Balanced DI Box? I will explain...

[colynomial]

I've got this PA system which I want to bus some tracks to from a laptop. The Crown power amp will ONLY accept a balanced signal. I can send a balanced output from my M-Audio interface to the power amp no problem but if I want to also send the signal to the board/mains the standard unbalanced in/out Yorkville DI boxes that every sound guy seems to have kill the balanced signal so the onstage PA is really quiet.

Does anyone know if you can even get "balanced" DI boxes? One that takes a balanced input, sends a balance output "to amplifier" and also sends an XLR output at microphone level impedence to the board?

Thanks.

EDIT: Got it sorted. Just need some TRS -> XLR Y-Cables, all male. Don't even need a DI when going balanced output from interface to board since impedence is all that matters not level.

 

[AntonioPetrole]

maybe i am misreading what you are saying, but a di box takes a unbalanced signal (ex. a guitar signal) and makes it into a balanced signal via XLR. So wouldn't all DI box's make balanced signals?

 

[colynomial]

Right- but only on one output. I need both to be balanced out- the one going to the board and the one going to the amplifier. I can't imagine what kind of application this would be useful for except in the case that the amp can only take a balanced input. This is my case. I can send balanced or unbalanced out of my interface- doesn't matter.

 

[Force666]

Why can't you just go out of the board into the amp?

 

[Metaltastic]

Or, since you're using an interface, why not output the same track to two outputs?

 

[colynomial]

Thanks guys- Marcus actually I may have just enough outputs on the Profire610 to do that. We've been considering running Podfarm live too (I know, I know) for the sake of ease in which case I probably wouldn't have enough outputs on the interface to send everything twice. As it stands we'd like to bus a stereo 2mix of orchestra/keyboards/etc, bass guitar and kick sample independently to the mains but we also need 2 channels reserved for the drummers headphones which also need to have click. That puts us at 6 outputs and the profire has 8 analog outs. The only thing going to this problematic on stage PA right now is the orchestra/keyboard stuff so I guess Marcus' scenario is the best for now!

I can't go back to the amp from the board because the in house board is presumably far away from the stage where our mini PA amp is. I'd also have to coordinate with some sound guy to try to make that happen which I'm sure would be exceedingly more difficult than just giving him a couple of DIs and saying "here's bass, here's orchestra".

I know this whole thing sounds probably pretty stupid and no one gets why we can't just send our stuff to the house PA and be done with it. Basically, we just have this additional PA which we own and use for on stage monitoring because I don't trust the teenagers they get to run "sound" at local shows. We want to have the option of both hearing ourselves on stage like we would at a practice (since we don't have a bass player or keyboardist, our stage sound is really sparse without our tracks) and still be able to pump everything through the mains for loudness.

Thanks again guys.

 

[ahjteam]

you are just doing it wrong.

DI -> Snake send -> Mixer -> Snare return -> PA

And if you need two outputs, just use two DI-boxes.