Mackie Big Knob and monitors/sub

S

stayouttamalibu

New member
anyone have an opinion either way about the mackie big knob switcher? i just obtained a pair of genelec 1030a's and a velodyne DLS-3750R sub. i like the idea of having the option to turn the sub on and off with the switcher, and also additionally being able to a/b between other speakers as well, but my question is, what would be a good way to set it up in regards to the sub?
more specifically, i would like to monitor more often with the sub off, just using the genelecs, and then turn the sub on every so often to check how things are going down there, and then turn it back off. the problem is, wouldnt that not work with having the crossover set for the sub/monitors? say, if i have the crossover set at 80hz, when i turn the sub off, im not getting anything below 80 out of the genelecs. any way to solve this while still maintaining easy switchability?
 
Hi, this doesnt really answer your question but you might want to check out the Samson C-Control. I remember seeing it having a dedicated sub output for someone in your kind of situation (Removing it from the mix).
Hope thats of some help...
Dave
 
Genelec... :cool:

Velodyne... :cool:

Mackie...? :confused:

Samson...?!? :eek:

Yeah, the Central Station is probably your best bet. "A or B plus C" passive relay switching. Nice & clean.
 
pdlstl said:
The Presonus Central Station has a switch/outputs specifically designated for a sub.
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i did a bunch of research on this unit, and i didnt find anything on their website or other websites that said anything about a specifically designated sub out or switch. can you elaborate?

also, my other question, about the crossover factor, if i do hook all of this up, and then turn the sub off, what about the crossover that would be on for the mains for when the sub is on?
 
As MM said, you can control 3 sets of speaker(s).

With set A or B, only one set can be on a time. Set C however, can be on with A or B, or C can be off. C is designated for your sub.

Example: If you are listing to speakers "A", you can turn your sub on/off with the push of a button. Same with set "B".

The manual indicates that it was designed this way to accomodate a sub.

BTW, the optional Remote for the CS is a must, at least for me.

HTH.
 
yeah, i understood that, i just meant i didnt see anything that said it was specifically designed for a sub, it just said C, which could be anything. anyone have any idea about the crossover factor that ive been asking about?

if i have my sub on, then the crossover will be set to say, 80hz. so the genelecs will have nothing below 80 going to them. but then when i turn the sub off, itll be just exactly that, nothing below 80 going to the genelecs. shouldnt the full range be coming through when there is no sub, and then have it crossed over only when the sub is on?
 
Sorry. I misunderstood.

I think the reason they are taking about it being for a sub is the fact that it can be used (turned on) at the same time as A or B.

With A and B, only one can be "on" at a time.

On another note, the talkback is nice too.

Good luck. :)
 
stayouttamalibu said:
right on, thanks for the help, i appreciate it. so you dont have any opinion or suggestion either way about the crossover issue?
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If you're using the sub with the crossover, then you won't be connecting it to the C output... because the sub becomes part of the speaker array (since you can't get full-fidelity without both the satellites and the sub working together...) In this case, you don't need the 3rd sub switch -- you'd wire the A outputs to the sub, and the sub passes the signal along to the high-pass satellite speakers.

The concept of crossover, therefore, doesn't enter the picture at all, as far as monitor selection goes with either the Presonus or the Mackie units.
 
so basically the A switch would be for the monitors and the sub together, and B would be like another set of monitors or computer speakers, etc? ok thats fine, except my original problem was that i want to be able to mix with the genelecs with and without the sub on. is there any way to do that easily?
 
Not to beat a dead horse, but you have confirmed that there is no foot switch connection, eh ?
 
stayouttamalibu said:
so basically the A switch would be for the monitors and the sub together, and B would be like another set of monitors or computer speakers, etc? ok thats fine, except my original problem was that i want to be able to mix with the genelecs with and without the sub on. is there any way to do that easily?
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Sure you can, but you don't engage the sub with the high-pass to other monitors... you so set the crossover point on the sub to calibrate with the speaker you're most likely to use them with but other than that, you simply treat them all as separate monitors. In the case of the Presonus, you'd connect it to the C monitor port. Your monitors have the full-fidelity signal, so you can switch the sub in and out as you need to.

As a matter of fact, that's exactly how I have my monitors set... ADAM S2A's in A, B&W 601s in B, and a Tannoy sub in C... no high-pass filtering to any of the other monitors with the sub - they're each independent of the other, so I can choose to run A with the sub, B with the sub, either A or B without the sub, or even the sub just on its own (not very useful, but hey!)
 
ahh ok...so i basically let the monitors produce everything they are meant to produce on their own, no high pass for them, and then set the crossover for the sub to only let through what is too low for the monitors? so for instance, the frequency response goes down to 55hz on the genelecs, so i would set the crossover for the sub at 55hz? thanks again for everyones input, i appreciate it greatly.
 
Basically, yeah. You might want to experiment with the setting to find what sounds most natural to you. And take care in calibrating the level.
 
Run pink noise to ONE of the monitors, and set the volume level for 85 dB (using an SPL meter). DON'T touch the levels after you do this - keep everything where it is.

Mute the signal to the monitor (or turn the monitor off) and now route the signal to the sub... adjust the sub's level so that it reads 6dB lower (ie, it will read 79dB on the SPL meter)...

Lastly, adjust the sub's crossover point so that you don't have a bump in response... again - easy to do with pink noise and a spectrum analyzer... if you don't have an SA, use your ears...
 
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