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partial
Posts: 24
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 Posted - Tue Mar 05, 2002 8:15 am
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My Layla24 has "Eight Balanced +4dBu TRS inputs and Eight Balanced +4dBu TRS outputs" for which I set out to buy cables for. My local Radio Shack had never heard the term "+4dBu TRS" and sold me 1/4" balanced mono cables. Is this the same cable or will it work or create limitations in any way?
Thanks,
Paul
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Syntrillium M.D.
Location: USA
Posts: 5124
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Posted - Tue Mar 05, 2002 9:48 am
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Radio Shack had never heard the term "+4dBu TRS"
--partial |
Well, this is not surprising. The "+4" relates to the operating level of the input/output..TRS stands for Tip-Ring-Sleeve and relates to 'balanced' operation, typically for 1/4" cables. XLR cables are balanced by default.
So, because the Layla can work in the "+4" environment (as opposed to -10) you select this in the Layla Mixer, and be sure to set the inputs and outputs on your Mackie accordingly (there are little grey switches that set this, both on top and in the back)
If Radio Shack actually sold you 'balanced 1/4-inch cables' (and you can verify this if they have two little blacks lines, ie, ring & sleeve) then you're good to go. However, as a general rule, I personally would not buy audio cables at Radio Shack...that's not really their bag...Seek out a guitar center, musician's friend, Sweetwater sound, or Mars Music....you'll get a better selection, better cable and for probably the same price.
---Syntrillium, M.D.
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partial
Posts: 24
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Posted - Wed Mar 06, 2002 8:39 am
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Well, turns out that the "balance 1/4" cables" I purchased from Radio Shack aren't balanced at all. They're not TRS. They only have 1 black ring. Just wanted to mention this to maybe save others the same problems I've been experiencing.
Thanks for all your help.
Paul
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Syntrillium M.D.
Location: USA
Posts: 5124
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Posted - Wed Mar 06, 2002 11:25 am
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Um hm...well, I'm not terribly surprised there...:(
As I mentioned, check out Guitar Center, Sweetwater, Mars, Musicians Friend. You can usually get some pretty good deals, particularly if you buy several at a time.
---Syntrillium, M.D.
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jonrose
Location: USA
Posts: 2901
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Posted - Wed Mar 06, 2002 11:57 pm
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Definitely go balanced, when you can with the Layla. Although they're great units, unbalanced lines on the inputs will most always be noisy, or at least noisier than a balanced line (I've been using four of them here for a long time now).
;-)
All the best... -Jon
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post78
Location: USA
Posts: 2887
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Posted - Thu Mar 07, 2002 1:18 am
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I thought that one black line was mono, and two black lines were stereo.
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Answer = 1. Probably.
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jonrose
Location: USA
Posts: 2901
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Posted - Thu Mar 07, 2002 2:16 am
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In another context, they are.
;-)
An example: a headphone extension cable. The tip is left, the ring is right, the sleeve is common. Not shielded, normally, but perhaps they've used a braid/shield for the common.
A balanced TRS cable (usually) has the tip carrying the positive-going half of the signal, the ring carries the opposite (180 degrees out) part, and the sleeve is signal ground. This type of cable will have a shield of some kind connected to the sleeve, generally speaking, and containing the other two conductors. Unbalanced lines only have a tip and sleeve, with the tip carrying the signal, connected to a center conductor in the cable and the sleeve connected to the shield/braid of the cable.
Here's a bit of a rub...
As you're no doubt aware, typical consumer soundcards will often use a miniature TRS connector(s), using the 2-RCA-plugs-to-stereo-mini-plug type cable, in order to get from various consumer gear into the card's line input... In which case you have two unbalanced signals (the left and the right channels from each RCA plug) which actually comprise a stereo pair and terminate at the mini-TRS type connector that plugs into the card (tip/left, ring/right, sleeve/common) - and of course it's still unbalanced.
And there are other examples/permutations and those are just a couple ideas - It's getting late, so I hope this helps more than it confuses...
;-)
All the best... -Jon
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+4dBu TRS cables?