Need some helps with cabling

[siberia]

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Amazing forum this is, hopefully I can help people out myself when I know a bit more...

Basically, i've got a Shure SM57 and i'm about to order a Yamaha MG10-2 mixer. I want this to go into either my soundcard or my Minidisc player, but i'm not sure what cable I need. I'm abysmal at cabling, I really am.

So basically.... SM57 ------?----- Yamaha------?----- PC/ Minidisc


I've never had a mixer so I don't know what ins/outs it has (actually, it would have XLR in, but is that female or male?? ah! ). Hopefully a bit of quick help can mean I can order my mixer right away with the correct cabling.

Please help, James

[AlexW]

From your mic to the mixer get a balanced microphone cable with XLR connectors on each end--one male, one female. Your mic will plug into the female side and you'll plug the male end into your mixer.

What are the inputs on your soundcard/minidisc player? Probably 1/8-in jacks. Do you want/need to record stereo signals into them or mono signals? For mono you can use a cable with a 1/4-in mono plug on one end an 1/8-in mono plug on the other end. For stereo pickup a specialty cable (Radioshack probably carries them) with two 1/4-in mono plugs on one end and a stereo 1/8-in plug (two black bars) on the other end.

You can either use the main output from your mixer to your soundcard/minidisc player (most likely for stereo recording) or the channel insert jack for mono outputs. If you're using the insert jack, the 1/4-in plug only gets inserted part way in (to the first click).

[NYMorningstar]

I had trouble with cabling hookups once, they were backwards and while recording all my buddies albums from vinyl to tape, I accidently erased them all. Now he's got a bunch of empty black wafers. Boy was he pissed

[siberia]

Female XLR - Male XLR Is this a 'balanced' cable? If so, i'll get that one.


They are 1/8 jacks. Apparently though, I shouldn't use 'heavy cabling' to go into the Minidisc line-in, because it could screw the hole up.
What would be the difference between mono and stereo recordings? Would stereo be proper surround stereo and mono be the same duplicated for each ear, or would it be just one ear sound on mono?

Thanks for taking time to help me out. James

[ssscientist]

Originally Posted by siberia

Is this a 'balanced' cable? If so, i'll get that one.
Would stereo be proper surround stereo and mono be the same duplicated for each ear, or would it be just one ear sound on mono?

That link depicts a 'balanced' cable. Get that one.

And you have it basically correct regarding stereo vs. mono. You will need a balanced TRS 1/4" or a standard guitar-type cable for each side of the stereo mix coming out of your MG10/2, then the other end of the cable will need to be a TRS 1/8" jack to be inserted into your MiniDisk. Then anything you send to your MG10/2 can be recorded to the MiniDisk in stereo and placed anywhere within the stereo spectrum by using the channel pan controls.

[siberia]

Hello again...

I think I know the one then, is it THIS ?

Or is that the wrong way round, it says from stereo to 2x mono, or can it just be flipped and used the other way too?


Thanks again , James

[MISTERQCUE]

Originally Posted by siberia

Hello again...

I think I know the one then, is it THIS ?

Or is that the wrong way round, it says from stereo to 2x mono, or can it just be flipped and used the other way too?


Thanks again , James

No. That cable is basically used to "send" & "recieve" signals that are proc'd thru efx units.

[MISTERQCUE]

You need a Y-cable that has 1, 1/8"-STEREO-male to 2-1/4" mono-males.

[siberia]

I;m having trouble finding the one I need still. I did find THIS however , which might be of use maybe? Or would it just be a waste of resources.

Could someone maybe find the cable i'm after on a website or something so I can see an illustration? (or even on www.dolphinmusic.co.uk, that'd be doubly amazing).

[siberia]

I decided to just cut the jazz and go mono, so I ordered THIS . Is that the right one? It says Lynx 3.5mm mono jack to 6.3mm but i'm guessing I can use that, as there isn't one that says mono 6.3 to mono 3.5. C'est cool or non?

[ssscientist]

Originally Posted by siberia

I think I know the one then, is it THIS? Or is that the wrong way round, it says from stereo to 2x mono, or can it just be flipped and used the other way too?

Yes, Yes and Yes.

Mistercue has come in somewhere in the middle and doesn't realize that you need to go from your Yamaha mixer to a minidisk.

The first one linked is the correct cable for the job. You will be 'wasting resources' as you so colorfully put it by getting the second one -