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DriveRack PA with just 2 speakers setup

JulioJulio Posts: 4
edited January 2008 in PA Connectivity
Guys:

I am new here... I just bought the DriveRack PA and a pair of Makie SA1530Z. I also bought a pair of RCA to XLR cables, but unfortunately they sent me RCA to female XLR.

So I had to temporarily buy male to male XLR connectors.
I just hooked my Audio8DJ sound card directly to the SA1530Z, when I turned them on, I hear a hum. Can the connectors be creating this hum?
Any suggestions? The cables are NOT pin2 hot.

Also... when I connect the speakers through the DriveRack PA, I still hear the hum (although I have not setup anything at all in it..just turn it on). If I connect to LOW..I hear the bass..., MID...mids.... HIGH..highs.... If I still doesn't have the subs... is there a way I can have
the DriveRack sound OK? How can I connect/set it up?

The manual does not say how to do it with just a pair of loudspeakers.

I will appreciate ANY help you can provide.

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    kpippenkpippen Posts: 551
    edited January 2008
    Hi julio,

    The easiest thing to check is the amplifier attenuator \"level control\" setting on the SA1530s... Make sure it's not turned all the way up... I would put it at \"unity\" or 0dB...

    This is what the SA1530 manual says about hum...
    Hum
    • Try disconnecting the cable connected to the MAIN INPUT jack. If the noise disappears, it could be a “ground loop,� rather than a problem with the SA1530z. Try some of the following troubleshooting ideas:
    ◊ Use balanced connections throughout your system for the best noise rejection.
    ◊ Whenever possible, plug all the audio equipment’s linecords into outlets which share a common ground. The distance between the outlets and the common ground should be as short as possible.

    You may also try lifting (disconnecting) pin 1 on one end of your cable...

    I suggest that you setup a custom configuration in your DriveRack as illustrated below... I believe you would then connect to the \"high\" outputs to the \"main\" inputs of your SA1530s... Sorry,...I don't know much about the DRPA...

    julmain.gif

    julcross.gif

    Be sure to setup your gain structure... Follow the procedure as outlined in this post... http://www.dbxpro.com/Forum/viewtopic.php?t=959

    The \"limit indicator\" on the SA1530 is the clip light as refered to in the gain structure procedure...

    Cheers and good luck!

    Kevin
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    JulioJulio Posts: 4
    Kippen:

    Thanks for the quick reply... I will try setting the Unity to 0db. Actually it is
    fully counter-clockwise (-15db) since I just hooked it directly to the Audio8DJ and the laptop... therefore there is NO volume control... so it sounds LOUD!!!

    Tomorrow I will hook the rest of the gear, and have full control.

    As for pin 1... you mean cutting off the cable from pin 1 in the XLR cable?

    Thanks for the link.. will look forward to reading it.
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    kpippenkpippen Posts: 551
    edited January 2008
    Julio wrote:
    Actually it is fully counter-clockwise (-15db) since I just hooked it directly to the Audio8DJ and the laptop... therefore there is NO volume control... so it sounds LOUD!!!
    TURN DOWN THE VOLUME ON THE LAPTOP!... YOU'RE OVER-DRIVING THE AUDIO8DJ AND SPEAKERS...

    I never seen a laptop that didn't have a volume control...:shock:

    Go to: My Computer>Control Panel>Sounds and Audio Devices and you will see the volume control... Click on advanced in speaker setting block if you're using the laptop head phone jack to hook-up the Audio8DJ... Select "stereo headphones" and then click apply... Check the "Place volume icon in the task bar" box and then click close... You should now have and icon in your task bar for easy access...

    Turn the volume on your laptop all the way down... Put the level control on your speakers at 0dB... Then slowly turn up the volume on the laptop until you get the speaker volume you want... This will probably take care of your hum problem as well...

    Here's the Audio8DJ web page... You can download the manual and the proper driver from there: http://www.native-instruments.com/index.php?id=audio8dj_us

    NOTE: You will see in chapter 7 of the manual that the Audio8 software also includes a "ground lift" (to eliminate hum)feature... I highly recommend that you carefully study the manual... This should eliminate user error...
    Julio wrote:
    Tomorrow I will hook the rest of the gear, and have full control.
    :?
    Julio wrote:
    As for pin 1... you mean cutting off the cable from pin 1 in the XLR cable?
    Yes,...if you still have a hum problem disconnect the wire on pin-1 in the XLR connector on one end of the cable...

    Cheers!

    Kev

    PS. If you have any other questions listen to Dra... He knows lots more about this stuff than I...
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    GadgetGadget Posts: 4,915
    Could be a ground loop...
    Gadget
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