Shure Twinplex Headsets Bring Voice to Celebrity Panelists for Premiere of The Masked Dancer

	The celebrity panelists in The Masked Dancer

Paula Abdul, Ashley Tisdale, Brian Austin Greene, and Ken Jeong are sporting Shure's TwinPlex TH53 Subminiature Headset Microphones in their role as celebrity panelists on the new Fox TV series The Masked Dancer -- a spinoff of the network's hit series The Masked Singer.

The Masked Dancer, which premiered on Fox on December 27, 2020, features famous contestants hidden inside TV-friendly, full-body costumes while performing dances in a variety of styles. After each dance, the celebrity guest panelists use clues to try and determine each performer's identity. In keeping with COVID-19 safety protocols, panelists are spaced 6' apart instead of side-by-side at a desk (as seen in earlier seasons of The Masked Singer.)

Shure's TwinPlex headsets -- which have been in use since the first season of The Masked Singer in 2019 -- allow the series' often-demonstrative panelists the comfort to move around freely while still maintaining exceptional and consistent audio quality -- a use case for which TwinPlex was specifically designed. In addition to Jeong, panelists with The Masked Singer include Robin Thicke, Jenny McCarthy Walberg, and Nicole Scherzinger.

Sean Prickett -- Drop Ship Audio A1 audio mixer and audio supervisor for both Fox shows -- has been with The Masked Singer since its first season and now brings his expertise to the set of The Masked Dancer.

Though Prickett does not typically use headset mics for production, no one wanted the panelists confined to their seats and lavaliers were not practical in the studio's noisy environment. Prickett accepted Shure's offer for the then-unreleased headsets in 2019 and has since kept TwinPlex onboard for all four of The Masked Singer seasons as well as the 2021 debut season of The Masked Dancer.

"Things I love about TwinPlex -- the consistency of the element, if placement moves on our active talent," says Prickett. "It also has natural sound across the board with very little EQ needed."

Developed to stand up to the toughest conditions, TwinPlex provides natural audio at both high and low frequency when professional, lifelike vocals are a must. TwinPlex's capsule technology offers best-in-class audio in an easy-to-conceal package, the company says, well suited for quick costume changes or discrete placement -- all with no impact on sound quality. Created with input from leading audio professionals, TwinPlex's unique, dual-diaphragm omnidirectional design offers excellent off-axis consistency and industry-leading low self-noise. The result is exceptional vocal clarity and warmth, as well as the flexibility to support the diverse needs of theatre, broadcast, film and television, and corporate presentations.

"Since Day 1, providing superior sound for these very active panelists on national primetime television before it was even released, is a great accomplishment," says John Born, senior product manager at Shure. "We're thrilled to see TwinPlex continually chosen for its exceptional audio quality, durability, comfort, and fast deployment in critical broadcasts and livestreams around the world."