Line level splitters

[DodoByrne]

hey folks, just been looking at radial OX8 splitters. and noticed they hav a line level version (LX8j). and i was wondering wat the practical difference is between. obviously the input on the line version would hav to be fed from a preamp output.?? i need splitters for a studio situation moreso, so i can split from my outboard preamps to a desk for monitoring, while the direct goes to HD. or is this a stupid idea... it wouldn't be the first

[Remoteness]

Why don't you monitor out of your recorder?

[DodoByrne]

latency

[huub]

For line level signal, you can safely (and cheaply) use y-cables..

[Remoteness]

Originally Posted by DodoByrne

latency

Why, are you over dubbing and the latency is going to be a problem?

For us, it's important to know that what's going into the recorder is coming out of the recorder perfectly.

It's a confidence booster while on location since you only get one shot at a live event.

[DodoByrne]

its the overdubbing i'm having grief with alright. but even if i'm doing an all live take, and monitoring off logic, theres still a noticable delay. i've messed around with buffer sizes and all that craic, and i dont use plugins for tracking... dfegad <=== Wind

[DodoByrne]

is the y-cable method going to degrade the signal though??, i've heard that said.

[Remoteness]

It's more about the input impedence.

IMO, as long as the inputs are bridging you should be fine.

We use wye cords all the time for this sort of thing.
As a matter of fact, we are building a new panel mounted ELCO wye for two of our 24 channel preamps.

I'll take some photo and post them for you folks.

[DodoByrne]

ok, thanks.

[Remoteness]

As promised, here are a few hundred pictures of our SKB fabrication project.
Each SKB Roto case will have three True System Precision8 mic pres totalling 24 channels.

We basically installed a Middle Atlantic 2U panel kit with inlet and dual ELCO90 panels.
The chassis mounted inlet is wired to three IEC power cables.
The DSUB25 connectors are wired to the first ELCO90 then jumped to the second ELCO90.
The built in ELCO Wye cord is a convenient way to handle dual multi-track recording with minimal patching.

Since this SKB case does not have rear rack rails we had to modify the design by installing T nuts into the plastic; reversing the panel kit so the connector panels were recessed and we had to cut out a bit of the bottom panel rail so the rear lid latch can work properly.

We are building two of these puppies and hope to have them completed, tested and up and running by Friday.

Once that project is done we start on our second Dual X48 rack.
I shall be identical to the first one I designed and built.

[bishopthomas]

Very nice, Steve! I like the Elco splitter. And now you still have the TRS outputs of the P8's if you need that third way split. So I assume the Dsubs are holding up okay on the P8's?

[Remoteness]

Thanks bro!

We installed the correct threaded screws for the DSUB25s and they seem to be holding very well.

I cannot wait to finish this project, because I need to get to all the other wiring and fabrication jobs on the list.

As you already know, we have that second Dual X48 rack to complete and miles of 24 pair ELCO snakes and harnesses to wire, but I'm not sure how I want to deal with the fabrication and wiring of our 5th and 6th Tascam X48 recorders.

• Do we keep them separate?
• Do I build another Dual X48 rack?
• If so, maybe it should be a more lightweight version of our two main Dual X48 racks.
• If we do build a lightweight version, should we install 48 mic pres for a "quick set-up" portable rig?

The jury is still out on that X48 project, but I like the sound of the portability possibility...

Yeah, maybe 48 channels of API (ATI) 8MX2 will work well in that scenario, but I digress.

I'm sorry I took this off topic -- I get carried away when it comes to design and fabrication.

Originally Posted by bishopthomas

Very nice, Steve! I like the Elco splitter. And now you still have the TRS outputs of the P8's if you need that third way split. So I assume the Dsubs are holding up okay on the P8's?

[aussie_techie]

Originally Posted by Remoteness

The jury is still out on that X48 project, but I like the sound of the portability possibility...

im a fan of portability when you have your other units together, but you certainly do alot more of this stuff than me.

[Remoteness]

When the gear is on the road and handled by other folks I want to use our heavy duty ATA cases.

When we are doing a one-off portable gig in a small cargo van with our own crew a light weight (all in one) solution sounds best.

[aussie_techie]

of course it always depends, that why its hard to decide. correct me if im wrong but it sound like in this case where you have other optioned racked that a portable unit could serve for either purpose with out to much hassle.

just my thinking anyway

[Remoteness]

I'm just leaning towards building a all in one light weight case that will have the pres and recorders and a few other goodies ready to recorded once the lids are off and the power is applied...

Our other racks have to be interconnected with each other or to our portable patch bay due to the modular design approach. This works very well, with the bigger projects where you have time and enough crew to set up and such.

Building the third Dual X48 rack as light and complete rig just might do the right trick for us.
I mean, plenty of Remotesters do it this way; I'm finally considering the possibility.

[bishopthomas]

I agree about the portable rack situation. The current setups are far from "portable" in that you can't pick it up by yourself if you absolutely had to. Although, keeping the backup thing happening you need to have two X48's at all times so putting them in separate racks wouldn't make a lot of sense. Then if you want to use the keyboard/video/mouse thing (x2 or use a kvm switcher) you'll need either a separate case or build that into the X48 case. Then there's the hard drives. It's getting to be less and less portable if built into one case (which is what you have now) and a lot of little cases to transport if you go lightweight.

What I'm planning on doing for my next rig is 24 tracks into a laptop and backing that up to HD24. For a different flavor, Steve, you could do 48 tracks to ProTools and back that up to the X48. Maybe double that rig since you have two "floating" X48's and you're stylin'. I don't know much about options for ProTools hardware so 48 tracks might not be worth it when you can import later anyway, but maybe something to look into.

I just looked up and noticed that the topic is "line level splitters." I guess that train derailed!

[Remoteness]

I totally hear where you are coming from.
And, that is why the jury is still out on this new project.

We're going to finish the wiring and install of the second heavy duty Dual X48 rack next week.

Once that's in motion, I plan to play around with this new light weight idea.

It just might end up at a light weight 20U rack with everything I mentioned earlier.

With regard to the derailed train, I believe I am to blame on this one.
If this continues, I may consider splitting the threads.

I guess time will tell on both fronts.

[David Rick]

Originally Posted by Remoteness

Once that's in motion, I plan to play around with this new light weight idea.

It just might end up at a light weight 20U rack with everything I mentioned earlier.

Ah Steve, only you would juxtapose "light weight" and "20U"! But that's why we love you!

David L. Rick
Seventh String Recording

[Remoteness]

Ah man, that's sounded pretty funny when I read it back.

Our road cases and gear must handle the potential abuse and rough handlers on the road.
Believe it or not most of our heavy duty ATA road cases are 165 to 175 pounds empty, so "light weight" takes on a whole other meaning here at Aura-Sonic.

Originally Posted by David Rick

Ah Steve, only you would juxtapose "light weight" and "20U"! But that's why we love you!

David L. Rick
Seventh String Recording