If you manage a busy fitness facility, headset microphones probably aren't something you think about until one stops working.
Recently, I was chatting with Kayleigh, General Manager at Downham Leisure Centre in South London, and she shared an approach that really made me think.
Downham runs around 75 group exercise classes every week, delivered by around 25 instructors, so the studio microphones get a serious amount of use.
One thing that really struck me was the way the club manages its headset microphones.
Rather than waiting for them to fail and then scrambling to replace them, Kayleigh budgets for replacement microphones each year as part of the normal studio operating costs.
In her experience, the EMic Fitness Headset Microphone they use typically lasts up to 12 months in a shared studio environment.
To someone outside the fitness industry, 12 months might not sound particularly impressive.
But when you consider around 75 classes every week, 25 different instructors, constant movement and heavy perspiration, it's actually pretty impressive.
It also avoids the trap a lot of clubs fall into.
Buy a cheaper headset.
Replace it.
Buy another.
Repeat.
Over time, that often ends up costing more than buying the right headset in the first place.
Kayleigh summed it up perfectly:
"The cheap ones just aren't worth it."
She also said something else that I thought was interesting.
The life of a headset microphone often comes down to how it's treated.
Experienced instructors generally know how to look after studio equipment. Newer instructors sometimes just need a little guidance. Simple things like storing the microphone correctly, avoiding unnecessary bending of the boom, replacing worn windscreens and allowing the headset to dry naturally after class can all make a noticeable difference to how long it lasts.
After our chat, it struck me that the headset itself wasn't really the story.
It was the planning behind it.
Budgeting for microphones each year means there are no surprises, no last-minute panic when one fails just before a class and no instructors walking into the studio without a working headset.
After more than 30 years supplying fitness audio systems, I've seen plenty of clubs buy cheaper headsets thinking they're saving money.
Quite often they end up spending more.
Sometimes buying the right equipment first time is actually the cheaper option.
