This is the BEST Guitar Wireless system on the market right now! Fender Telepath

[@tlingit]

I love that you did an A/B sample with a cable and the Fender Telepath. Thank you for that. If I could make a suggestion or two, just because you don't need a feature, it doesn't mean we don't. For example, most of my basses have preamps, so I would use the active switch 90% of the time. So rather than talk about how the switch is not necessary, talk about who would need an active switch. And why talk at all about 5.8 Ghz not being necessary? Sometimes it is, so talk about those use cases. For example, maybe the reason the Telepath has been great for you at gigs with so many signals is because it's 5.8 Ghz. At any rate, thank you for the video. It was quite helpful.

[@aaronshortmusic]

I also use a 2.4ghz system, that’s why. My acoustic preamp is super hot but it doesn’t need that switch but maybe some will find it useful. For me it’s another thing to accidentally knock while performing.

[@tonepilot]

Great review. I’ll have to check these out.

[@aaronshortmusic]

Thanks. I’m seriously impressed.

[@cpfwriter]

Aaron, thanks for this video, I'm probably going to buy these. I've had flawless performance from my no-name Chinese wireless for years, but I want to update that gear well before the batteries are an issue. This is a brilliant design. Something as simple as different colors for transmitter/receiver is so helpful, and though I'll probably never use pickups like the K&K, what a boon for those who do. Gotta say I'd shy away if they weren't 5ghz so lucky me!

[@aaronshortmusic]

Sounds good! Actually ANY system would benefit K&K owners in that way. I just thought I would highlight it here in case some people don’t know about it.

[@themagicguy1]

seems the Active Switch is intended for something like a Bass with Active Pickups

[@aaronshortmusic]

Yes I guess so. I have never seen it on any other systems and I don’t play an active bass so I am not sure. I guess it’s better to have it and not need it…

[@LevelsForGuitar]

So how long did that charge end up lasting?

[@aaronshortmusic]

I had to recharge it for a gig so I’m not sure. They last at least 8 hours.

[@scottmoreau5630]

I had considered this one but got the Xvive A58 instead. I had terrible experiences with the Xvive U2 but took a chance with the newer system. It’s honestly perfect. No hiss at all. I mean no added noise. Every other system like this, expect the Line 6 G10 has added noise. Even the sennheiser XSW. I might give the Fender a try but the A58 is really good.

[@aaronshortmusic]

Good to know. I had issues with their other systems.

[@scottmoreau5630]

@@aaronshortmusic Yeah, so far the A58 has been a massive improvement.

[@aaronshortmusic]

@@scottmoreau5630 A system would have to offer more features that the Fender doesn’t have for me to change now.

[@scottmoreau5630]

@@aaronshortmusic Not trying to get you to change, just pointing it out for anyone interested in wireless options. The Telepath and A58 basically are the same unit in terms of what they offer. I can’t see anything that one does better than the other.

[@aaronshortmusic]

@ I’m not trying to get you to change either. Though I think you should! J/K!

[@rombsix]

I can't use cables for anything anymore these days, man - thanks for highlighting these. I use the Sennheiser ones still, but I'll check these out. Have you tried AIAIAI TMA-2 Studio Wireless+ headphones?

[@aaronshortmusic]

I have not. Are they good?

[@rombsix]

@@aaronshortmusic - they have pros and cons, but for me, once I've gone wireless re: headphones, I can never go back to being wired. Think about it... (get them from Sweetwater and return them if you don't like them LOL - let me know if any questions about how to optimize them)

[@rombsix]

@@aaronshortmusic - Yeah man - definitely worth a try. I can't use wired headphones anymore. By the way - it seems Fender has a competitor - Blackstar Airwire i58 Wireless System

[@dandial3733]

Have you checked out the NUX C-5RC for guitar? It comes with a charging case they claim can recharge the TX/RX 3 times.

[@aaronshortmusic]

Yes I did when it first came out for that reason but it had drop outs unfortunately.

[@macshyha]

I have M-8 and it cuts like crazy in home situation, I wonder how bad it is live...

[@aaronshortmusic]

@ I have tried so many of these systems. The Fender is the best so far in tone and reliability. Fender did a great job with this.

[@scottbecker3485]

Hmmmm… Hate to put a damper on anybody‘s enthusiasm, but my experience with this system was rather different. Maybe it comes down to different pickup systems (piezo in my case) and different EQ preferences (I prefer full-range, transparent sound). For anybody who‘s interested, here‘s the comment I posted under Fender‘s promo video: „Meanwhile got my Telepath and tried it out just now. The good: Coupled immediately, with no issues whatsoever. And the signal was clean, as in free of hiss, squeal or other noise. Much better than a competing unit I tried. Form factor is also great, and I love that they chose a different color for the receiver to rule out confusion. Tried it with acoustic (active piezo) and electric (Fender Jazzmaster MiJ). Now for the less-than-great, though I presume this is the case for all wireless units: Perhaps due to the necessary codecs (compression) for transmitting audio wirelessly, the tone does in fact change compared with cables, both on electric and acoustic. Across all frequencies, there is a perceptible loss of (harmonic) detail and „air“, as well as responsiveness. Everything sounds a wee bit compressed, as in flatter and less 3-dimensional. The acoustic sounded less woody and real, and the Jazzmaster lacked some clarity and detail, too. Especially on the acoustic, bass runs were less full, and the treble didn’t seem to reach quite as high (upper harmonics). That said, I figure this is the price one has to pay for wireless. For me, though, I‘d rather stick with cables than lose fidelity at the very first link of the signal chain. But I‘m a tone snob. 😉 So I don‘t want to be too critical of the Telepath, since it seems to be doing as good a job as wireless can (or is there something better out there?). It‘s just not for me. Returning to Thomann tomorrow.“

