The maturing of conferencing systems over the last several years means that new technologies and new designs are embodied in a range of systems. This allows for models that are optimised to meet the price and performance goals of different room environments and different user interface requirements. The challenge is to make sure that the selected model will meet the needs of the specific room environment where it will be installed.

 

Selecting a conference phone with enough microphone pickup to cover the entire room is critical in ensuring that everyone can be heard, especially during dynamic and fast-moving conversations. However, keep in mind that one important rule to maximize the performance of a voice conferencing system is this: the closer the microphone is to the mouth, the better. No matter what the pickup range of a single microphone may be, as the microphone gets farther from the talker, it’s more likely to pick up noise and room echo.  

 

To keep fatigue down and understanding up, if you have someone who you expect to be the most frequent contributor to a conversation, seat them within a few feet of a microphone. If you can’t get them near the console, you can use extension microphones such as those available with the Polycom SoundStation VTX 1000 and SoundStation IP 7000 (pictured top).

 

Following this rule will pay off richly in comfort and consistency during long meetings.

 

Each conferencing environment has its own acoustical challenges that require an appropriately designed conferencing solution. Let's examine some of these differences.