Previous Thread
Index
Next Thread
Print Thread
Go To
Recording, Mixing, Performance and Production
Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 8,074
Veteran
OP Offline
Veteran
Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 8,074
One of the things that's always driven me nuts is the tendency of cables to get tangled up when you put them in a container for transporting to and from gigs.

A related problem is remembering which cables go with which application (guitar? Patch? PA?)

One simple solution that addresses both problems is to get a box of extra-large zip-lock freezer bags. Cords that go together can be stored in the same bag, which can be labeled.

Multiple plastic bags can be piled into the same container for transportation, and they don't get tangled together no matter how many times the container got jostled along the way.

I suppose you could get smaller bags and use onefor each cord, but in my experience the larger bag with related items is Justas effective and it saves time.

Recording, Mixing, Performance and Production
Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 5,139
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 5,139
Or, you could put everything in a rack, pre-wired. When we set up, I plug in the speaker cables, power, mics, and I'm done. Those wires go in a hard suitcase.

Recording, Mixing, Performance and Production
Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 7,913
R
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
R
Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 7,913
Originally Posted By: 90 dB
Or, you could put everything in a rack, pre-wired. When we set up, I plug in the speaker cables, power, mics, and I'm done. Those wires go in a hard suitcase.


Exactly.

Next time I do one of my freelance FOH mix training classes, I'll take some snapshots of what the rack wiring looks like (I don't do the wiring, I'm just bragging on the shop guys). It is a thing of beauty.

I'll try to remember to post the photos here.

-Scott

Recording, Mixing, Performance and Production
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 8,021
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 8,021
My stuff is all pre wired in the racks with a custom wired snake to the playing position. I can set up in 20 min. and tear down in less.With a little hustle. 30 min. if I'm more casual about it.


John
ESI Gigaport HD+
Lenovo Turion II /4 Gig Ram/ Win7x64 be
15.6" Monitor
"The only Band is a Real Band"
www.wintertexaninfo.com/BANDS/JohnnyD.php
Recording, Mixing, Performance and Production
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 3,921
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 3,921
I used to have the hardest time convincing roadies and other musos that cables aren't rope. At some point I began 'folding' cables in half repeatedly until I could LOOSELY cinch the things into a big overhand knot. This way both ends are together so you can quickly see what kind of cable you've got, and they don't get tangled up in a container. It doesn't require any extra material such as Velcro ties or freezer bags. As long as you do it LOOSELY it saves the normal wear and tear--you know, that thing where mic cables routinely go bad about 6 inches from the connector from being TIGHTLY tied?

I hope I've explained this clearly.

R.


"My primary musical instrument is the personal computer."
Recording, Mixing, Performance and Production
Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 5,139
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 5,139
Originally Posted By: Ryszard
I used to have the hardest time convincing roadies and other musos that cables aren't rope. At some point I began 'folding' cables in half repeatedly until I could LOOSELY cinch the things into a big overhand knot. This way both ends are together so you can quickly see what kind of cable you've got, and they don't get tangled up in a container. It doesn't require any extra material such as Velcro ties or freezer bags. As long as you do it LOOSELY it saves the normal wear and tear--you know, that thing where mic cables routinely go bad about 6 inches from the connector from being TIGHTLY tied?

I hope I've explained this clearly.

R.






It's also very important to know how to properly "roll" your cables, using the over/under technique that stagehands use:



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0yPcJD7RVuY



That said, we have some 100' heavy speaker cables that have to be done in halves. shocked

Recording, Mixing, Performance and Production
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 3,921
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 3,921
That's another benefit of the 'folding' technique--if you do it that way you don't have to worry about that quarter-turn rotation. The cords and cables just don't get tangled and twisted.


"My primary musical instrument is the personal computer."
Recording, Mixing, Performance and Production
Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 7,913
R
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
R
Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 7,913
I'm with 90 dB on this. Over/under, twist in/out, whichever you do this is really the best way to keep kinks out of cables. Just don't let anyone else touch them. One sight that gives me a stomach-ache is to see someone start doing the 'wind-it-around' the fore-arm method. When I do A/V system training as a side job, this is one task that I require all of the students to pass.

I used to do the fold-over that Ryszard refers to, but I can vouch that with the grade of cable I was using (middle of the road), the cable will start to get a memory to it.

