Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Jordan Wolf]

Any recommendations on where to get a decent priced splitter for a band that's looking to carry their own monitor console?  Ground lifts would definitely be nice.

Well, it depends on the size of the monitor console.  A number of models have built-in splits - you wire the stage inputs directly to the monitor board and then patch the split outputs into the FOH snake head or FOH mixer, if you keep monitor world up that way because you're the only sound person.

The APB ProRack Monitor has this, as does the A&H MixWiz 12M.

You don't necessarily have to go for a standalone splitter snake, either…you could make up your own rack of splitters (passive, active, etc.) and do it that way.  Or, you can use existing snakes and just buy the splitter box.

Though, I've always seen phantom supplied by FOH as the arrangement when I've used a splitter.  Would it be enough to hard lift pin 1 on the feed to the monitor console off something like the EWI poor man's splitters?

You can always create your own wiring harness/snake fanout with pin 1 lifted…all it takes is some time and a little bit of work.

[Samuel Rees]

Personally I'm using either an Si Compact 24 or an LS9 all the time, but I realize this has moved on to more than just advice for me which is totally cool. I was hoping this would become a great thread to find in the archive.

Any products out there on the market like that? A budget friendly split with lifts?

[brian maddox]

   +1

   and for any pesky problems, buy a few in-line iso transormers to keep on hand.

   Cheers,
   Hammer

+2

Am I allowed to agree with someone who's agreeing with me? :-)

[Geoff Doane]

Quote from: Charlie Zureki on Today at 10:40:34

       +1

       and for any pesky problems, buy a few in-line iso transormers to keep on hand.

       Cheers,
       Hammer


+2

Am I allowed to agree with someone who's agreeing with me? :-)

I've wondered about this.  Is it sufficient to just transformer isolate only a few channels?  My gut tells me you have to isolate them all, or there will still be a ground loop between the consoles, but maybe not.

GTD

[John Roberts {JR}]

I've wondered about this.  Is it sufficient to just transformer isolate only a few channels?  My gut tells me you have to isolate them all, or there will still be a ground loop between the consoles, but maybe not.

GTD

Properly designed consoles shrug off ground loops....

JR

[Charlie Zureki]

I've wondered about this.  Is it sufficient to just transformer isolate only a few channels?  My gut tells me you have to isolate them all, or there will still be a ground loop between the consoles, but maybe not.

GTD

  Hello Geoff et al...

    It may be sufficient to use a transformer to isolate a channel or a few,or not necessary at all.

   It depends where, how and what exactly a Tech may be doing.  For example: If you're powering the Foh Console at the same source as the Mon Console, you, more than likely would not need to isolate between the Consoles.  But, if you were perhaps running an Audio input(s) to the Foh from a Video World's deck, or an audio return to Video World, you may need isolation as chances are now you'd have a big loop between all three pieces of gear (or maybe more) at different locations.

  There are other scenarios too...  possibly running a matrix output to another room's system, Video truck inputs/outputs, Or outputs to a Protools Op or other Audio Recordist, or even a pressbox. 

  Some years ago before all of the fancy, off the shelf gizmos we have today,  I had built my own "multi box"  which sometimes needed transformer Isolation .   The box had a standard stereo headphone output and a stereo input (from the console headphone jack) and another input from clearcom, for the Mic and earset. There was an XLR input for a Microphone.

  I used this rig instead of  having to switch from headphones to the clearcom headsets.   It had a built in "ducker" with adjustment too.   

   Sometimes it is only one channel out of a few dozen that gives us problems, sometimes it's all of them. 
   
   Hammer

   

[Samuel Rees]

Sounds like a hardwired split with ground switches and a few inline-iso transformers on hand would be sufficient for a small format PA FOH/monitor split or IEM rack split.

Besides building your own - what products like this are on the market?

[Bob Leonard]

Properly designed consoles shrug off ground loops....

JR

Do I hear an amen brother John. Some times the world at large tends to over engineer a simple solution which in the end is just fine if you're willing to spend the money on something you rarely need.

[Greg_Cameron]

Any recommendations on where to get a decent priced splitter for a band that's looking to carry their own monitor console?  Ground lifts would definitely be nice.  Though, I've always seen phantom supplied by FOH as the arrangement when I've used a splitter.  Would it be enough to hard lift pin 1 on the feed to the monitor console off something like the EWI poor man's splitters?

If you have soldering skills and some spare time, it's not very expensive to add a pro split to an existing snake. I have a relatively standard Whirlwind 24x8 Medusa 100' snake I need to add a split to. I got a 40' snake from Whirlwind that had the proper fan-out for the monitor desk side and a blunt end on the other. WW sent me all the ground lift switches with guards, strain relief with Kellems, and even precut shrink for splices into the stage box XLRs. A day of some drilling and soldering give me a good quality split with minimal cost. I paid around $300 for all the parts.

[Tom Young]

Maybe I should also add that technically, hard wired and transformer splits are both "passive".  A real active split is another step up, although it adds even more complications, besides the greatly increased cost.  The ones I've seen had options for transformer isolation on at least some of the outputs, so a split can be active and transformer isolated at the same time.  GTD

I'd like to add to Geoff's note about correct terminology.

Audio is confusing enough without employing incorrect terms which imply conditions that do not exist within the context of, or are not relevant to, the discussion.

A hardwire split is passive.

A transformer isolated split is passive.

An active splitter consists of a microphone preamp for each channel with (typically) electronically buffered outputs (splits) and (as someone else noted) optional transformer-isolated splits.

Active requires a power source.

You can apply the above to direct boxes:

A hardwire split is passive.

A transformer isolated direct box is passive.

An active direct box consists of a preamp with a low impedance balanced output, plus the loop-through (parallel) jack. Optionally there may be a transformer on the output.

Like an active DI, the active split is useful when you need to drive long lines, because the microphones don't see all that extra capacitance.

The primary reason an active split may be useful or deemed to be better is that the output is line level and this reduces the potential for ill effects when driving long lines.

[ProSoundWeb Community]