How Does a Wireless Guitar System Work?

The Basics

Normally, the sound from an electric guitar is sent from the pickups through the instrument cable and into the amplifier where the sound is sent to the speakers. A wireless guitar system simply adds a step. The sound is detected by the guitar's pickups and then sent through a short instrument cable to the wireless body pack, which sends out a signal. That signal is then picked up by a receiver, which sends the signal to the amp, which treats the signal as if the guitar was directly plugged in.

Getting the Signal from the Guitar

Electric guitars all have some sort of pickups. The strings of the guitar each run on top of a specific part of the pickups, which receive the sound waves. Those sound waves are transferred into electrical waves by the pickups. Usually this electrical signal is sent directly to the amp. However, when using a wireless guitar system, this signal is sent to the body pack.

Sending the Signal from the Body Pack

All electromagnetic waves are part of a spectrum. Visible light, ultraviolet rays, infrared (IR) waves and radio waves are all connected. Your body pack for your system transfers that electrical signal into some type of wave, usually VHF, UHF or IR. That signal is then sent out into the air in all directions. This is exactly the same as a TV or radio station, but on a much smaller scale.

Getting the Signal to Your Amp

When your receiver is on, it is constantly looking for the waves it knows should be coming from the body pack. If a signal is being emitted, it takes those electromagnetic waves and turns them back into the exact electrical signal that initially came from your guitar's pickups. That signal is then sent down a wire into your guitar amplifier where it translates the electrical signal back into sound waves.

Resources

• Musician's Friend Wireless Systems