Black Box Rack Mount ?

Bob Snelgrove · Post by **Bob Snelgrove** » 11 Jul 2012 6:03 am

Any ideas on how to rack mount it?

thx

bob

Tom Wolverton · Post by **Tom Wolverton** » 11 Jul 2012 8:10 am

Not sure, but putting it in a rack makes the cable from the PSG longer. Is this OK? Brad, if you read this, how long can the cable get between the SGBB and the PU before things get funky?

Brad Sarno · Post by **Brad Sarno** » 11 Jul 2012 8:25 am

Lots of people do it. Just find a generic 1-space rack shelf and make holes in it that line up with the two threaded holes on bottom of the Black Box. I have two 8-32" holes on the Black Box base specifically for this rack mounting purpose. Remove the 4 feet too.

I will be manufacturing a custom rack shelf later this year.

Regarding cable length from the guitar to the Black Box, I find that you start to hear cable capacitance issues when cables get over 7' long, but that totally depends on the type of cable. If the rack sits next to you on the floor, then you could likely have a typical 2' or 3' cord right to it. But even if you have to run an 8' cable to the BB, it still may be just fine. What happens when cable capacitance begins to interact with a pickup is that you get a resonant peak based on the cap value and pickup inductance value. Plus you get a darkening or dulling of the tone above that resonant peak. We heard this effect for years when we ran long cables thru a pot pickup to our amp. Sometimes it sounds cool, sometimes it's irritating. All depends on the pickup and the cable type and length.

I have one customer who played me audio samples of short vs long cables and it really did seem to change when he went from 2.5' cables to 6' cables.

B

Tom Wolverton · Post by **Tom Wolverton** » 11 Jul 2012 8:37 am

Thanks a ton, Brad. It all sounds do-able.

Chuck Walker · Post by **Chuck Walker** » 11 Jul 2012 12:24 pm

Here is the approach I used. Hope it helps.

http://bb.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopi ... highlight=

Bob Snelgrove · Post by **Bob Snelgrove** » 11 Jul 2012 12:59 pm

Brad Sarno wrote:Lots of people do it. Just find a generic 1-space rack shelf and make holes in it that line up with the two threaded holes on bottom of the Black Box. I have two 8-32" holes on the Black Box base specifically for this rack mounting purpose. Remove the 4 feet too.

I will be manufacturing a custom rack shelf later this year.

Regarding cable length from the guitar to the Black Box, I find that you start to hear cable capacitance issues when cables get over 7' long, but that totally depends on the type of cable. If the rack sits next to you on the floor, then you could likely have a typical 2' or 3' cord right to it. But even if you have to run an 8' cable to the BB, it still may be just fine. What happens when cable capacitance begins to interact with a pickup is that you get a resonant peak based on the cap value and pickup inductance value. Plus you get a darkening or dulling of the tone above that resonant peak. We heard this effect for years when we ran long cables thru a pot pickup to our amp. Sometimes it sounds cool, sometimes it's irritating. All depends on the pickup and the cable type and length.

I have one customer who played me audio samples of short vs long cables and it really did seem to change when he went from 2.5' cables to 6' cables.

B

Change, how so, Brad? Less highs?

bob

Bud Angelotti · Post by **Bud Angelotti** » 11 Jul 2012 6:20 pm

I just bungie cord mine to the outside of the rack. That way I can use it for other stuff, seperate from steel, like acoustic guitar.

Brad Sarno · Post by **Brad Sarno** » 12 Jul 2012 7:46 am

Bob Snelgrove wrote:
Brad Sarno wrote: I have one customer who played me audio samples of short vs long cables and it really did seem to change when he went from 2.5' cables to 6' cables.

B
Change, how so, Brad? Less highs?

bob

Yeah, mostly noticeable as less highs, less sparkle and clarity up top.
B

Tommy Boswell · Post by **Tommy Boswell** » 14 Jul 2012 4:53 pm

I tried mounting mine on the changer-end of my guitar. Bad idea ; my single coil pickup was not happy.

Tommy Boswell · Post by **Tommy Boswell** » 14 Jul 2012 4:55 pm

I tried mounting mine on the changer-end of my guitar. Bad idea ; my single coil pickup was not happy.

Brad Sarno · Post by **Brad Sarno** » 14 Jul 2012 6:57 pm

Tommy Boswell wrote:I tried mounting mine on the changer-end of my guitar. Bad idea ; my single coil pickup was not happy.

Indeed. You definitely DON'T want the Black Box anywhere near your pickup, like within 14" or so. The power supply will radiate hum into the pickup. Yet another good reason to NOT mount it on the guitar.

B

Jeff Pickering · Post by **Jeff Pickering** » 16 Jul 2012 3:18 pm

Here's the way I've got mine fixed up:

Thomas Butler · Post by **Thomas Butler** » 21 Jul 2012 8:42 am

I was thinking of mounting it on one of the legs on the changer end of my guitar. That would be wrong?

Lane Gray · Post by **Lane Gray** » 21 Jul 2012 9:09 am

Read about three or four posts above, Thomas.

Brad Sarno · Post by **Brad Sarno** » 21 Jul 2012 9:29 am

Thomas Butler wrote:I was thinking of mounting it on one of the legs on the changer end of my guitar. That would be wrong?

It's risky. If you try to mount on one leg only, it'll likely be hard to keep stable. It's a heavy steel box with a heavy power supply inside. The main reason this may not be a great idea is because the hum that naturally radiates from the Black Box's power supply can get into your pickup and cause hum thru your rig. You can test this by holding the Black Box near your pickup when the volume pedal is on and see. Maybe some humbuckers won't present a problem. I'd say "no way" with a single coil pickup.

B

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