Download a PDF - FOH Online

38
Digital Snakes Buyers Guide
Digital Snakes
By BillEvans
It's either ironic or just plain dumb, but as the live event audio industry gets
more and more digital, the one piece of the signal chain that most lends itself
to bits and bytes — the transport of signal between stage, console and
speakers — is the part that is having the hardest time really catching on.
The biggest reason is the lack of any kind of standard and the fact that
there are multiple companies making multiple products that are all really
good, but will never work nicely together. Yep, that big roll of copper with the
mass pins and XLR breakouts is big and heavy, but you can use it with any console
or amp and not have to worry about what piece of gear is running what
digital protocol and so on.
Company Make Model MSRP Number of I/O Channels
Aphex Systems, Ltd.
www.aphex.com
Aviom
www.aviom.com
Fiberplex
www.lightviper.com
Link
www.linkusa-inc.com
Mackie
www.mackie.com
Midas
www.midasconsoles.com
Music Sciences
www.musicsciences.com
NetworkSound, Inc
www.networksound.com
Optocore Inc.
www.optocore.com
Pro Co Sound
www.procomomentum.com
Riedel Communications Inc.
www.hear-we-are.com
Roland Systems Group
www.rssamerica.com
Salzbrenner Stagetec
MediaGroup Inc.
www.stagetec.com
Whirlwind
www.whirlwindusa.com
Yamaha Commercial Audio
Systems, Inc.
www.yamahaca.com
Aphex
Anaconda Model
828
Aviom Pro64 Series
LightViper
DGLink
System 1832
Shadow
System 4832
DGlink64-64-12AES-
12Analog
NOVEMBER 2008 www.fohonline.com
$1,249.00 each end 64 channels bi-directional simultaneously.
48 x 16 Pro64 digital snake with analog outputs:
$41,800.00
$7,444.00 (32 x 8 system, no splits with 300’ Neutrik
OpticalCon fiber cable using VIM-MY32 cards for
Yamaha.)
$24,000.00 (32 x 32 including 32 remotely
controllable mic pre’s, MADI console interface, 300’
single-mode fiber.)
$5,324.00 (32 x 8 system, no splits, 300’ Neutrik
OpticalCon fiber cable, VIM-MY32 cards for Yamaha.)
Pro64 Series products are modular and provide system configurations from 16 x 0 to 64 x 64
channels. Adding more I/O or multiple digital splits is as simple as plugging in a Cat-5 cable.
32 sends, 8 returns per system. Multiple systems can be used in parallel for larger channel counts.
Up to 256 bi-directional channels at clock speeds up to 192 k.
32 sends, 8 returns per system. Multiple systems can be used in parallel for higher channel counts.
$13,043.00-$23,012.00 64 x 64 EtherSound + 24 AES3 and/or analog.
Mackie DS3232 $5,599.00 32 x 32 channels of analog I/O with balanced XLR connectively.
Midas
DL431 with DL451
or DL351
$26,589.00 / $1,1078.00 per channel. Configurable.
Inputs - DL431 24-channel 5-way input splitter. 24 inputs x 24 (120), outputs - up to 192 x 192 (960).
Three microphone preamps per channel (Pre A - AES50 & analog, Pre B - AES50 & analog, Pre C - TX
isolated). Front-panel control & monitoring. Dual redundant power supplies, outputs - DL451 (24
ch.) or DL351 (64 ch.)
Mongoose MMS-33216A $16,995.00 32 x 16, expandable to 64 x 16.
Mamba 32MLPPR $2,999.00
32 sends, 32 returns. Built-in cable redundancy, 96k/24 bit sample, RS232 for remote control and
distance up to 450 feet cat-5. Aux1 and Aux 2 on same cat5 for COM, video monitor, etc. Split to
FOH and mon mix options.
Optocore Various models $3,444.00-$27,895.00 512 ch. inputs/outputs plus video, RS485, DMX, MIDI, computer data.
Momentum
mi8, mo8, mo8me,
mrc, md16ae
$499.00-$3399.00
Momentum is a multicast network capable of utilizing up to 256 mic or line level inputs. These
inputs can be received by multiple outputs on the network.
Riedel RockNet 300 $29,500.00 160 channels (assignable to 764 outputs).
RSS
S4k3208SYS $7,495.00 32 inputs, 8 outputs.
S-1608SYS $3,295.00 16 inputs, 8 outputs.
Stagetec Nexus $40,000.00+
Whirlwind E Snake
Starting at $4,999.95 for a 16 x 0 A/D front end and
up depending on channel count and
I/O configuration.
Yamaha SB168-ES Stage Box $4,399.00
In the install world this is less of an issue, which is why digital distribution
of audio is actually becoming somewhat common. But on the road, not so
much.
We usually just put a category out there and allow gear makers to "self-qualify."
In other words, we are not going to define a large-format line array. If it is the largest
box you make, it is your large-format array. But here we actually had to lay down
some ground rules. We kept it simple. In order to qualify as a snake, the digital device
had to be capable of at least 32 sends and eight returns, handle all D/A and A/D
conversion and had to be able to connect to other gear using industry-standard
connectors. Here is what we got back. Remember, your mileage may vary...
Fully digital distributed routing system. Completely modular system based on TDM technology. Each
base device can process 256 different signals and are interconnected via fiber optic cables. A small
system might consist of a single-base device connected to a control computer (when required). A larger
system may contain several distributed base devices and often include multiple control computers.
From 8 to 64 on 100 Base-T Ethernet network, many more with Gigabit Ethernet.
16 channels in with remote HA, and 8 out, EtherSound format, 24 bit. Up to four digital Stage Box
units can be connected offering a total of 64 inputs and 32 outputs, depending on the number of
YGDAI card slots available on the specific Yamaha console.