The Equipment that Tomzap Uses

Overview

A lot has changed with band equipment since the early days of the band Innerphase. Amplifiers and speakers have become lighter and more compact, computers have replaced tape decks, processors can replace guitar amps as well as provide a host of effects, radios can replace cables, and electronic drums replace acoustic drums. It is definitely a better world. So we have no guitar amps or floor monitors and the only microphones we need are the vocal mics. We use wireless in-ear monitors and the guitar signals are processed and go directly to the PA system. We use electronic drums. This makes for a clean setup and a clean sound that we can deliver from very low to very high volumes without a lot of heavy lifting involved.

Having this page provides us a place to keep all our user manuals handy for reference and it also may provide some useful information to whoever is interested. We also store our DigiTech guitar processor presets here to share them with other musicians. And also here are some user manuals for the Common Thread Equipment. So here is what we are using:

Gibson S-1 6-String Guitar Tom plays a Gibson S-1 guitar which he purchased new in 1973. So Tom and his guitar are both relics. The original Gibson tuners were replaced with Schaller tuners back in the 70s (and they continue to work perfectly). The original neck was replaced early on under the Gibson lifetime guarantee (remember those?) due to a glue fault. The original clear plastic pickups have been replaced with modern Lace Sensor (blue-silver-red set) pickups which improves both the sound and reduces the interference from flourescent ballasts. Tom connects to his processors using a Line 6 Relay G30 Digital Wireless Guitar System. Strings: Tom uses D'Addario EXL140, which consists of the gauges 52, 42, 30, 17, 13, 10. Picks: He makes his own guitar picks out of stainless steel or spring steel in thicknesses of .015-.025" in order to get a thick, resiliant pick with a sharp edge, not beveled like store-bought picks. The process involves cutting a strip of steel 35mm wide using sheet metal shears. Mark one edge at 40mm intervals. Mark the opposite edge at 40mm intervals offset by 20mm. Mark the diagonals and cut. Trim the corners to reduce the angle of the tip. Debur with a file if cheap tin shears were used. Add a little Gorilla glue to make a surface that is easier to grip.

Ibanez GSR200TR Bass Guitar Mario plays an Ibanez GSR200TR bass guitar which he has had since high school days. Ibanez Electric Guitars Manual 2000

Keyboard - Roland FA-06 Mario plays a Roland FA-06 music workstation when he is not playing the bass guitar. Roland FA-06 Quick Start Guide Roland FA-06 Reference Manual Roland FA-06 Parameter Guide Roland FA-06 Sound List

Electronic Drums Shane uses a Roland TD-9K2 V-Tour Electronic Drum Kit purchased in 2013. A Roland CY-14C 14" crash cymbal and a MDY-12 cymbal mount have been added. The kick drum pad has been replaced with a Roland KD-120BK V-Kick trigger pad. The original kick drum pad lasted less than a year and is not repairable; the KD-120 has a replaceable head (MH-12). The electronic drums have several advantages over acoustic drums. 1) They can be moved in one piece, so don't need to be broken down or set up and don't require cases. We just set them in the back of the trailer and secure them to the wall. 2) They don't require the use or setup of the eight mics, cables, and stands that we used to use on the acoustic drums. 3) They always sound perfect and don't need to be tuned. 4) Jeff hasn't broken a single stick since we got the drums. He used to break about one a day. 5) The band is capable of playing at lower volumes using electronic drums. 6) You can silence a noisy drummer with the push of a button. (I saved the best for last.) Roland TD-9K2 Drum Kit Quick Start Guide Roland TD-9K2 Drum Kit Owners Manual Roland CY-14C Crash Cymbal Manual Roland KD-120 Bass Drum Manual

