireless microphones — Shure Beta 87 UHF transmitters — to interview people during intermissions and use the PSM 1000 as a wireless headphone to monitor the program feed, live on the air.”
WFMT says it uses the PSM 1000 in the studio, too. For example, during pledge drives, a moderator does interviews in the phone bank, while wearing a PSM 1000 system to hear a feed from the main control room.
