Radial Engineering... Does it again

[Ben Milne]

This should be of interest to anybody using (or wishing to use) a condenser mic on their live mandolin setups.

Disclaimer: NFI! I am in no way associated with a Radial engineering, I am merely a very happy end user and repeat customer...

The folks at Radial just keep coming up with fantastic innovative pieces of kit.
This time it's in the Stagebug SB-48UB.

Essentially it's a compact 48v power supply with an unbalanced output.
This allows you to interface your clip-on (or stand mounted of course) condenser mic with Your favourite preamp, muting tuner etc.
It opens up the possibility to mute your mic silently to tune, and of course if you have a multichannel preamp, blend with a pickup for more body without losing the clarity and tone a mic will give you.

More info here

[herbsandspices]

Holy AWESOME. This is great! I've long lusted after Radial/Tonebone stuff, and while I'd rather have an updated version of the PZ-Pre with this function built into it, this is the next best thing. Thanks for posting - I don't always keeps on top of new product news.

[dang]

That looks pretty cool!

It raises a bunch of questions for me, like does this then make the unbalanced signal work like a line level rather than the normal mic level? Is this a lossless transition?? Could I really use this to run a large diaphragm condenser mic through any pedal I want??? Would I really want to????

Could I use this to run my Schertler pickup into a pedal without signal loss?

I wanted to put a link to the specifications (so one of our resident experts - thank you again!- could interpret for the rest of us) but it does not appear to be up yet?

It would be cool to use my Tonebone to blend a mic signal and a piezo signal, and have all the Tonebone features on both channels! If only you could EQ separately!! If only all these features were built in!!! If only I didn't need 2 wall warts if I use this!!!! If only I wasn't losing control of the amount punctuation I am using!!!!!

[foldedpath]

That looks pretty cool!

It raises a bunch of questions for me, like does this then make the unbalanced signal work like a line level rather than the normal mic level? Is this a lossless transition?? Could I really use this to run a large diaphragm condenser mic through any pedal I want??? Would I really want to????

As far as I can tell, this is only a 48v power supply that passes the low-level mic signal unchanged. You would still need a preamp behind it, to juice up the signal enough to send into a floor pedal. You can get a 48v. power supply for mics much cheaper than this, but the main idea here seems to be that it's set up with a DC power jack like a guitar pedal, so it integrates well into a pedalboard setup. Most 48v. phantom power supplies I've seen run on batteries, a few on AC power.

Could I use this to run my Schertler pickup into a pedal without signal loss?

No, you'll still need a preamp.

It would be cool to use my Tonebone to blend a mic signal and a piezo signal, and have all the Tonebone features on both channels! If only you could EQ separately!! If only all these features were built in!!! If only I didn't need 2 wall warts if I use this!!!! If only I wasn't losing control of the amount punctuation I am using!!!!!

Heh.... remember, there are no PERFECT solutions, just different choices.

And yes, it looks like this would let you run a condenser mic needing phantom power into something like a PZ-Pre pedal. Although personally, I think a compact mixer with High-Z inputs like the A&H Zed-10FX is a better "blender" solution, unless you just need something on the floor instead of a nearby chair or stand. Separate EQ for each source, decent reverb/delay, and just one AC cable instead of a multitude of wall warts.

[almeriastrings]

Could I really use this to run a large diaphragm condenser mic through any pedal I want??? Would I really want to????

Could I use this to run my Schertler pickup into a pedal without signal loss?

AS FP says, it appears to be nothing more than a phantom PSU with an unbalanced output.

You do not need phantom anyway for the Schertler DYN (it is a dynamic - moving coil - transducer, not condenser/electret and neither is it a piezo).

It is easy enough to split a balanced to unbalanced mic signal if you just want to take a feed to a pedal or to backline, and this has no internal preamp, so you still have a level problem to contend with. For blending, the A&H Zed 10 or Headway EDB-2 (which offers battery operation) seem much more versatile, and certainly neater options.

[dang]

one of our resident experts - thank you again!- could interpret for the rest of us

How did you know I was taking about you guys?

Thanks!