[Richard Crowley]

None of the iPod-based solutions are very “professional”. None of them offer anything remotely resembling proper level metering and record level controls. IMHO, that is a show-stopper.

The Oade Brothers (https://www.oade.com) have rather a “short list” of the kinds of portable recorders you are looking for. The Fostex FR-2LE has been mentioned as the lowest-cost device that could be considered “professional” audio quality. Although it records cleanly, its monitoring facilities (headphone output) is pretty noisy. 🙁

If I were in the market to day I would strongly consider the FR2-LE. The Zoom H4N is also widely used for the application you mention. I’ve seen much more discussion of these various small portable recorders in other online forums.

[Richard Crowley]

Sennheiser has a web page that will tell you who the “competition” is for your selected location. It can be “customized” for the particular model system you are using.
https://www.sennheiserusa.com/FindFrequency/

[Richard Crowley]

You haven’t mention what KIND of things you are shooting? Or exactly WHY you are dissatisfied with your current setup? Or your budget?

There may be better mics these days than the ATR-55. And that very low-cost recorder may leave you still unsatisfied.

[Richard Crowley]

That is called “pumping” (aka “breathing” or “noise modulation”) It is possible that it is happening in the wireless microphone. But without hearing it, I would wager that is much more likely to be happening in the camcorder or recorder (not identified).

The most likely cause is “auto-level”. If the equipment is setting levels on its own and the person stops talking, the level is increased until the ambient noise is almost as loud as the speech.

This is a major reason for not using auto-level. Little professional recording is done with “auto-level”.

[Richard Crowley]

Indeed, Walter Graff’s website is: https://www.bluesky-web.com/
It is a gold-mine of lighting ideas. I have liked his “Building A Compact Lighting Kit” for many years. Recommended.

[Richard Crowley]

If your monitor does this with NOTHING connected to the input, and with the volume control turned all the way down, then you likely have a blown power filter capacitor in the tweeter power amplifier. The only remedy is to send it in to be repaired. Hopefully it is still under warranty?

OTOH, if the noise (probably hum) goes away with the input disconnected, then your problem is upstream somewhere. You can swap left and right to do some differential diagnosis.

[Richard Crowley]

“So if I was to replace the US plug with a UK plug like you suggested, and replace the the 120v bulbs with 240v bulbs, you think it will work?”

If it doesn’t work, then you have something to discuss with the vendor. The nameplate clearly identifies 230V bulbs as an option, so I can only surmise that the vendor designed it to operate with 230V power. Note that since the current is 1/2 what it would be at 120V, there is less danger of the electrical components overheating, etc. from the current.

The kit sells for significantly less than you would expect from heavy-duty commercial equipment, so inspection of the goods before trekking across the ocean might seem prudent.

I would NOT recommend power plug adapters unless they are industrial-grade and intended for higher-current loads. They also provide an additional point of potential failure and could be lost along the way. IMHO.

[Richard Crowley]

Color temperature (and accuracy, “CRI” Color Rendering Index) are important for most lighting situations. But when you are lighting a chroma screen (green or blue), then neither temperature nor CRI are even factors to consider.

I have successfully used inexpensive “shop lights” from Home Depot for lighting green-screen. They are not suitable for general lighting because of their bad CRI, particularly their prominent green spike. But that same green spike becomes a benefit when lighting green screens (but not blue screens).

[Richard Crowley]

Ordinary fluorescent lamps from vendors like “Home Depot” are not normally suitable for decent videography because of their prominent green-color spike. However, for lighting green (not blue) screens for chroma keying, they are rather nice (not to mention cheap).

I have taken ordinary 4-foot “shop lights” and fastened a “baby nail” (https://www.filmtools.com/6banaonpl5di.html) on the back so I could use a regular Century stand and knuckle to position the fixtures.

IMHO, it makes an ideal way of lighting a green screen on a the cheap, leaving the majority of the budget for a proper light kit for the foreground (and for other uses).

[Richard Crowley]

By viewing the “review” video online, you can get a glimpse at the yellow nameplate on the back of the fixture. The nameplate says that it needs lamp type “FEA” (600 W) or “JPO” (1000 W) for 240V use. You might want to check to see that you can get these bulbs before making a decision. The online source “Don’s Bulbs” says they have two of the FEA in stock which seems very low compared to what they stock for more popular bulbs. And I didn’t see ANY source of “JPO” in a quick Google search. I’m not even sure that “JPO” is a valid ANSI code?

You may be able to find other wattage bulbs in this form-factor once you are in the UK since this is essentially an inexpensive “utility light” and uses the same kind of bulbs.

The power cord seems to be attached to the fixture, so you can’t use an interchangeable cord with a plug for the UK. And most power plug adapters are not made for anywhere near the kind of power these things draw, so if it were me, I would chop off the supplied power plug and wire in a UK power plug. This is not a difficult thing to do. You can always convert it back to US if needed.

Because of the high power, don’t even consider using any kind of “converter” to run 120V bulbs on 240V. The only proper way of converting for 240V would be a transformer. But a whole case of 240V bulbs is much cheaper (and infinitely lighter) than a properly-rated transformer. It just doesn’t make sense on any level to try to convert power to run simple incandescent bulbs.

Mr. Sharaf’s suggestion for a series adapter cable is a viable alternative, but something of a kludge, and works only with exactly two lamps. You could leave the third lamp/stand/softbox at home.

Since the lamp uses two bulbs, as Mr. Sharaf suggested, re-wiring the lamp to put the two 120V bulbs in series (for 240V) may be a viable alternative. But it would mean running at full power all the time and losing the “50%” functionality. This is not technically complex, but requires someone who understands high-power wiring in a high heat environment. Standard wiring components will fail if used in a high heat environment like the inside of a fixture like this.

The lamps will run at the power mains frequency of wherever they are plugged in. So they will not operate at 60Hz unless you are in a 60Hz country. Regardless of the voltage. Power mains frequency (50Hz/60Hz) is not a factor for incandescent lamps.