6-string Guitar Processors Tom uses 2 DigiTech RP355 processors connected in series. The first unit handles most of the sounds and effects while the second one adds the final reverb and chorus stereo effects while the pedal is used for volume. The reason for this is that DigiTech arranges the effects in banks so that you can only select one effect from each bank. Flanging and chorus are in the same bank but there are some situations where both are desired. DigiTech is preferred because of the sound quality of the amplifier models and and the onboard Lexicon reverb. The output is a stereo signal and is reproduced in the PA in stereo for a broader sound. RP355 Owners Manual DigiTech Presets   This link takes you to the directory where Tom stores the DigiTech Preset files that create the sounds he uses on his BP355. The first 3 files are used on the RP355 connected to the PA system and the remainder are used on the RP355 connected to the guitar. These are text files and can be made to work on the older BP350 by changing the file extension to BP350 and changing the text within the files from 355 to 350. They are loaded into the device using the DigiTech X-Edit software on a computer connected to the guitar processor with a standard A/B USB cable.

Bass Processor

Mario uses a DigiTech BP355 processor which is very similar to the RP355 that Tom uses but has models of bass amplifiers and speaker cabinets. His main sound uses the Rock Bass SVT amp model and Ampeg 8x10 speaker cabinet with some Screamer distortion. The BP355 also produces a stereo signal which is reproduced in the PA in stereo for a broader sound.

BP355 Owners Manual

DigiTech Presets   This link takes you to the directory where Rodger stores the DigiTech Preset files that create the sounds that reside on his BP355. Mario is using mainly the 47 M_MTL preset, The other presets are used by other guitarists and guitars. They can be loaded into another BP355 using the DigiTech X-Edit software on a computer connected to the guitar processor with a standard A/B USB cable.

Drop Tune The DigiTech Drop Tune is a polyphonic guitar signal processor that allows us to lower the tuning of the guitar or bass guitar without retuning the instrument. The signal can be down-tuned from 1 to 7 semitones or one full octave or one octave down mixed with the dry signal. DigiTech Drop Tune Owners Manual

Wireless Guitar Tom and Mario are using two different Line 6 products to connect their guitars wirelessly to the signal processors. Line 6 Relay G30 Digital Wireless Guitar System. The G30 has 6 selectable radio channels on the 2.4 GHz band. This is not the top of the line Line 6 system but is the model preferred by many musicians. The receiver has signal strength indication as well as a battery condition indicator for the battery that is in the transmitter. There is also a low battery indication on the transmitter. Both the transmitter and receiver user internal antennas. The transmitter uses two AA batteries and we use rechargeable batteries that last for several hours. The signal level is the same as if a cable were being used and the signal quality is as good as that of a high quality cable. Interestingly, the receiver has a switch to allows you to mimic the signal degradation of a long cable so you can have exactly the same sound. The signal range is better than that of our in-ear monitors so it is not a constraint. We haven't had any interference problems. Line 6 Relay G30 Owners Manual

Line 6 G-50 Digital Wireless Guitar System. The G-50 transmitter operates on the 2.4 GHz band, has 12 channels, a range of up to 200 feet, and uses 2 AA batteries. We use rechargeable batteries. The transmitter displays battery condition but the receiver does not. Both the transmitter and receiver have external antennas. Line 6 G50 TBP12 Transmitter Pilot's Guide Line 6 G50 Receiver RXS12 Pilot's Guide

Mixer We use the QSC TouchMix-16, a 20-channel digital mixer. This mixer can be operated remotely with one or more IPads so it can be located at the input source so there is no need for a snake or hi impedance to balanced line converters. It has more auxiliary outputs for unique monitor mixes for the musicians which they can adjust with their own IPads. With a remote hard drive it can individually record all channels plus the final mix. I have had some trouble with outputs being dead which could be corrected by rebooting. This problem has gone after after a firmware update. Another problem is a random loss of data in the recorded tracks--there are brief periods within the recording that are missing. Since the left and right channels are recorded on seperate tracks and a loss on one track usually does not coincide with a loss on the other, this usually results in the tracks becoming out of sync. This problem was temporarily corrected by two firmware upgrades but has returned. Reflashing the firmware sometimes helps. Clearing the hard drive helps. The PA speakers are driven in stereo. The sound components that make it stereo are 1) the electronic drums which are panned across the stereo spectrum, 2) the vocal doubling and reverb effects, 3) the guitar chorus and reverb effects, 4) the bass guitar chorus effect, and 5) the Korg keyboard which has stereo output. QSC TouchMix Owners Manual QSC TouchMix Firmware Update

