Stage Snake Recommendations

[bassmansam]

Does anyone else use a stage snake and have a good recommendation?

 

Need a 10/12 way with 20m in length. I've found a few but most look like poor quality. 

 

Something like this...

 

[BigRedX]

If you can afford it, I would recommend getting one with the cable attached to a drum. 

 

I had a 20-way drum mounted one made up in the late 90s with the "stage box" in the drum centre and the other end terminated in a heavy-duty multi-way connector that plugged into a patch panel on the back of the case that held our mixer. Cost about £750 back then including the patch panel that had all the flying leads.

[Jason Karloff]

For a minute I thought you were in an Alice Cooper tribute band. 

[Franticsmurf]

We use one with the Hulla band for the annual festival. It does the job but it's a pain to manage (lay out flat and stow away) and very heavy. As @BigRedX says above, try and get one with a drum as I think that would be much easier to handle.

 

I believe there are version available now that work with cat5 cables.

[Rosie C]

I have a bad recommendation - I recently bought an Omnitronic 6 channel box, but while it passes a cable test, some of the channels don't work properly with 48v phantom power mics.

 

[Mykesbass]

Don't know if this is something our resident cable guru @Chienmortbb can help with?

[basstone]

Perhaps think about making a switch to a digital mixer and doing either CAT ethernet cable  to FOH or even wifi to a tablet etc. There are lots of reasonably priced options about now from Soundcraft, A & H, etc... they have the added advantages of each band member being able to manage their own monitor mix and lots of onboard eq, effects, compression etc.

 

Snakes are big and heavy.

[BigRedX]

While digital is definitely the way forward, I have yet to come across a CAT5/6 cable that is as robust and gig proof as a good quality multi-way snake. For a run of any significant length I'd still want it drum-mounted, so I know it's going to be coiled and uncoiled properly and I'd want to have at least one back-up immediately available.

[Woodinblack]

40 minutes ago, BigRedX said:

While digital is definitely the way forward, I have yet to come across a CAT5/6 cable that is as robust and gig proof as a good quality multi-way snake. For a run of any significant length I'd still want it drum-mounted, so I know it's going to be coiled and uncoiled properly and I'd want to have at least one back-up immediately available.

https://www.bax-shop.co.uk/utp-cables/devine-snu-75-1-1-cat5-cable-on-reel-75m

[bassmansam]

22 hours ago, basstone said:

Perhaps think about making a switch to a digital mixer and doing either CAT ethernet cable  to FOH or even wifi to a tablet etc. There are lots of reasonably priced options about now from Soundcraft, A & H, etc... they have the added advantages of each band member being able to manage their own monitor mix and lots of oboard eq, effects, compression etc.

 

Snakes are big and heavy

 

Unfortunately our Behringer XR18 isn't capable to extend with CAT5.

 

I'll probably go with this Lynx box. It has the exact ins/outs we need and is good quality. They offer it on a drum but it's quite a bit more expensive. 

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/282737274656?

[Woodinblack]

24 minutes ago, bassmansam said:

Unfortunately our Behringer XR18 isn't capable to extend with CAT5.

 

What do you mean? Do you need the XR18 somewhere else?

[taunton-hobbit]

This is a Canford drum, used by the Beeb I believe

 

[Dad3353]

50 minutes ago, bassmansam said:

 

Unfortunately our Behringer XR18 isn't capable to extend with CAT5.

 

I'll probably go with this Lynx box. It has the exact ins/outs we need and is good quality. They offer it on a drum but it's quite a bit more expensive. 

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/282737274656?

 

What, precisely, is the problem you're wanting to solve..? 

[BigRedX]

1 hour ago, bassmansam said:

Unfortunately our Behringer XR18 isn't capable to extend with CAT5.

 

I'll probably go with this Lynx box. It has the exact ins/outs we need and is good quality. They offer it on a drum but it's quite a bit more expensive. 

 

IME having the cable on a drum makes it a lot less likely to get damaged when coiling it away.

[tauzero]

1 hour ago, bassmansam said:

 

Unfortunately our Behringer XR18 isn't capable to extend with CAT5.

 

I'll probably go with this Lynx box. It has the exact ins/outs we need and is good quality. They offer it on a drum but it's quite a bit more expensive. 

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/282737274656?

 

Do you need to have the XR18 remote from the stage, rather than on the stage with control being done remotely?

[pete.young]

2 hours ago, BigRedX said:

 

IME having the cable on a drum makes it a lot less likely to get damaged when coiling it away.

 

I second this. It's also a lot easier to manage.  I had a 24-way 25m one, and coililng it back into it's box after a gig was like wrestling a python with a stiffie.

 

Don't forget you'll need some in the other direction for monitor feeds back to the stage.

[bassmansam]

7 hours ago, Woodinblack said:

 

What do you mean? Do you need the XR18 somewhere else?

 

Yes so the XR18 is currently at the back of the stage by the drums in a rack. 

 

We're wanting a stage snake to run from the XR18 to front stage to tidy up up all the XLRs (there are currently about 9)

[bassmansam]

4 hours ago, pete.young said:

 

I second this. It's also a lot easier to manage.  I had a 24-way 25m one, and coililng it back into it's box after a gig was like wrestling a python with a stiffie.

 

Don't forget you'll need some in the other direction for monitor feeds back to the stage.

OK thanks I'll get a quote on the drum. 

 

Yes the one we're looking at has 4 ins for monitors and sub 👍🏻

[bassmansam]

Found this drum version. Looks solid... 

 

https://www.thomann.co.uk/pro_snake_mts_100215_multicore.htm

[Dad3353]

2 hours ago, bassmansam said:

Found this drum version. Looks solid... 

 

https://www.thomann.co.uk/pro_snake_mts_100215_multicore.htm

 

Is 15m long enough..? You asked for 20m. 

[bassmansam]

7 hours ago, Dad3353 said:

 

Is 15m long enough..? You asked for 20m. 

 

Yeah 15m should be fine