[@aaronshortmusic]

Scott, I am going to be brutally honest with my reply. I hope that is OK and of course everyone can have their own opinions but here we go. I have been thinking about this kind of thing a lot lately where someone has a feeling about a product and posts their thoughts online, I have done it myself in the past. The reason I make the videos now is to show the proof of what my opinions are. This is not a subjective piece of gear like a guitar or a pickup system. For me if there is zero interference or hiss in the signal and it reproduces the signal at the identical volume to the premium Mogami cable and with the same tone so it is the real deal as a product. I have analyzed the noise floor (included in the video) and the tone (included as an audio sample but in an EQ match on my Mac it is identical to within 1dB when zoomed in (which is inaudible). It does add around 4ms of latency as stated by Fender but so would a longer Mogami cable and latency is in all digital gear. I am not going to say that this system is IDENTICAL to a cable in sound and feel but there is nothing that Fender could have done to make this a better product to replace a cable for those that want to go wireless. Of course using a cable is still best if you do not need to be wireless as you do not have to ever charge a cable but for those with K&K pickups you can argue that the wireless is better than a cable as it 'correct' the impedance. It would be good if you could post an example of what you are saying as an audio clip somewhere. Maybe your unit is defective or the way it is interacting with a certain kind of pickup or pedal is not optimal but I would not want anyone to be put off trying the product as it has blown me away and no this is not a sponsored video, not that it would affect my thoughts in any way if it was aside from not making a video at all if I really did not like it.

[@scottbecker3485]

@ As a total fan of your channel and you many hugely valuable contributions for many moons, I much appreciate and respect your detailed and thoughtful response to my echo. I totally get how happy you are with the Telepath, and that makes me happy for you, as well as for anybody whose experience is like yours. Mine just wasn‘t, and you may be right about some factor not being right (or compatible with my instrument or pickup) in the case of the unit I received. At any rate, I know you are not sponsored or trying to push this unit for any other reasons than genuine enthusiasm and a desire to help the community. And my mini review in the comment above does point our several positives I found. I‘m just getting disillusioned after having tried out 3 different systems so far, none of which came close to delivering a close-to-cable sound for me. The Telepath was the best of the bunch by far, especially with regard to background noise (basically non-existent by comparison). Loved the ease of use, too. Just dislike losing fidelity at the first link of my chain, and the loss (in my case) was very readily discernible. Please don‘t take my remarks as naysaying. I simple thought I should perhaps add to the discussion in case anybody might benefit from that. Whenever I buy a product, I also listen to/read people whose experience was not so good, and then go searching for any other opinions that support that experience. I really wanted to love this product, but simply didn‘t. Again, I‘m delighted it‘s doing it for you. :-) P.S. Wish I still had the Telepath so I could product an audio sample to illustrate how my guitar sounded with it compared to without it (i.e. with a good-quality cable), but alas, it‘s long gone, and ordering another one just doesn‘t seem worth my trouble (or Thomann‘s).

[@ceesplomp742]

Aaron do you think these are better than the NUX 5-CRC? By the way I m very happy with the LR Baggs hifi duet in my Martin m-36. Best Cees Plomp

[@aaronshortmusic]

Doesn't the Duet sound EXCELLENT in this video?! LR Baggs did a great job. I tried the NUX and had drop-outs. It is too bad as I loved the charging case. Like I said in the video this is my favorite system so far, I mean that 100%.

[@ceesplomp742]

@ I’ve had no problems with the NuX so far

[@ceesplomp742]

@ your Dowina sounds great with the hifi duet

[@aaronshortmusic]

@@ceesplomp742 Happy to hear that. I can only review products based on my own experiences and so far the Fender has been flawless. Please remember that I live in a major city which has a lot more wifi traffic than some places and therefore is more demanding on these products. For me this is a good thing as my testing is more thorough.

[@aaronshortmusic]

@@ceesplomp742 Thank you, I love it!

[@therealting]

Benefitting K&K owners sounds good to me!

[@aaronshortmusic]

Actually any wireless system would, it is a nice side effect but this is also a great product so it is a win/win.

[@karayuschij]

lol, I use a Lekato system that costs a lot of less and never had problem with it…

[@aaronshortmusic]

That’s great but I had drop outs with those and you have no reason to change then. This is on another level in my opinion both for sound and reliability.

[@gair1944]

I demoed the Legato and at the first gig I had enough dropouts that I returned the Legato. Are you just using it at home to be cable free or have you taken it out to gigs?