Operating Mac G4 remotely

[Doug Ring]

Looking for some advice from all you nice people, please.

I'm running a Digi001 with a Mac G4 466 (3 months old or so). The Mac is a noisy old sow, and I want to try operating it from another room so I can record in silence. I need to run audio tie lines, obviously, but what about taking the monitor and mouse/keyboard into the recording room? I would then need up to 20 metres of monitor and USB cable.

Can it be done? Or is there a more elegant solution for not too much money involving firewire, USB or even midi?

Or should I just build a box to put the Mac in?

Comments appreciated.

Doug.

[Chris Floberg]

Check out this company (Gefen). I've used these boxes and they work great.
http://www.gefen.com/products.html

[Zeus]

The box is maybe a better solution. Perhaps more expensive than active cable extensions.

Z

[Sugarite]

Neither USB nor any RGB monitor cable (vga, mac etc) will deal with a 20 meter run.

The best way would be to control it from a ethernet or localtalk (phonenet) networked laptop (not necessarily Mac) using remote access software like Timbuktu, with audio lines coming into the other room. You'd have full control over not only ProTools, but your entire G4, including video feed, as if it's on your lap. I'm not sure what TB2's system requirements are, but any pentium or PPC laptop should work, and one with dual monitor support built-in would be great. You're looking at $185 + laptop though.

Another idea comes to mind, this one's really out there, and would only offer basic deck control without any video feed, but it's really cheap. First get a USB Joyport, from www.kernel.com (also found cheap on eBay), which is an adapter to use pretty much any joystick from console arcade systems (Atari 2600, Playstation, N64 etc). It's designed so you can use the original joysticks with console emulators, but you can easily customize it to use any supported joystick with any application, even the finder. So then you either buy a button panel (such as Atari's old 'Space Commander' heh) or just make one, and buy or make an extension cable as long as you need. Configure the control panel to link the buttons to keyboard commands and/or mouse movements in ProTools, and you're dancing for $25-60.

One day I'd like to get an airport-capable laptop with TB2 and control a live recording ProTools rig in a truck outside from within the venue [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

[goth gloom]

Doug,
I just did this recently, I added in a soundbooth and wanted to be able to use Pro Tools remotely when no engineer was available so I went to Frys and they had everything I needed and it actually worked. I bought a VGA splitter/ amplifier, 2 15' vga extension cables, a MacNally Wireless Keyboard with USB. The keyboard has a built in mouse. The keyboard comes with a infra red transmitter and my wife suggested that I use my old RCA Remote Transmitters that I never use anymore and they worked perfect to transmit the infra red signal right through the walls into the booth.
I can control my entire G4 from about 20 feet away with this setup.
Excluding the RCA Transmitters, the whole thing cost about $150.00.
Hope this helps out, sorry I don't have exact model #'s but it's all at my studio and I'm at home now.
Good Luck
goth

[Doug Ring]

Thanks for all those ideas, folks, very helpful.

To take them one at a time:

Sugarite, the laptop idea did occur to me, and is clearly the most elegant, but would be costly. I can't really justify buying one just now. Your joystick suggestion is a very good one, though. I'm not sure there wouldn't turn out to be a practical cable limit on it, but if not it's definitely a runner. You've also made me wonder if a MIDI controller isn't actually all I need. Anyone know the cable limit for MIDI? BTW, I did borrow a 25m SVGA extender, which worked up to a point. The picture was clean, but the resolution got dropped down to 640x480 and the monitor's settings would have had to be tweaked every time to make all the desktop visible.

Which brings us to Chris's solution. And It is a solution but it's in the same price league as buying a laptop, so I can't stretch to that one. A useful contact, though, so thanks for that.

Finally, GG, a wireless keyboard sounds a possibility too. I don't know what you mean about your RCA transmitters working through a wall, because infra red only works line-of-sight as far as I know, so I would reckon they're radio frequency. But whatever, if it has that sort of range, it sounds like something to investigate. Somebody's just pointed out a video distribution amp to me for not too much money, so that may sort the picture side too.

Thanks again, everybody, and I'll let you know how I get on.

[Chompers]

the geffen extendits work perfect if use the right adapters.
We have all the goods ( monitor, usb serial, mouse..etc..) on the extendit, we needed to get a griffin vga adapter with the jumper pins on it. Then all s perfect.

[saggsy]

I've read somewhere that midi is unreliable over 15 feet, bummer!

[saggsy]

I actually just finished enclosing my g4 mac into an existing cabinet (I would rather have moved it to another room but I still live at home in a detached room out the back)since enclosing the mac it has made a considerable difference in ambient noise levels and all I had to do is cover the inside of the cabinet (approx H500mm xW500mm xD400mm) with 25mm convoluted grey foam and rubber door seals for air-tightness, there is also a hole in the back of the cabinet in line with the macs fan, also for cable entry.
All up this cost me about AUS$60, so for yanks about A$30 approx. [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

[Doug Ring]

Thanks for that, Saggsy. Still mulling everything over, but good to know that works so well.

How much in pounds sterling BTW? [img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img]