Question regarding Firewire 1814 interface

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fris9

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This may be a stupid question, but why is the sound so much "thinner" when plugging into the 1/4 inputs on the back, rather than the front XLR's? Is there a remedy? BTW, I'm using either a UA610 or my Mackie mixer as pre's.
 
The XLR's would be going to the preamp of the interface, so that would be you are going from preamp to preamp
 
fris9 said:
This may be a stupid question, but why is the sound so much "thinner" when plugging into the 1/4 inputs on the back, rather than the front XLR's? Is there a remedy? BTW, I'm using either a UA610 or my Mackie mixer as pre's.
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Please don't post the same question in multiple forums. It won't generally get the question answered any more quickly....

As mentioned, the XLR connections are mic level, not line level. Similarly, the 1/4" on the front are preamplified for guitar DI, so you should not be plugging into those with a line level output from a mixer, either.
 
Sorry for the multiple posts, but I've posted this question a few times on several different threads and got absolutely nothing. Now I'm getting somewhere.

So....I understand a little I guess, especially the signal being double amped when coming from a pre into the xlr's, but is there a remedy for the rear 1/4 cables so the sound is the same? If not, am I just SOL when recording multiple tracks at once, i.e..drums? Currently, this is what I'm doing: Kick and snare running into separate channels (xlr) on the front. 2 overheads from the Mackie plugged into the rear (1/4"). I use the 610 as a DI when recording a scratch gtr track. The kick and the snare sound nice and full, the oh's thin. Hopefully this makes some sense.
 
it could be the mics or the room and cymbals that make the ohs sound thin.
 
I would agree except it doesn't matter what I plug into the back...vocals, gtr, snare, kick.....they ALL sound thinner.
 
Well, how do the overheads sound through the XLR (preamp) inputs on the front of the 1814?

If everythings hooked up as stated, you just may not like the sound of the Mackie pres. Which desk is it?
 
Ok..just to clarify....I've used the Mackie and a UA 610 preamp in the rear inputs. They both sound thin. I've used a Mackie and a UA 610 in the XlR's. They both sound great. I've used the same mics in the rear as in the front. It's not a preamp issue, it's the inputs on the 1814, 1/4 (rear) and XLR (front).
 
fris9 said:
Ok..just to clarify....I've used the Mackie and a UA 610 preamp in the rear inputs. They both sound thin. I've used a Mackie and a UA 610 in the XlR's. They both sound great. I've used the same mics in the rear as in the front. It's not a preamp issue, it's the inputs on the 1814, 1/4 (rear) and XLR (front).
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Just for additional clarification... are you using a preamp when you plug into the back jacks? Those appear to be unbalanced line inputs... If you are plugging in the output of a pre into an unbalanced line input and comparing that to the same output through a balanced mic level preamped input... it's pretty obvious that the line level is going to sound thinner in comparison
 
Yes I am using a pre into the rear inputs.....So, forgive my lack of knowledge here......If what you're saying is correct, the rear is only a line level and the fronts are mic level? Is there anything that can be done or am I screwed?
 
fris9 said:
Yes I am using a pre into the rear inputs.....So, forgive my lack of knowledge here......If what you're saying is correct, the rear is only a line level and the fronts are mic level? Is there anything that can be done or am I screwed?
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So you're using pre's on both the front and rear inputs??

That means you're double amping the front inputs... I'd say that the problem is your inputs are too "thick".

The rear inputs may sound just fine, and definitely stack better in a mix, if you're not comparing them directly to a track run through two preamps...
 
Yeah, I'm using a pre to go through the front and rear, but honestly, it sounds "right" in the front. For instance, if I run the kick drum through one of the rear inputs, there is absolutely no low end at all. I'm trying to compare it to something but all I can think of is "thin", not at all how it should sound in a mix. As far as double amping the front, I mainly do that so I can control the eq on the board going in, I don't have to mess with the stupid firewire control thing. And, again, it sounds good. Can you explain more about the unbalanced vs. balanced, line input vs mic input ? Thanks
 
When you plug into the front of the 1814 are you using a 1/4" jack? If so I think that activates the hi-z input. I have an 1814 and I run stuff that I have tracked to tape from my balanced tape machine... into the unbalanced 1/4" inputs on the back of the 1814. I use an unbalanced XLR -> 1/4" cable... and have to run the signal through a pad to drop the volume 14db so it doesn't clip. I'm still able to get a lot of low end though when going into the rear inputs.
 
What I've been doing is running an XLR cable into the fronts and XLRs to 1/4's into the back. Would that make a difference?
 
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