Sennheiser EW 500 G4-CI1 Wireless Guitar

The EW 500 G4-CI1 is Sennheiser's Evolution Wireless G4 Pro-tier instrument receiver, built specifically for guitar and bass going direct into a rack. It occupies half a rack unit, so two can sit side by side in a single 1U slot — a meaningful efficiency win when you're running multiple wireless channels. The receiver handles the RF side while the CI1 bodypack transmitter connects directly to a passive instrument via a standard instrument cable jack. The output side gives you both XLR and quarter-inch simultaneously, which means you have a clean path to the console and a parallel feed to an amp or tuner without any extra splitting.

At 6–8 watts, this receiver barely registers on a power budget, but the spec that matters at load-in is the Pro-level RF filtering and sensitivity. On a busy festival stage or in an arena with dense wireless traffic, the 500 series' enhanced RF stability is the reason to step up from the 300 series. The dual BNC antenna inputs support proper diversity reception, and remote antenna placement with active antenna combiners is straightforward when the stage is deep or the guitar player wanders. Both outputs are active at the same time, so feeding FOH on XLR while the amp tech takes the quarter-inch requires no menu diving — it just works.

If you're touring mid-size to large venues, playing stages with crowded RF environments, or simply can't afford a dropout during a show, this is the tier of wireless system that earns its place in a permanent rack build. At $899 it's a serious investment, and if your gigs are small clubs with cooperative RF, the 300 series likely covers you for less. Equally, if you need the absolute ceiling of Sennheiser's instrument wireless, the 6000 series exists — but for the majority of working touring musicians, the 500 G4 sits in the practical sweet spot between price, reliability, and RF performance.