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hello everyone,

I am opening/building a new studio. Below is a rough diagram of the space. Here is my problem. .

I will be purchasing a JLM Audio TMP8 8 Channel Preamp and an Apogee Rosetta 800 A/D Converter, and I already have a Tascam FW-1884 (8 ch) interface. I want to be able to use all 16 inputs at any needed time, and I also have a Focusrite Twin Track Pro that I currently use through the first two inserts on the Tascam.

How can I set up my studio so that I can input mics in the various tracking rooms, etc and so that i can route the signal to the desired preamp/input? I was thinking I'd like to have all 16 inputs in the main tracking/drum room, at least 4 in the iso/tracking room, 2 in the vocal iso, and 4 in the lounge/tracking, and 4 in the control room just in case. I'm sure this will require a patchbay, but i have no idea how to set this up, how to route it, make the connections and all that good stuff. What do I use in the various tracking rooms? A snake/stage box? any useful links on where to purchase the necessary item?

Also, as far as headphone distribution, I have a Behringer 4 channerl, and I was thinking of running each channel into a Rolls 4 channel headphone amp thereby giving me 16 headphone outs for the various rooms. (probalby put 2 Rolls boxes in the main room, 1 in the iso/tracking, 1 in the lounge)...then what do i do for headphones in the Vocal Iso?

Im sorry this is a long post, but i seem to have everything else figured out for the studio except for this. I'm stumped as to the best way to go about this. Your suggestions are extremely appreciated!

**note: drawing is DEFINITELY not to scale! :D

Data 12 mb cache Maxtor

Comments

Calgary Thu, 12/01/2005 - 07:44

Sounds like nice gear, the Apogee has a great reputation. Just one thought, the headphones might get a bit noisy in that configuration. Maybe not. One option is wireless phones, some of the Sennheiser units are great and allow you to add extra headsets as needed for about $150 each. I find they help singers and sax players play more naturally. It's handy to have a couple pair around.

Patch bays are often suprisingly cheap and not too hard to figure out once you actually have them in front of you. Couple options are to find a used unit which seems to offer all the I/O you'd need but the best solution is to go down to a good music store (or online) and ask a tech who builds patch bays about a custom patch bay based upon a description of your rig. If you have the budget that will result in the best possible gear but it's not strictly necessary, any good used studio patch bay will do. Whether you run a snake alone or to a box/patchbay will depend on your needs, i.e. what are you trying to plug-in, how often will it be changed, etc. For fixed XLR and 1/4" runs snakes work fine alone. Buy the best one you can afford, this is the one area where quality makes a big difference. Often you can get decent studio snakes used for an OK price. You can add snakes as needed but the idea is to figure out "what is the maximum I/O I will ever need from this location/room" and then exceed that by a 2-3 to be safe. Snakes can easily combine different types of I/O cabling in any conbination such as XLR, 1/4", RCA, etc...

Boxes are good for fixed installations or where you will be changing the cords a lot. If your room is for the musicians it's often nice to run a snake to a patch bay so that the musicians are presented with a single surface that contains all the I/O they would need. If you are just going to run the snake with no patch bay then make sure to do the cabling yourself. If you want your gear to last don't let random musicians yank your snake. That's good advice for in and out of the studio. :lol:

2 cents anyhow. :D