Karaoke Forums

Hi guys i bought a DBX Drive Rack a month ago but i just installed

it yesterday for my gig last night and Wow what a difference it just made the

whole system sound better.I was impressed anyone else use this piece.Where

as impressed as i was just getting impression of this piece but mine is its exelent

Kj Karaoke

I returned mine when I discovered it "thumped" my speakers on loss of power. (You can eliminate that by powering down in the right sequence, of course, *except* when you lose mains power.)

But I also think it makes a huge difference, and will get another one as soon as I know to my satisfaction that it won't damage my equipment. I may get a Behringer DCX2496 instead, but the auto ring-out feature of the DriveRack is hard to beat.

I have investigated and seem to find cases where it has killed speakers, though it seems that those are higher-powered systems than my measly 3300 watts.

The amps should always be turned on last & turned off first.

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LIKE Lonman on Facebook - Lonman Productions Karaoke & my main site via my profile!

Yes, I always do. But when there was a power failure, my speakers got thwacked good. It didn't hurt them, but then I read that the DriveRack PA had taken out some. I returned it.

Turns out the speakers it had taken out were being driven real hard, and that the extra 3-4V hit at the peak and killed them. I doubt I would find that, so I am thinking of getting another DriveRack. But it is something to think about.

If there is a power failure there is nothing much you can do it just happens. No piece of equipment can take the blame in that situation.

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LIKE Lonman on Facebook - Lonman Productions Karaoke & my main site via my profile!

Would this aslo apply to powered speakers as well...I thought I remembered in my manual I read that the mixer was last on, first off...but what you are saying makes more sense to me.

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Music speaks to the heart in ways words cannot express.

I've been running a Driverack for years and wouldn't run a system without one. Certainly not the most featured packet processor out there but well worth the money. As far as the "thump" goes, as mentioned earlier you'll get that with anything if you don't turn your amps off first.



Always turn your amps ON LAST at the start of the evening, and at the end of the show amps should be the FIRST thing turned OFF.

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Quickness of mind will deceive the eye

I know that, and always turn off the amp first. But when power fails on you, it ain't possible.

Also, the particular problem is the DriveRack PA. Don't you use a different model? The reason I returned it was discussed in this thread:

http://groups.google.com/group/alt.audio.pro.live-sound/browse_frm/thread/4da4836397f3aac1/545dd2e3f79b5a26?hl=en&lnk=st&q=driverack+pa+alt.audio.pro.live-sound#545dd2e3f79b5a26

I have 3 Karaoke systems and 2 Larger P.A.'s for bands and Larger events. I Have Driveracks on each system. So easy to configure crossover points. The feedback notches are great for a quick ring out of a karaoke gig.

If you are running a club size system (which is what the Driverack PA is designed for) and have gain structure properly configured, the thump, while definitely there, will be no louder than your music peaks. And yeah... things happen, but in all the times power has been interrupted on my system I've never lost a driver, or felt that the thump was even close enough to take one out. And I tri-amp a lot (no passive crossover protection on the compression drivers).

That said, the Driverack is better suited for a live band than karaoke. The compressor is post mixer. The graphic is unbelievably awkward to tweak on the fly. (Because of the incredibly varied mix on karaoke discs I've gone to mixers with built-in graphics on top to compensate quickly, and am pretty much running the Driverack graphic flat). The feedback eliminator is extremely good with both fixed and live modes but again not easy to reconfigure or even reset which I sometimes need to do when dealing with amateurs on the mics.

So... I'm using it because I already had it. But I would probably spend that $500 differently if setting up a purely karaoke system from scratch.

my experence is that a good sound guy can do the same stuff with a compressor, sonic amximiser, and a good EQ. imo they are a band aid that many use for bands who can't tell what frequencys need adjustment. really not worth the cash for karaoke.

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the voices arent real, but they have some good ideas

Well actually it's a piece that has several processors built into it so for a karaoke standpoint it is very much worth the cash. Of course a good sound guy can use all the separates - I prefer separates myself as well HOWEVER, this is an all in one unit for not only space saving purposes, but also have some good processing within.
If you figure you are spending the money for a good dual 31 band eq, $200 minimum. A decent compressor WITH limiter another $$250. Sonic Maximiser for a basic unit runs $99. So right there on them 3 pieces are about $550. That's not even including the crossover with up to 2x6 way configurable, parametric eq, real time anylizer which would add another $3-600 or more easily for separates.
The cost of the Driverack is around $500 for all of them processors in 1 one space rack unit - the separates would already be into a minimum of 6 spaces depending on the size of each piece - some eq's are 2-3 rack units alone. For someone trying to gain maximum processing power in a minimal amount of space, it is VERY cost effective for karaoke. PLUS the fact you can store setting for each room so once you get your room tuned, hit save & when you come back, just bring up the settings.

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LIKE Lonman on Facebook - Lonman Productions Karaoke & my main site via my profile!

"Good" soundmen are an extremely rare critter indeed. The fact that I use a Driverack to make the initial settings doesn't mean I may not tweak it by ear. I find it odd that you consider a Driverack to be a band aid but a sonic maximizer isn't. Since I've been using a Drivrerack I now have a much more versatile crossover, ( which I can adapt to a different situation with a touch of a button). I no longer use a dual rack space 31 band EQ, a BBE 482, DBX AFS224 feedback exterminator, Rane Crossover, and the ten space rack I used to haul around. I have gained the ability to RTA a room and set it in memory for future use and I can add a harmonic to the bottoms if I so choose. For reasons Lonman has suggested and perhaps a few more a Driverack makes perfect sense in both cost and space efficiency. As far as a power failure, as also has been mentioned, that could cause a problem with or without a Driverack in the signal chain..... what should I do with all these patch cables I no longer need, I guess I'll put them in the drawer with the can of pot cleaner. The bottom line is, a Driverack may not be for everyone, but if used properly it will improve the sound of pretty much any system. I don't consider it a band aid at all, more like a very useful tool.

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Quickness of mind will deceive the eye

OK, I'm sold (again). I will go get the DriveRack back.