When I'm running long runs, with the over/under technique, I can grab one end and chuck the bundle down the straight of the run with no knots, etc.

Here's a link to a case for the company that I do training for - not space efficient but VERY time efficient: Note that all of the AC cables, XLR, instrument cables have been wrapped over/under. Length of the cable is signified by the color of velcro wrapper.
[img]http://flic.kr/p/ecWge[/img]

I wish I could show you the back of this mixer case - these are a thing of beauty. Next time I do one of these jobs I'll make sure to snap a picture on my phone.
[img]http://flic.kr/p/4TFviv[/img]

Recording, Mixing, Performance and Production
Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 8,074
Veteran
OP Offline
Veteran
Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 8,074
Quote:
It's also very important to know how to properly "roll" your cables, using the over/under technique that stagehands use:

I do use this technique, and it does a good job of keeping a cable from getting tangled with itself.

I also have a pre-wired rack

In spite of that, cables in a suitcase that gets jostled in transit tend to tangle with EACH OTHER no matter how they are wrapped. The bags keep the inter-tangling from happening.

I once heard a band mate describe it like this:

"trying to take one cable out of a tangled mess is like trying to take a small sip out of a spittoon... it all comes out in one big glob"

Recording, Mixing, Performance and Production
Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 7,913
R
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
R
Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 7,913
Originally Posted By: Pat Marr
Quote:
It's also very important to know how to properly "roll" your cables, using the over/under technique that stagehands use:

I do use this technique, and it does a good job of keeping a cable from getting tangled with itself.

I also have a pre-wired rack

In spite of that, cables in a suitcase that gets jostled in transit tend to tangle with EACH OTHER no matter how they are wrapped. The bags keep the inter-tangling from happening.

I once heard a band mate describe it like this:

"trying to take one cable out of a tangled mess is like trying to take a small sip out of a spittoon... it all comes out in one big glob"

If you then wrap Velcro round the properly rolled cable, you pull it from the pile by grabbing the rolled cable where the Velcro is. No tangling. But ziplock baggies would work as well.

Recording, Mixing, Performance and Production
Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 5,139
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 5,139
"In spite of that, cables in a suitcase that gets jostled in transit tend to tangle with EACH OTHER no matter how they are wrapped."



How many cables you got, man? I have two mic cables and three speaker cables. confused

Recording, Mixing, Performance and Production
Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 8,074
Veteran
OP Offline
Veteran
Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 8,074
Quote:
How many cables you got, man? I have two mic cables and three speaker cables.


I hope nothing ever goes bad on you at a gig

Recording, Mixing, Performance and Production
Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 5,139
Veteran
Offline
Veteran
Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 5,139
Originally Posted By: Pat Marr
Quote:
How many cables you got, man? I have two mic cables and three speaker cables.


I hope nothing ever goes bad on you at a gig





What I meant was...I have two mics and three speakers cables for our setup. We actually bring two complete PA's to every gig and enough gear to cover a 5 piece band.


Previous Thread
Next Thread
Go To

Link Copied to Clipboard
ChatPG

Ask sales and support questions about Band-in-a-Box using natural language.

ChatPG's knowledge base includes the full Band-in-a-Box User Manual and sales information from the website.

PG Music News
User Video: Band-in-a-Box® + ChatGPT = Impressed the BOSS!

Since AI is now readily available online as a resource for many things, we recently put together and shared a video where we demonstrated how to create a song using Band-in-a-Box®, ChatGPT, and Synth V; we've also shared a Bob Doyle Media video, Convert MIDI Chords into AI Vocal Harmonies with ACE Studio and Band in A Box, showing how they utilize AI for their song projects. Now it's time to share Henry's video, Band-in-a-Box + ChatGPT = Impressed the BOSS!, where he demonstrates how to use ChatGPT and Band-in-a-Box to whip a song project together in only 3-4 hours.

Watch the video.

Visit Henry Clarke's YouTube Channel, Henry Clarke - Senior Musicians Unite, to find a large collection of tutorials showing the viewer how to achieve amazing results using Band-in-a-Box®!

Band-in-a-Box User Video Tutorials!

If you've reviewed our Support page, you've probably noticed the Videos page, which separates our Band-in-a-Box® tutorial videos by category: Overview, VST DAW Plugin, Setup, Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, and there's even an Archive category to go down memory lane... (You'll also find these videos on our YouTube Channel.)

