On February 15 2024, the FCC adopted new rules to allow a new wireless microphone technology to operate in the electromagnetic spectrum. This new wireless microphone technology, known as Wireless Multi-Channel Audio Systems (WMAS), is more spectrally efficient than currently available narrowband wireless microphones, meaning more microphones can be used without using more of the available space on the airwaves. The new rules will permit WMAS to operate on a licensed or unlicensed basis while preserving spectrum rights of other technologies operating on the same frequency bands.
FCC rules for wireless microphones can be found in the Code of Federal Regulations Part 74 for Low-Power Auxiliary Station (LPAS) devices, and Part 15 for unlicensed Radio Frequency devices. In particular, the new rules will allow WMAS microphones to operate in the broadcast TV band and 600MHz duplex gaps on either licensed or unlicensed basis, and on the LPAS bands on a licensed basis.
The new WMAS protocol is backed by industry leading microphone manufacturers including Shure and Sennheiser. In a meeting with the FCC last week, a Sennheiser official said that "A single WMAS can operate on average, between 48 and 64 wireless microphones with professional sound quality and latency in a single TV channel, as compared to the multiple channels that would be required to operate a similar number of conventional, narrowband microphones with the same level of audio quality.”
The official release from the FCC can be found here:
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