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Electric piano into passive board with active monitors question

casualmadness

casualmadness

Man About Town
Dec 15, 2005
2,358
1,218
#1
Hi all…
I recently posted about an audio question and now I have a new problem. Hoping someone more knowledgeable can suggest a solution.

I have a Behringer Xenyx 1222 board running to a pair of JBL MKII speakers. Speakers are active. Also have a midi controller and it all connects to my iMac. I just got a Roland FP-7F digital piano. The Roland doesn’t work when I connect to the Behringer…which tells me I need a power amp to power it, right? Thing is though. My JBLs are active. So a power amp would fry them right? So I’m not sure what to do. The Roland doesn’t even show up in my DAW (I tried pro tools and garage band; it didn’t work in either.) I also tried just connecting it without the iMac. Same deal…nothing.
So is there like a DI box or something I would need to get the Roland going without frying my monitors?

Appreciate any suggestions.
 
#2
Granted the gear works; Signal chain is: Roland (L/R out) - Behringer (any 2 channels in). That's it. You do not need a DI. Not to mention, the Roland is powered.

Make sure you are monitoring the two Roland channels through the 'main out' or cue out' or whichever 'out' you have your active JBL monitors connected to. As far as showing up in the DAW, it would need to be connected via USB or midi for it to show as a controller.
 
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#3
Bonafide said:
Granted the gear works; Signal chain is: Roland (L/R out) - Behringer (any 2 channels in). That's it. You do not need a DI. Not to mention, the Roland is powered.

Make sure you are monitoring the two Roland channels through the 'main out' or cue out' or whichever 'out' you have your active JBL monitors connected to. As far as showing up in the DAW, it would need to be connected via USB or midi for it to show as a controller.
Click to expand...

But I tried that and it doesn’t work. I thought maybe something was up with the Roland so I plugged it into a guitar amp and it amplifies through that. I tried several channels on the board and none of them work. I connected a bass to each channel and they all work with the bass. Also connected a microphone to each channel and confirmed every channel works.
 
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#4
There's no reason for the keyboard to work through a guitar amp but not through a mixer and powered speakers. You are using the 1/4 outs on your keyboard and plugging them into line inputs in your mixer? Can you describe in detail how you are plugging things together? Perhaps some photos?
 
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#5
And I said:
There's no reason for the keyboard to work through a guitar amp but not through a mixer and powered speakers. You are using the 1/4 outs on your keyboard and plugging them into line inputs in your mixer? Can yoh describe in detail how you are plugging things together? Perhaps some photos?
Click to expand...

Yeah I’m using 1/4”. I even thought maybe it was the cables so I tried different 1/4”. I verified all the cables worked by trying them with bass. I tried connecting L and R output from the Roland to the line in L and R on the Behringer. nothing worked. So I connected my bass to the same inputs on the board and it worked. Then I connected the Roland to my guitar amp (fender mustang) and it worked. Also connected the Roland to my bass amp (Bergantino) and same thing; it worked. I thought it should work direct to the board so I’m not sure what’s going on.
 
#6
On channels 5/6 and 7/8 you should be able to plug any type of 1/4" cable (balanced or unbalanced) into the line ins and get a signal. I'd have to see it to figure it out... but it seems like there must be something simple but not obvious wrong here. This is all analog signals you're dealing with, there's no reason for this to be happening.
 
#7
And I said:
On channels 5/6 and 7/8 you should be able to plug any type of 1/4" cable (balanced or unbalanced) into the line ins and get a signal. I'd have to see it to figure it out... but it seems like there must be something simple but not obvious wrong here. This is all analog signals you're dealing with, there's no reason for this to be happening.
Click to expand...

I attached pics of all the inputs and cables connected. Everything is connected and the channels all work and the cables work. Everything works and as you said, it should work: but it doesn’t. That’s why I was thinking maybe I need a power amp to something. But I know that it should work. I just can’t figure it out.
 

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#10
So upon closer inspection, I found a button on the back of my new piano that turns the speakers on/off. I switched it off with everything connected and played the piano. I heard a very faint sound coming from my JBLs. Turned the volume all the way up on the channel and on the master, it does work but it’s very faint. Like, the on board speakers in the Roland are much louder. I feel like kind of an idiot for not realizing that earlier but it is new piano and I’m not super familiar with everything yet. Still though, it works but the on board speakers are much louder. Anyone got any ideas about that?
 
#16
first, xenyx is not a passive board. there's a confusing term 'powered mixer' that is essentially a mixer plus a power amp in one unit, if the mixer is not 'powered', it can be passive or active. you don't have the power supply on the passive board and they're not very common.

second, what does the specs of your piano say? does it have TRS outs or TS? that's important.
 
#20
Is it possible you will need some sort of pre-amp to boost the signal from the keyboard to the mixer? A band I was in used an inexpensive ($100) ART Tube MP to boost the keyboard signal going to the board. It warmed up the tone and provided plenty of gain for the PA to amplify.
 

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