Auditorium Power Sequencing System

[robmerow]

Hi CB,

Looking for some advice. I have a straightforward auditorium space with FOH booth, powered speakers and subs on stage, and an off-stage rack.
Cat6 was run from the FOH rack location to all those locations for power sequencing. So essentially it's star topoology.

1) What power sequecning system do you recommend? This is a 300 seat church - not the Met.
2) Does it have to be IP based? I would prefer good-old-fashioned Furman style, but not sure if that can be done since wiring was not run in daisy-chain configuration. Could I combine all control contact runs with a bus bar at the source?

Thank you!

 

[MNicolai]

Depends on your system.

Many powered speakers go into an eco-mode automatically if they don't receive signal for awhile. Some power amps also have a contact input to allow them to be power cycled through a logic input rather than power cycling the AC power connections.

Do you have a DSP in the system? If so, which make/model?

Which models are your speakers and amps?

How are you connecting your mixer to the main system? (analog cabling or over a network cable)

Generally I have moved away from proper power sequencing systems over the last decade. With more amps being able to accept logic inputs to cycle or being networked with a DSP control system, there is really limited need to power sequence systems for modern equipment (intended for installation, portable equipment often doesn't have these luxuries). I generally put a few circuits of logic-controlled relays in the back of an equipment rack to power things like the wireless mic's and such off and digitally turn the amps off. Your equipment may not be capable of this and may need a more traditional sequencer, but ultimately the goal is to keep your amps from cooking and sucking in dust 24/7 and to avoid pops from turning the system on to reach your speakers. Also with the prevalence of Dante and other digital audio network protocols, the risks of the console ever even sending out one of those pops is increasingly unlikely -- but there is certainly a good chance that your system would have this risk.

If you already have the control cabling in place, you could fairly easily add a sequencer into the mix. The Middle Atlantic USC-6R is a rackmount sequence controller where you can drive individual receptacles or rackmount distro's that would work well if your CAT6 cabling is in the star topology. You would land the conductors on the "steps" that you want them to correspond to in the sequence.

 

[robmerow]

Thank you for the reply.

The system is A&H SQ FOH, ethernet s-link to backstage rack, which contains AR2412. From the AR2412 is copper to the speakers (powered KLA12s, and KLA181 powered subs).
There is also a QSC GXD4 power amp for some passive front fills, as well as racked transmitters for the ew300 IEMs. No dedicated DSP - all done in the mixer. ew300 mic receivers at FOH, connected to SQ with copper.

Your Middle Atlantic solution actually looks pretty appealing.