RECORDING DI - Hi, This is my first post here, so sorry if this is in the wrong place. I have a problem that I hope you guys can help with. I have a number of Behringer Ultra-DI. For some reason these DI's no longer work with phantom power but when a 9 volt batter

Posted: Thu Sep 18, 2008 3:40 am

Hi,

This is my first post here, so sorry if this is in the wrong place.

I have a problem that I hope you guys can help with. I have a number of Behringer Ultra-DI. For some reason these DI's no longer work with phantom power but when a 9 volt battery is inserted it is fine. I assume that the phantom power section of it is blown.

I was wondering what would cause this ( it has happen to about 4 DI's)? And if it can be fixed? And whether it is worth it?

Cheers

For a little background- They are used for keys, bass, acoustic guitar.

Posted: Thu Sep 18, 2008 7:42 am

Just a guess, maybe the Regulation circuit overheated, and cooked itself... hard to tell without seeing the PCB.

Posted: Fri Sep 19, 2008 4:47 am

I think that having this happen to four separate samples of the same type of DI box tells you a lot about the quality of that particular manufacturer's product.

I wouldn't try to fix them. Keep them for use with batteries when needed and meanwhile invest in a different make of DI box.

Posted: Fri Sep 19, 2008 5:03 am

Ditto to Boswell's post.

I like the HotBoxes, Radial and of course, my REDDI's for Bass and/or keys.

If you got the money... Countryman's are your serious high end DI's.

Posted: Fri Sep 19, 2008 5:37 am

Max- I don't get your ordering of boxes. Here are the standard internet prices of the models I am looking at

Whirlwind HotBox - $120
Countryman - $180
Radial (Various flavors) - $200
A-Design REDDI - $715 (If you ever want to create some extra space in your studio, I'll come down and take that off your hands as a special favor.)

I always keep coming back to the Countryman, but I keep thinking I should experiment with other things.

Bear- If you are looking to pinch pennies I like the Whirlwind Director $70 or (if need be) the Imp $50. Both good quality passive DIs. It's good to have a passive DI in your bag anyway in case you get in a situation with flaky phantom power or something.

There was a period a few years back when I read several good reviews for the Behringer DIs. Even a company that always goes for the lowest bid possible will accidentally get a boat load of components that are high quality and put out a simple product like a DI that is worth buying. Problem is, the next boat load of parts is from someone different so you can never depend on them. Replace as finances allow.

Posted: Fri Sep 19, 2008 5:51 am

Uhhh... Bob... nice try... but it's a pair of the REDDI's Very Happy

So... sorry bro... no can give up the REDDI's at this point!

No particular order... just my familiarity as they came to mind.

I've used the Radial passive and active. I like their passive better, but haven't purchased one.

I own a dozen HotBoxes and have used them many, many times. One failure in 10 years... A real workhorse for me.

I've used the Countryman's... wicked good... never found one I could justify the cost when I needed one quickly. But soon will be getting at least a pair.

And I agree... ALWAYS have at least a pair of passive DI's around.

Posted: Fri Sep 19, 2008 7:39 am

I have the radial passive, I like it. I used the countryman's before and had decent sound from them as well. The radial seems more transparent to me.

Posted: Fri Sep 19, 2008 12:08 pm

I agree, I use countryman DI's live and in the studio and they're great. Great sound and built like a friggin' tank. Radial is a great DI as well.

Posted: Sat Sep 20, 2008 8:20 am

thanks guys.... I am looking to buy better quality DI's. I will have a look at those you mentioned.

Also, does anyone know what would cause this? I mean it has happened to four of them. So I or one of my boys are doing something wrong.

Cheers

Posted: Sat Sep 20, 2008 9:31 am

The_Bear wrote:

Also, does anyone know what would cause this? I mean it has happened to four of them. So I or one of my boys are doing something wrong.

Cheers

It could be any number of things that took out your DI's.... most of which, as stated before, is that there is little quality control in their manufacturing process.

Weak component tolerances come to mind first and foremost.

I've beat the fool out of all the DI's I've mentioned... dropping em' as you walk across the deck, phantom power already on a channel strip, constant use during 12 hour festivals, muso's rippin' their cables out by yankin' on the cable... all kinds of serious wear and tear... and now that I really think about it, I've only seen ONE failure of a Whirlwind HotBox in over 15 years. And that was a 1/4" connector on the thru.

Actually... anything could have taken em' out. Just because it was 4 in a row of Behringer crap doesn't mean it's on your end. Now if you go through 4 Whirlwind, Radial or Countryman's... I would suspect it's on your end.

Otherwise, just realize that Hans' buyers bulk buy TENS of thousands of components at a time. If the component is really supposed to be for one device... and it's close enough for another device... it gets selected and used. They apparently don't inspect or test components either. I've seen their gear DOA when it came out of the box. When they make something like a DI, they don't just make a couple hundred... they make thousands. If you get a string of caps that's bad for say- 200 caps, there's 200 devices that are going to fail.

Those two hundred devices are going to physically be packed close to each other... all the way to a distribution center, and ultimately to the dealer you buy from. So, it's no real shock to me that 4 in a row would die.

The only other thing I would possibly suspect is your phantom power from the console... Phantom actually has a WIDE range that it can be. It's generally been settled on as 48V, but can vary from 9 volts to over 48 volts. If the regulator is set too high... say 54 volts or higher, that could be your culprit.

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