Microphones We use AKG C535EB vocal mics which is a phantom-powered condensor microphone with a 20 Hz to 20 kHz frequency response. AKG C535EB Owners Manual

PA Speaker, Low Range We use JBL PRX618SXLF which is a self-powered 18" woofer with DSP-controller crossover. Frequency response 39 Hz to 93 Hz with a DSP-controlled 48 dB/Octave crossover at 90 Hz. So the audio signal is first fed to this cabinet and then the output is fed from here to the Behringer CX2310 crossover. The speaker is powered with a 1000W Crown class D amplifier. With the lightweight class D amplifier and small but powerful neodymium speaker magnets, these systems weigh only 82 pounds. JBL PRX600-Series Owners Manual

PA Speaker, Mid and High Range We use JBL PRX615M which is a self-powered two-way system with a 15" woofer and a midrange horn. Frequency response: 45 Hz to 19 kHz with a DSP-controlled 48 dB/Octave crossover at 1.8 kHz. The audio signal to drive this cabinet comes from the Behringer CX2310 crossover and is in the frequency range 90 Hz to 7 kHz. The internal crossover splits the signal at 1.8 kHz and sends each half to two internal 500W Crown class D amplifiers. The lows go to the 15" woofer and the highs to the horn tweeter. With the lightweight class D amplifiers and small but powerful neodymium speaker magnets, these systems weigh only 43 pounds. JBL PRX600-Series Owners Manual

Wireless Monitors We use four Audio Technica M2L stereo transmitters (M2T) and receivers (M2R) in-ear monitors. Frequency 575-608 MHz. The receivers use 2 AA batteries and we use rechargeable batteries that last for about 5 hours. Having four M2T transmitters permits us to use four separate mixes. Tom monitors the main mix that goes out to the PA while the other band members get their individual "more of me" mixes. The transmitters are housed in a plastic rack case so we don't need to remove the cover for use since the radio signals can travel through the plastic. There are several advantages to using the wireless monitors. 1) They are very light (easy on the roadies) compared to conventional monitor systems. 2) There is less wiring involved. 3) Reduces clutter on stage. 4) We hear a very clear stereo signal. 5) It makes it possible to leave the stage and perform in the audience without the time delay that would be experienced by being some distance from the speakers. The disadvantages are 1) It takes some time to get used to them. 2) The ear pieces must fit well and not work their way out or the bass frequencies will be lost. 3) The radios and ear pieces are expensive and the ear pieces can be easily damaged. 4) It may not be practical to use them in a situation where they are multiple bands playing. 5) There can be some interference problems if very close to flourescent ballasts of if more than 50 feet away from the transmitter AND not in line-of-sight. Audio Technica M2 Owners Manual

Batteries and Chargers The wireless monitor receivers and the wireless guitar transmitter require 2 AA batteries for each unit. We use rechargable NiMh and the preferred brand is Imedion Powerex. Powerex has improved their battery capacity since we have been using them and now have a 2700 mAh capacity but the power retained after one year as fallen from 85% to 75% max. The batteries will easily last through a 4-hour practice or gig but will need to be recharged after each session. The chargers are LaCrosse Technology BC700. This is a smart charger that monitors battery temperature. It also has a test function where it charges then discharges and recharges the battery again to measure the actual mAh capacity of the battery so we can tell when a battery is deteriorating before we find out the hard way. LaCrosse Technology BC700 Owners Manual Powerex Battery Spec Sheet

Video Camera To record our performances we use a Panasonic HC-V700 camcorder. It produces a high definition 1920x1200 pixel video. The built-in microphone does an okay job but we usually use the audio from the QSC digital mixer which also records audio. We sync the audio and video with Cyberlink PowerDirector software. I do like to listen to the audio from the video camera as well because it picks up comments from the audience. The camera records onto an SD card so we can just pull out the card and stick it in a computer to process the video. There is a special rechargeable battery but it doesn't last very long so we use AC power. The camera produces .mts files which we process to .mp4 format using the Cyberlink PowerDirector software. Panasonic HC-V700 Owners Manual

