Electro-Voice RE-2
Electro-Voice's third-generation wireless system promised one-touch channel finding and RE-1-grade RF in a package built for club stages, corporate lecterns, and pulpits alike.
Overview
The RE-2 was Electro-Voice's third generation of wireless microphone systems. It sat below the professional touring RE-1 but carried much of its RF architecture. The company's own literature pitched it as "professional RE-1 grade power with previously unmatched simplicity" - a system that could find a clean channel with a single button press and get out of the performer's way. That one-touch feature was Auto-ClearScan, which scans for and locks onto the clearest available channel in seconds. Anyone who has spent a soundcheck hunting through menus while a room full of people waits will see the appeal.
The receiver is a synthesized PLL design with digital Posi-Phase True Diversity. It comes in two RF bands: A Band covering 648-676 MHz and B Band covering 696-724 MHz. Channel count is the interesting part for multi-system users - 1112 possible channels, programmable in 25 kHz steps. That density helps where several wireless systems share the same airspace, and it's the kind of flexibility usually reserved for more expensive gear. RF sensitivity is rated below 1.0 mV for 12 dB SINAD, image rejection exceeds 60 dB, and ultimate quieting is specified at greater than 100 dB. Squelch combines tone code with amplitude detection. The receiver runs on 12 VAC at 300 mA maximum and carries detachable quarter-wave antennas. FCC certification was granted under Part 15.
The audio specs hold up on paper too. Frequency response is 50 Hz to 15 kHz, ±2 dB. The balanced output delivers -20 dBV maximum at 40 kHz deviation, while the unbalanced output is adjustable from 8 mV to 0.755 V RMS. Distortion is under 1.0%, with 0.5% typical referenced to 1 kHz at 40 kHz deviation. Signal-to-noise ratio and dynamic range both exceed 100 dB, the former A-weighted. Modulation is ±40 kHz. Contemporary coverage of the era's electret designs, such as DB-Magazine (June 1977, p.35), emphasized frequency response and off-axis rejection as key selling points for road-ready condensers.
The system shipped with two transmitter form factors. The BPU-2 bodypack uses a flexible external quarter-wave antenna and runs on a 9-volt alkaline battery, with typical battery life exceeding eight hours. The HTU-2 handheld uses an internal half-wave antenna and provides 26 dB of audio gain adjustment. The bodypack offers 40 dB. Radiated output is 30 mW typical, and the system supports switchable normal/high transmit power. Normal maximizes the number of simultaneous systems and limits RF spillover into adjacent venues. High maximizes range and coverage in difficult environments. The TA4F connector on the bodypack is wired with pin 1 ground, pin 2 mic input, and pins 3 and 4 carrying +5V bias, pin 4 through a 3 kΩ resistor.
Microphone head options were a strong point. The handheld could be fitted with an Electro-Voice 767A cardioid N/DYM dynamic, a Cobalt Co9 cardioid dynamic, or a Cobalt Co11 cardioid condenser. The bodypack accepted the RE90Tx MicroMini omnidirectional condenser as its standard lavalier. The handheld had an over-molded Warm-Grip handle, and the 767A head incorporated VOB (Vocal-Optimized-Bass), which Electro-Voice pitched for high-SPL stages where gain-before-feedback is a constant fight. The RE510 condenser head was also offered for vocalists working quieter stages or spoken word. A "guitar" setting let the receiver and transmitter pair work as an optimized guitar wireless system, which few competitors matched at the price.
One documentation snag: two different sets of transmitter dimensions appear across the RE-2 literature. One lists the handheld at 26.8 cm (10.5 in.) long, another at 24.0 cm (9.4 in.) long. The bodypack dimensions are consistent in both at 3.8 in. H × 2.6 in. W × 0.92 in. D (96.5 mm × 66 mm × 23.4 mm), and the bodypack housing is cast magnesium. The documents also disagree on heads. One spec sheet lists interchangeable heads as the 767A supercardioid N/DYM dynamic and RE510 supercardioid dynamic, while another lists the 767A as cardioid. Buyers comparing units should verify the specific head and revision rather than assume.
Accessories were extensive. The list includes the OLM10 omnidirectional lavalier and UML21 unidirectional lapel mic with TA4F, the RE90Tx and RE92Tx premium lavaliers, the HM2 and HM7 headworn cardioid mics, the RC-RE2 hard-shell foam-lined road case, the 379-1 windscreen pop filter, the HHCK handheld color kit, the WP1000 leather bodypack pouch, the BP-23 aerobics sports pouch, the MAC-G3 guitar cord, and rackmount kits (RM-S single, RM-D double, RMS-TNC single with front-mount antenna cables). The FA-500 half-wave receiver antenna covers all bands from 680-870 MHz, and the ANU-14 quarter-wave UHF antenna is specified for use with the MS3000 and NRSCU. The rackmount kits include cables to relocate antennas to the front of the rack, which helps in installs where rear-mounted antennas get blocked by racks and walls.
The RE-2 was the affordable, professional-grade option for working musicians, corporate presenters, and houses of worship who wanted RE-1 DNA without the touring-price tag. Electro-Voice's own copy claimed the RE-1 was "currently on tour with Static-X, Fishbone, and Simple Minds". That's marketing, not independent verification, but it shows the lineage the RE-2 was trading on. The company also noted over 25 years of wireless innovation behind the design, and the RE-2 was explicitly framed as the successor to that legacy at a more accessible price.
For today's buyer, the RE-2 sits in an awkward spot. It predates the UHF spectrum repack that reshuffled which frequencies wireless gear can legally use in the United States, and the A and B bands it covers (648-676 MHz and 696-724 MHz) fall in territory that has been substantially restricted since. Anyone considering one for actual use needs to verify current local regulations before transmitting. Collectors tend to value it as a well-built, feature-dense analog wireless system from before digital wireless. The cast magnesium bodypack, the Warm-Grip handheld, and the interchangeable heads give it real physical appeal. Battery life of over eight hours on a 9-volt alkaline is a simple power story compared to modern rechargeable systems with proprietary batteries that die and take the whole unit with them.
The usual cautions for vintage wireless apply: check the battery contacts for corrosion, verify the TA4F connector wiring hasn't been butchered by a previous owner, and confirm both transmitter and receiver are on matching bands before assuming a unit is dead. The detachable antennas are a wear item, and replacements aren't always easy to source in the correct band. The 9-volt battery format is an advantage for long-term ownership - no proprietary cells to hunt down. As with any pre-repack UHF gear, buyers have to decide whether they want it as a working tool (verify legality first) or as a piece of Electro-Voice wireless history.
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