Your cable doesn't work because it's not a mogami

3506string · #1 03-01-2011, 10:11 AM

Ok I've been working doing some overdub work for a guy and the first day I went in the engineer had me plug in direct. He is running a mac tower with 3 Presonus FP10's. I brought my little mixer to practice along with the songs while everyone else was punching in parts.

So we go to check levels and he claims he's not getting a strong signal from me. He ask if it could be the cable. I say probably not because I was just using it on my mixer. So as if some huge revelation hits him, he remembers he has 2 spare mogami cables he never uses and decides to let me have one. I gladly accepted because free is my favorite price. Anyways I plug in and he does something on his computer and now, "Ok, there we go now we've got too much signal.

I make all my own cables and my main instrument cable is made from Pro Co Musicmover 120sx and neutrik plugs. Never had a single issue with it. So we record I go home and plug my cable back into my practice mixer wiggle it around to be sure and there are no problems at all.

So another day back in the studio. We go to check levels again and I hand him my cable, which was the one I made, I threw the mogami in my bag as a spare. So again him claims he can't get a strong enough signal. He's asks "where's that mogami" I say I don't think it's the cable. So I switch out cables and same deal the "problem is fixed.

So another two more occasions the last was last night for a live setup. Same deal I hand him my cable and he acts as if it doesn't work. I'm not trying to mess with him It's just I always grab the cable that the front pouch of my gig bag which is my cable. I wouldn't mind it at all if he would just say I would prefer you use the mogami, but don't act as if my cable is defective.

Anyways just needed to vent. I have to bite my tongue around him because he has a bad case of the knowitalls. This guy says he is going to bring in ear monitors for the drummer's click. So he shows up with some dollar store ear buds. I'm like those aren't in ear monitors. What did I do that for because I got a 10min lecture on how a monitor is anything you use to hear and it's all the same thing. I tried to explain I was trying to keep our drummer from going deaf at the young age of 17 from using earbuds hooked into a mixer with no limiter or noise isolation. But what the heck do I know.

MattyH · #2 03-01-2011, 10:17 AM

The 2 experiences I had with Mogami were terrible. 2 dud cables. I've used everything from $100 cables to the cheap gray one they gave me with my Fender AV 62 Jazz bass. Never ran into this problem. He seems to just be partial to his equipment. The only thing that ever gave me signal loss while recording was different basses.

MooseLumps · #3 03-01-2011, 10:20 AM

It's funny that he even picked the cable to start with. That is certainly pretty far down the line when I'm chasing issues, unless the signal is intermittent. And then the fact that the issue was "Fixed"... I feel like there is more to the story. Not to sandbag the op.

Also, the in-ears thing... ya. That's just dumb.

chadds · #4 03-01-2011, 10:21 AM

Sorry.

PaulMacCnj · #5 03-01-2011, 10:24 AM

That's a great story! Frustrating as hell to get the know-it-all lectures, isn't it?

At my last jam, the one guitarist's cable broke and he didn't have a replacement. Since he does the singing, too, and needs a long cable, I offered him my 20 ft. Monster cable. I resorted to using a very short, cheap cable that I normally just use for connecting a compressor or tuner. Guess what? The sound was fine! I mainly bought the Monster cable because it seems to be rugged. I'm using the same one for 5 years. Before that, I was buying the cheap cables and had to replace them every few months.

DaZombieWoof · #6 03-01-2011, 10:27 AM

Cables can make a difference with a passive instrument when comparing an atrocious one with a good one. Active basses, not so much as the preamp is a line driver not impacted by the cable so much.

ggunn · #7 03-01-2011, 05:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MooseLumps

It's funny that he even picked the cable to start with. That is certainly pretty far down the line when I'm chasing issues, unless the signal is intermittent. And then the fact that the issue was "Fixed"... I feel like there is more to the story. Not to sandbag the op.

Also, the in-ears thing... ya. That's just dumb.

Time to get a new "engineer". Even if the cable did make a discernible difference in signal level (which I seriously doubt unless you really screwed up making that cable), he should have been able to compensate. More than likely he was fabricating "evidence" for a pet theory. Next time he calls himself an engineer, ask him where he got his EE degree.