It's always great to hear how other Band-in-a-Box® users create their songs, especially when they explain in detail what they're doing. Like Henry Clarke's YouTube Channel, Henry Clarke - Senior Musicians Unite! There you'll find his ALL Band-in-a-Box Tutorials playlist with over 50 videos! His top-three most watched videos include "How to Get Started with Band-in-a-Box," "How I use the Audio Chord Wizard in Band-in-a-Box," and "How to Create An Effective Solo Using Band-in-a-Box" - however he touches on many other topics and also demonstrates his own Band-in-a-Box® songs in the Band-in-a-Box Created Songs playlist!

You're guaranteed to find some helpful videos when you visit Henry Clarke's channel!

Band-in-a-Box® 2024 Italian for Windows is Here!

Ci siamo dati da fare e abbiamo aggiunto oltre 50 nuove funzionalità e una straordinaria raccolta di nuovi contenuti, tra cui 222 RealTracks, nuovi RealStyles, MIDI SuperTracks, Instrumental Studies, "Songs with Vocals" Artist Performance Sets, Playable RealTracks Set 3, Playable RealDrums Set 2, due nuovi set di "RealDrums Stems", XPro Styles PAK 6, Xtra Styles PAK 17 e altro ancora!

Tutti Pacchetti | Nuove Caratteristiche

Band-in-a-Box® 2024 French for Windows is Here!


Band-in-a-Box® 2024 apporte plus de 50 fonctions nouvelles ainsi qu'une importante de contenus nouveaux à savoir : 222 RealTracks, des RealStyles nouveaux, des SuperTracks MIDI, des Etudes d'Instruments, des Prestations d'Artistes, des "Morceaux avec Choeurs", un Set 3 de Tracks Jouables, un Set 2 de RealDrums Jouables, deux nouveaux Sets de "RealDrums Stems", des Styles XPro PAK 6, des Xtra Styles PAK 17 et bien plus encore!

Tous Packages | Nouvelles Fonctionnalités

Video: Making a Song with Band-in-a-Box®, ChatGPT, and Synth V

Take your Band-in-a-Box® project to a whole new level when you incorporate ChatGPT and Synth V to add lyrics and vocals to your song!

We wanted to demonstrate how this is done with our video, where we show you how to go from nothing to a finished "radio ready" modern pop song by combining the features of Band-in-a-Box®, ChatGPT, and Synth V!

Listen to the finished song, so you get a listen to the finished product: https://demos.pgmusic.com/misc/behindthefame.m4a

If you like it, watch the video. Either way, let's hear your comments!

Henry Clarke: Revolutionize Your Band-in-Box® Tracks with Regenerating Function

One of the new features added with Band-in-Box® 2024 is the Tracks Window, which will look familiar if you've worked with other DAWs.

Henry Clarke explains why he loves the Re-generation function within the Tracks Window in their video Revolutionize Your Band-in-Box® Tracks with Regenerating Function.

Watch video.

Learn even more about what the Tracks Window can do with our video Band-in-a-Box® 2024: The Tracks Window.

User Video: Convert MIDI Chords into AI Vocal Harmonies with ACE Studio and Band-in-a-Box®

The Bob Doyle Media YouTube channel is known for demonstrating how you can creatively incorporate AI into your projects - from your song projects to avatar building to face swapping, and more!

His latest video, Convert MIDI Chords into AI Vocal Harmonies with ACE Studio and Band-in-a-Box, he explains in detail how you can use the Melodist feature in Band-in-a-Box with ACE Studio. Follow along as he goes from "nothing" to "something" with his Band-in-a-Box MIDI Melodist track, using ACE Studio to turn it into a vocal track (or tracks, you'll see) by adding lyrics for those notes that will trigger some amazing AI vocals!

Watch: Next-Level AI Music Editing with ACE Studio and Band-in-a-Box


Forum Statistics
Forums65
Topics81,876
Posts739,413
Members38,643
Most Online2,537
Jan 19th, 2020
Newest Members
Delta 8 Austin, cac24e81ef, heymovies shop, tony10000, Berto Pastor
38,643 Registered Users
Top Posters(30 Days)
MarioD 154
musocity 110
DC Ron 96
rsdean 90
dcuny 80
Today's Birthdays
There are no members with birthdays on this day.
Powered by UBB.threads™ PHP Forum Software 7.7.5