Digital Audio Recorder/Player To play break music and one sound effect we use a Zoom H4N recorder/player. It uses an SD card for media. It has built-in stereo microphones as well as two line inputs and is capable of recording 4 tracks simultaneously. So we used to record the ambient sound as well as a clean signal straight from the mixer. Now we use the QSC mixer for recording. Lately we have also been using a Tascam rack-mount unit for recording. Zoom H4N Owners Manual

Trailer All of this gear fits easily into our 5x10' Tomzap trailer, a Colony Cargo 510V5DY. This is a custom trailer that I tried to have built locally but it seems that for outfits like Magnum Trailer the term "custom" means a configuration that you can pick for their list. I wanted a 5x10' dual-axle trailer and they could not build one. Apparently if you buy a small trailer you're supposed to be happy with a bouncy single-axle ride. I found Colony Cargo in Georgia who could build the trailer I wanted. The trailer was assembled by Arising Industries. Even with the $1500 delivery charge, the cost compared favorably with what was available locally. The trailer pulls smoothly and the narrow width makes it easy to see around and it follows the path of the tow vehicle in sharp turns. My truck lacked a brake controller for the electric brakes so I went back to Magnum to have one installed. They were unfamiliar with the concept of proportional braking control so I abandoned that idea. I decided that money was no object and I would go to the Dodge dealer and have it done right. I phoned Mac Haik and told them what I wanted and informed them that my truck did not have the trailer package so they wouldn't just be able to plug it in. They said no problem so I brought it in. When I got there they said they were sorry but they could not install the controller because my truck didn't have a connector that they could plug it in to. I started to point out that since they were a dealer they would have a schematic but then it occurred to me that you can't just make someone intelligent by arguing with them. Another red flag was the fact that I was the only customer in the service department at Mac Haik (Dodge), in contrast to the service department at the nearby Don Hewlett (GM) dealership which is always a beehive of activity. So I bought a Tekonsha P-3 brake controller and a circuit breaker and installed it myself. It was pretty easy to do, even without a schematic. It worked great except one of the trailer brakes was grabbing before the others so I took the trailer to Magnum and they were able to adjust the brakes--brake adjustment is something that Magnum CAN do.

Teconsha P-3 Owners Manual Now the trailer, which is already Tomzap yellow, needs a sign. I went to G-town Wraps in Georgetown and talked to Roger Smith. He fixed me up with stick-on vinyl lettering that they cut and installed. It looks great and seems to be lasting well.

Lighting Blizzard Kontrol 6 Skywire DMX Controller   We have been through several lighting controllers that have failed. This one has lasted a few years now. It has a built in wireless transmitter that is compatible with the DMX receivers we use in the lights. We usually just leave the lights white because that works best with video and still cameras. Blizzard Kontrol 6 Skywire User Manual
Blizzard Lighting wiCICLE Skywire Wireless DMX Receiver   There is one of these connected to each light fixture to recieve the DMX signal. Some of them have to have a power supply and others get their power from the light fixture. Blizzard wiCicle Receiver User Manual
American DJ Flat Par QA12X RGBA LED Light   Twelve 5-watt 4-color red, blue, green, amber LEDs. QA12X Owners Manual
American DJ Flat Par Tri 18 LED Light   Eighteen 3-watt 3-color red, green, blue LEDs. Tri 18 Owners Manual
Blizzard Hotstik COB LED Light   Twelve 25-watt 5-color red, green, blue. amber, white LEDs. We have one of the first generation units and two of the second generation units. Blizzard Hotstik COB 5 User Manual Blizzard Hotstik COB 5 II User Manual
Odyssey LTP2 Lighting Stand   This is a 12' tripod stand with 4' crossbar. We use 3 35 lb. weights on the legs for stability. It supports the COB 5 II light fixture. Odyssey LTP2 User Manual