Click Audio Out connection to stage XLR snake

[Tim]

Hi Simon and team,

I see from the spec that the audio out is a 6.35mm (1/4") Balanced TRS jack, i.e. balanced mono - if switched to this mode. Please correct me if this is wrong. P.S. Great design here!

I intend to use the Midronome in a live setting, on stage. The intention is to feed the click into an A&H stage box (https://www.allen-heath.com/ahproducts/io-dx168/), which only has balance XLRs in. The click audio will them be routed within an SQ-6 mixer to monitor groups and sent back through ethernet to Personal Mixers (https://www.allen-heath.com/ahproducts/me-500). Singers and musicians can then each vary how much click they want to hear in their IEMs.

I have two questions:

a) If I use a standard TRS jack to male XLR, am I potentially going to damage the Midronome if +48V phantom power is accidentally turned on for that channel? Or is there protection built into the Midronome?

b) What is your recommended way to connect the Midronome balanced TRS out to the balance XLR in on stage equipment? i.e. Must I use a TRS-TRS cable from the Midronome into a passive DI box and then a regular XLR-XLR to the stage box?

Kind regards,
Tim

[Simon]

Hi TIm

Wow - unbelievable, I actually completely forgot about phantom power... Very ironic for an audio engineer

TRS to XLR will work perfectly fine, it's like any other balanced signal. DI box will also work but is not necessary (that's the whole point of the balanced signal).

As for whether phantom power will destroy or not the device, I will have to investigate. For now let's say if you can avoid it it is much better

Cheers
Simon

[Tim]

Hi Simon,

Congratulations on the Midronome! A truly remarkable achievement, and I know that you're not at all finished with it.

Now that you have a quite a number more in circulation and manufacture, have you had a chance to test if the unit suffers any damage from +48V phantom power?

I could imagine several outcomes: a) even short phantom power of say <3 secs causes immediate damage, b) phantom power causes no damage whatsoever, c) phantom power starts to degrade certain components over time, i.e. advised to check setup, but no need for live stage paranoia!
Last part of this is then, if damage is caused, what is the extent of that damage and is it reasonably repairable?

For the time being, I continue to either use a DI box, or watch the sound technicians like a hawk.

Thanks,
Tim

[Simon]

Apologies for the extremely late reply The current hardware will be damaged by phantom power. Sending phantom power into the device is not allowed. This has been added to the manual and is now official, again sorry, this should have been made clear much earlier.

Simon