Mic down cat5?

[pete10uk]

Evening all

 

I'm trying to work out the best way to add to a customers existing system and thought I would run it by you all for comment.

 

There is currently a 100v system utilising a audio matrix (Inter-m PX-0288) which is now discontinued, I need to connect 2 mics to the system, each so they can be selected for play back in any of the zones. I think the system originally gave this functionality with the optional remote unit LM88, but as the unit is discontinued, I cant find any of these around.

 

My proposed solution is to utilise a cat 5 cable the customer has run from each mic location back to the amplifier (30m), terminating the cat 5 in a wall mounted XLR box at the mic end and a standard XLR at the other, running this through a DI box (open to suggestions on a mains powered one) and in to one of the line inputs on the matrix, which will then make it selectable to the different zones.

 

My quandary is, is it best to run mic level down the cat 5 and having the di box neatly at the amp or placing a DI at the mic end and running line down the cat 5 or is it best to persuade the customer to let me install proper balanced cable. Is there any wall mounted DI box to neatly place the di at the mic end?

 

Any comments or suggestions would be greatly received.

 

Cheers

[paulears]

You can stick a mic into a mic input, or a line input into a line input, or a line input to a DI box and from there to a mic input but you cannot connect a mic input to a line input, and adding a DI box would be even worse, level wise.

If you only have line level inputs, then you need a preamp or probably cheaper, a small mixer. Cat 5 will usually be fine for connection of a balanced mic, but I'd put XLR connectors in a box either end, because soldering to cat5 is usually ok for a short period but cat 5 has solid cores which do not like flexing too often.

[pete10uk]

You can stick a mic into a mic input, or a line input into a line input, or a line input to a DI box and from there to a mic input but you cannot connect a mic input to a line input, and adding a DI box would be even worse, level wise.

If you only have line level inputs, then you need a preamp or probably cheaper, a small mixer. Cat 5 will usually be fine for connection of a balanced mic, but I'd put XLR connectors in a box either end, because soldering to cat5 is usually ok for a short period but cat 5 has solid cores which do not like flexing too often.

 

Hi Sorry, I did actually mean a preamp, DI's are the other way around.

 

It’s the first time I have ever needed to use cat 5 cable but have read many times on BR that this seems to be an acceptable compromise.

 

Good point and noted regarding the XLR connection.

 

Cheers

[patrick_keys]

Just a minor point: Cat5 (and higher) installation cables are almost always solid core, whereas patch cables tend to have stranded cores. If I was doing this installation, I'd terminate each end of the Cat5 installation cable with standard RJ45 faceplates, and then cut a patch cable in half to make RJ45 -> XLR cables.

[Robin Pratt]

Neutrik A, AA, and B series panel mount XLRs are available with IDC connections on the back for terminating solid core cables, a Y suffix on the part number indicates this feature.