tags: jack level output battery
The Output Options
The sycorax electric violin output jack is mounted on a separate piece that can be changed in about 10 minutes.
I call this piece a pod and it contains the jack and any electronics that may be required.
I have made this as a modular part so that I can easily offer different options for the output electronics and jack, and so that players can even change from time to time as suits them.
It wouldn't be practical to change the pod in the middle of a gig, but it is certainly practical to change the pod to suit a particular setup that you might be using for a while - for example on a tour.
So far there are two options:
- A passive RCA jack that can be used with the violorama phantom powered preamp cable.
- A battery powered (3x CR2032) pod with a 1/4" jack that can be used with a standard guitar cable (or preferably a lightweight jack cable).
Other options are certainly possible, for example a passive jack output would be no problem, but I don't currently see much need for it. The two options above are what I have ready so far.
Each of the options is convenient in a different situation.
This may be best expressed as a list of pros and cons of each setup.
RCA passive pod + violorama preamp cable
This is my personal preferred option.
Pro:
- lightweight
- no batteries to go flat if used with the violorama phantom powered preamp cable
- simplest possible option on the violin itself.
- violorama preamp cable has excellent sound and very high headroom
- can be used with other external preamps if needed
- preamp can be changed in seconds in the event of an electronics fault
- doesn't require a DI box to plug into a mixer
Con:
- requires a custom cable such as the violorama preamp cable
- to use it with a jack input such as pedals, requires an extra box on the floor to provide power to the preamp. This can have extra features added however such as volume or footswitchable mute etc.
Battery powered preamp pod with jack output
Pro:
- works with any standard guitar cable - convenient for using pedals
- self contained preamp with an output similar to other instruments - ie it is more what people are used to.
Con:
- batteries go flat and need replacing from time to time
- slightly less headroom than the violorama preamp cable (not normally noticable)
- requires a DI box to plug into a microphone input. Can be plugged into a mixer line input but performance may vary depending on the mixer specs.
- preamp less quick and easy to swap out if required (ie not during a gig)