i've been given the assignment to find out any and all sound converters we could possibly need. we have an analog system with a snake with 3 pin xlr and quarter inch inputs. so i was basically just thinking of converters of them, but my director is pretty wacky at times. I was just wondering if there are any other converters people find really useful. Thanks!
Cable Converters
- Thread starterkanolle
- Start date
I think you mean adapter, not converter. Ever had the desire or need to plug an iPod or computer into your system? Consumer CD player? VCR/DVR?
RaneNote 110 Sound System Interconnection
And/or, just order two each of everything on this page: Sescom Audio Products: Sescom Inc. - The Audio Source .
RaneNote 110 Sound System Interconnection
And/or, just order two each of everything on this page: Sescom Audio Products: Sescom Inc. - The Audio Source .
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Depending on your loudspeaker situation you might want to get some Speakon barrels too.
One thing you might want to watch out for if you get a 3.5mm TRS to 1/4in TS adapter: If you have a mono system and you want to connect a stereo source you might use one to connect an ipod. Often it will only take the left channel. For some songs, this is OK, but most of the time it doesn't sound that great. Some adapters just short the channels together, which is not OK. You might want to find a combiner that mixes the left and right channels.
You can buy this one from B&H, which isn't exactly the same thing but is the closest I could find.
Or look here for plans to build your own.
You can buy this one from B&H, which isn't exactly the same thing but is the closest I could find.
Or look here for plans to build your own.
Definitely a PCDI or two (or the Audiopile equivalent) and some misc RCA and TS adapters. Other than that if you make a half dozen audio crabs you should be covered for every line/mic level situation. Kris Wotipka describes how to make an audio crab here on his blog but it is just two male xlrs, two female xlrs, and a male TRS wired in parallel. I also wire a female TRS in there to make it even more versatile. 8 different adapters in one.
Beside the fact that Hosa only makes garbage, nothing.Whats wrong with one of these cables?
themuzicman
Well-Known Member
I love IL-19's. A handy tool to have.
When your pulling audio out of an iPod or some phone, it works. For situations where the promoter tosses you an ipod 30 seconds before doors it works perfect. Ya, HOSA cables tend to break, however, these things tend to walk off way before they break.
I mean, if the system in question is a mono system. The combiner that I built has a switch that determines if it splits the channels to two 1/4" TS jacks or combines them. If both stereo channels are in use, I don't have two mono channels to spare, and I have to connect a third device, that's when I use it. It happens more often than I thought. It's not as much of a problem now, but last year, whoever set up the system didn't know about the "mono main out" and took only the left main out.
gcpsoundlight
Active Member
Insert Cables (ie: 1x TRS to 2x TS or XLR)
Gender Benders (Male to Male/Female to Female)
and for those annoying drum overheads that wont "Click", a phase reverse cable (Just like a normal one, but swap pins 2 and 3 at ONE END ONLY!)
Gender Benders (Male to Male/Female to Female)
and for those annoying drum overheads that wont "Click", a phase reverse cable (Just like a normal one, but swap pins 2 and 3 at ONE END ONLY!)
That would be polarity rather than phase reversal, an important distinction. Many mixers have polarity inversion switches as part of each channel signal path making these cables redundant in those situations, but if you do carry some of these for mixers that may not have that capability then be sure to clearly differentiate them from 'standard' cables.
gcpsoundlight
Active Member
It is actually a phase reverse, although you could say that it is a polarity reverse. And if you look in the manual for most mixers it is labelled phase reverse.
Just because a manual or the labeling on the console refers to it as phase does not mean that is correct and this is one of those cases when the terminology is often misapplied. Here's some discussions with pictures to help explain it, http://community.musiciansfriend.com/docs/DOC-1214 and http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&cd=5&ved=0CDsQFjAE&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.live-audio.com%2Fstudyhall%2Fpolarity_and_phase.pdf&ei=fOZfTv2NONC4twf-zbWlCw&usg=AFQjCNFwsMwPZOEn8Uix5hj_hZzQc8Cl4g, but the general concept is that polarity relates to amplitude and more specifically the sign of the amplitude. Being in polarity means that the sign is maintained, a positive value remains a positive value and a negative value remains a negative value, while inverting or being out of polarity is essentially the waveform mirrored about the 0 voltage reference. Phase relates to the wavelength, a function of time and frequency, and being out of phase means a waveform shifted in time equivalent to one half wavelength.
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I agree with Brad here 100%. There is no such thing as a "phase reverse" because that doesn't make sense--phase is a continuous quantity that cannot be reversed. You can shift it 180 degrees, but strictly speaking this is not the same thing as reversing the polarity.
The way to prove this to yourself is to consider an asymmetric signal, say a random noise source (which has been recorded, so it's deterministic). In this case, there is no such thing as phase because the signal is not periodic. However, it does have a polarity, and it can be meaningfully reversed.
The way to prove this to yourself is to consider an asymmetric signal, say a random noise source (which has been recorded, so it's deterministic). In this case, there is no such thing as phase because the signal is not periodic. However, it does have a polarity, and it can be meaningfully reversed.
Console inputs are not the only usage of polarity reversal.
I had to do a polarity reverse on the input of an amp last year...
I'm just trying to remember the colour code at a place I previously worked.
Green boots on the connector meant the adapter was a ground lift, I have a feeling there was also yellow and red, one of which was a polarity reverse.
I had to do a polarity reverse on the input of an amp last year...
I'm just trying to remember the colour code at a place I previously worked.
Green boots on the connector meant the adapter was a ground lift, I have a feeling there was also yellow and red, one of which was a polarity reverse.
Some years ago there was a time when Pin 2 hot was not a universal standard for XLR connections and you had to check each device to see if it was configured as Pin 2 or Pin 3 hot and wire accordingly, so sometimes a 'polarity inversion' cable or adapter was actually a 'polarity maintainer' cable or adapter.
TimmyP1955
Well-Known Member
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