Roland Professional A/V S-4000S-0040 User Manual
TABLE OF CONTENTS
What’s an Audio Snake ........................................4
The Benets of the Digital Snake .........................5
Digital Snake Components ..................................6
Improved Intelligibility ...........................................8
Immunity from Hums & Buzzes .............................9
Lightweight & Portable .......................................10
Low Installation Cost ...........................................11
Additional Benets ..............................................12
Digital Snake Comparison Chart .......................14
Conclusion ...........................................................15
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Introduction
Digital is the technology of our world today. It’s all
around us in the form of CDs, DVDs, MP3 players, digital
cameras, and computers. Digital offers great benets to all
of us, and makes our lives easier and better. Such benets
would have been impossible using analog technology.
Who would go back to the world of cassette tapes, for
example, after experiencing the ease of access and
clean sound quality of a CD?
Until recently, analog sound systems have been the
standard for sound reinforcement and PA applications.
However, recent technological advances have brought
the benets of digital audio to the live sound arena.
Digital audio is superior to its analog audio counterpart
in a number of ways:
• Exceptional sound quality
• Immunity to buzzes, hums and radio interference
• Lightweight components
• Easy installation
The simplest and most effective way to begin
integrating this exciting new digital technology into your
facility’s “sound reinforcement installation” is with a digital
audio snake.
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What is a Snake?
An audio snake provides the means to transfer multiple
audio sources—such as microphones and electronic
instruments—between the platform area and the audio
mixing console. Typically, the mixing console is positioned
at the rear of the hall, 100 feet or more from the platform.
Traditional audio snakes use analog technology and
consist of a large diameter cable containing multiple wires.
These wires—one for each channel—carry the audio signals
from one location to the other. At one end of the cable is a
large junction box with jacks for connecting audio sources.
The other end of the cable splits into multiple plugs for
connection to the mic preamps and line inputs of the mixing
console.
Though they get the job done, analog snakes are bulky,
heavy and very expensive. On top of that, they don’t always
provide the best possible audio quality.
In the past, analog snakes were the only way to go. But
now, thanks to new cutting-edge technology, the audio
snake has been transformed for the digital age.
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Roland System Solutions © 2005
The Benefits of a Digital Snake
A digital snake does the job of an analog snake, but with all
the benets of modern digital technology. Even if you still use
an analog console, you can gain an enormous performance
increase from incorporating a digital snake into your system.
The benet of the digital snake is that it eliminates long
analog audio signal transfers and the signal degradation
that always comes along with them. This is accomplished by
converting audio signals to digital at the platform position,
which allows them to be transferred hundreds of feet with
absolutely no loss in sound quality. Since multiple digital
signals can be transferred over a single lightweight cable,
the enormous bulk of the analog snake’s multi-channel
cable is also eliminated.
Now, let’s take a closer look at the many advantages
digital snakes have over traditional analog snakes.
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