pro control db25 cables for monitor section

[ToneSetter]

Am I going to notice any difference in sound quality from the pro control monitor section using mogami gold db25 cables over other brand (hosa, planet waves, digidesign, etc) non gold cables? What brand of cables would you guys recommend? Thanks for the help

[Southsidemusic]

A waste of money and time if you ask me. The monitor sections on those 15-20 y/o tanks are not great and buying better cables to try improving on that is throwing away money.

Get a standalone monitor controller like presonus or Mackie andyou will notice a HUGE sound improvement. Same with the Control24 which also has a less than stellar monitor section.

This is IMNSHO of course and you will probably get someone who says that you should get the new cables but take it from someone who beendoing this for the past 20 years

[ToneSetter]

I wasn't meaning will mogami db25 cables make the monitor section sound better. I meant will mogami db25 cables really sound better than other brands of cables that are cheaper? But is the monitor section of the pro control really that bad?

[Delta Music Belgium]

Originally Posted by ToneSetter

But is the monitor section of the pro control really that bad?

Yes, the analog monitor section of the ProControl Main unit is really that bad.

The problem resides in the volume pot: the levels of all channels (stereo and surround) do not remain in perfect balance when turning the volume pot up or down. For example when using using the pot for simple stereo volume control you can hear the stereo image shift at certain levels (what indicates both channels do not attenuate equally).

In the early ProControl Main units this was very bad, then Digidesign came up with a revision pot that was better but the problem was never entirely solved.

So my best advice is to stay way from the analog monitor monitor section and use an external monitor controller. I use a GraceDesign m906 5.1 surround controller but there are cheaper alternatives

[ToneSetter]

I just mainly wanted to use the talkback feature of the pro controls monitor section and be able to use the talk back button next to the transport controls. Is there a way to do this?

[ToneSetter]

To use the talkback feature of the pro control and none of the other features of the monitor section would I just use the pro controls output 5 or 6 of a db25 cable (which the attached image from the manual shows is for talkback output to pro tools) into a channel on my interface and then in pro tools use a mono track with the input set to the channel that the pro controls talkback output is going into on my interface and set the output of the track to main out, or the artists headphone mix?

[Delta Music Belgium]

Originally Posted by ToneSetter

To use the talkback feature of the pro control and none of the other features of the monitor section would I just use the pro controls output 5 or 6 of a db25 cable (which the attached image from the manual shows is for talkback output to pro tools) into a channel on my interface and then in pro tools use a mono track with the input set to the channel that the pro controls talkback output is going into on my interface and set the output of the track to main out, or the artists headphone mix?

This could be done as described, but then you are just using the built-in microphone and the talkback button. So when pressing the talkback button to talk:

- the mic signal will not auto-mix with the audio, you need to do that in Pro Tools
- the output level of your monitors will not auto-dim when talking and listening to the replies from the artist while you are using talkback, so you probably will get a nasty microphone feedback between your monitors and the built-in talkback mic (the built-in mic is some type of very sensitive phantom powered condensor mic)

To get a talkback function that works as it is supposed to do you do need to use more or less the entire ProControl monitor section.

But there is a way around the problematic volume pot in a ProControl and that is by simply not to using it at all.

Just set the volume pot at a fixed position and trim the outputs of your Pro Tools interface that you only use for for L+R monitoring until L+R have identical output levels. Then you can use the talkback button with auto-dim, use the mono, dim and mute buttons and even the source switching buttons and speaker select buttons if you would like to use them. But do no use the volume pot to control the volume, just use the dim button for a fixed 15 dB lower monitor level.

[ToneSetter]

Originally Posted by Delta Music Belgium

This could be done as described, but then you are just using the built-in microphone and the talkback button. So when pressing the talkback button to talk:

- the mic signal will not auto-mix with the audio, you need to do that in Pro Tools
- the output level of your monitors will not auto-dim when talking and listening to the replies from the artist while you are using talkback, so you probably will get a nasty microphone feedback between your monitors and the built-in talkback mic (the built-in mic is some type of very sensitive phantom powered condensor mic)

To get a talkback function that works as it is supposed to do you do need to use more or less the entire ProControl monitor section.

But there is a way around the problematic volume pot in a ProControl and that is by simply not to using it at all.

Just set the volume pot at a fixed position and trim the outputs of your Pro Tools interface that you only use for for L+R monitoring until L+R have identical output levels. Then you can use the talkback button with auto-dim, use the mono, dim and mute buttons and even the source switching buttons and speaker select buttons if you would like to use them. But do no use the volume pot to control the volume, just use the dim button for a fixed 15 dB lower monitor level.

Thanks! I think I am going to use all the features and just not use the volume pot to control volume like you have recommended.

But now back to my original question, am I going to notice a real difference in sound quality of cables by using mogami gold db25 cables over other brands (hosa, planet waves, digidesign, etc) of non gold cables? Are the mogami db25 gold cables really worth the cost because it is a lot more than other brands.

What brand of cables would you recommend I use?

[Delta Music Belgium]

Originally Posted by ToneSetter

But now back to my original question, am I going to notice a real difference in sound quality of cables by using mogami gold db25 cables over other brands (hosa, planet waves, digidesign, etc) of non gold cables? Are the mogami db25 gold cables really worth the cost because it is a lot more than other brands.

What brand of cables would you recommend I use?

On short distances at +4 dBu line level it doesn't matter that much what brand of cable you use, just make sure the build quality is OK. Only on long distances at microphone level cable quality becomes a really important factor. And especially for use with a pro control monitor section I would not invest in high end cabling.

FYI all critical cabling in my studio is Zaolla Silverline, cables with a core of pure silver. They are even more expensive then Mogami gold cables (that contain no gold actually).

When I built my last studio I chose to do a once-in-a-lifetime investment of high end cabling and I enjoy this investment every day of the week. The main point is not only the pristine sound quality of silver core cables but also the very good double shielding of this type of high end cabling. That means that my entire audio path is also very silent and clean.

[albee1952]

Just my 2 cents; re the talkback button, they tend to not age well and either become intermittent(at best) or start to make nasty noises when pressed(which might really hurt someone with phones on). I gave up on TB buttons long ago and route my TB mic to an AUX track(feeding the headphone mixes) and insert Sound Radix Mute-o-matic. Its a free plugin that can be set to mute when the transport starts(which kills my TB mic) and can also be set to mute when transport stops(handy if you wish all the reverb and delay plugins would mute the moment you hit STOP