Edirol/Roland R-4 4 pin XLR adapter? at DVinfo.net

Dana Love · March 8th, 2009, 08:14 AM

Does anyone have a source for an AC to 4 pin XLR adapter for the Roland R-4? I keep seeing it mentioned as an option, but I'm unable to find it on B&H or Edirol's site. There's got to be something to bridge between the AA batteries it chews up and wall power....right? :)

Anyone have a part number, or one for sale?

Daniel Epstein · March 8th, 2009, 09:10 AM

Dana,
Here is a link to a typical 4 pin power supply with cable

IDX | IA-60 Single Channel DC Power Supply | IA60A | B&H Photo

I used to modify 12 Volt regulated Power supplies by cutting a hole in a case and adding a surface mount four pin. Cost was about $100 dollars plus making a cable. The cases were a little more fragile than the above unit so they had to be handled carefully

Karl Lohninger · March 8th, 2009, 10:22 AM

Pretty much any power supply delivering the correct voltage and amperage (I suppose 12 to 14 V) will do. Attach a XLR 4-pin and voila. Shouldn't cost more than 30 bucks.

Daniel Epstein · March 8th, 2009, 03:59 PM

Karl is correct about the voltage but you need a pretty powerful supply to run the unit properly. The Power Consumption of the unit is 1.2 Amps so Edirol has the PSB-1U a 2000mA power supply. "Their Own" power supply doesn't use the 4 pin. The 4 pin is really for external battery systems like Hawkswood boxes for Np-1's. You can probably get an Edirol power supply directly if it didn't come with the unit.

Karl Lohninger · March 8th, 2009, 04:54 PM

These power supplies are sold by the thousands and usually work just fine: see example here: [url=http://tinyurl.com/ako28z]. (Please note that this url will expire in a few months or so it's just an ebay link.) This power supply delivers 12V and 4Amps. Plenty enough. Costs like 12 bucks. The only thing to be aware of when using switching supplies (which nowadays though pretty much everybody does) is to check for funny noises that theoretically could get transmitted into your system. I personally never had that problem, but know from others that it could happen. A cable choke generally would take care of that. Total costs with all parts incl. shipping: less than 30 bucks.
4-pin xlrs are used for all (wall or battery) power supplies that nominally deliver 12V - at least in the movie world. Sometimes also 24V - so careful here (batterie packs for film cameras!).

Dana Love · March 9th, 2009, 06:25 AM

It's shameful that English is my first language...and my question was so poorly posed. I meant to write "DC to 4 pin XLR" in my original post. To expand:

Roland makes a PSB-1U to connect the 9.0V DC 2 amp plug on the R-4 to wall power. I'm trying to meter 9.0V DC 2 amp power out of an IDX battery, but I've not been able to find anything which can do that. IDX makes mounts (like this url: IDX | SD-1E Endura Power Belt Adapter | SD-1E | B&H Photo Video) with both 4 pin XLR at 12V DC and a camcorder-specific 7.3V DC.

Is there a cable to go from the 12-14.4V DC 4 pin XLR off an IDX/AB battery to the 9.0V DC 2 amp plug on the Roland R-4?

I've not been able to find a solution, but I figure every R-4 owner can't be burning through AA's all day, every day. My sense is I'm missing an obvious solution, either an Edirol/Roland part not shown on their site or an IDX solution buried in the incredible knowledge base here.

Dana Love · March 9th, 2009, 06:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Daniel Epstein

You can probably get an Edirol power supply directly if it didn't come with the unit.

Thanks, Daniel. I've emailed the Edirol support folks asking for help, but they've been slow to respond. The PSB-1U is a 2A output, which explains why the AA batteries cry out in submission. If I can't find an external battery solution, I'll switch to rechargeables. That won't solve the problem of having to swap them out frequently, though.

Karl Lohninger · March 9th, 2009, 11:31 AM

Let me try again .... your recorder asks for 9V, correct? But you don't need a 110V power supply delivering this 9V but you want to use some kind of battery pack that delivers 12V and want that to convert to 9V ! Is that right? In this case you would need a DC to DC converter. One that takes nominally 12V (lithium batteries fully charged give you 16.8V) and spits out 9V.
You can go either the ebay route and try to find something there (always check amperage) or you go to the source, like check Mouser, they have this thingies in all variations. I did that myself a few times and if I remember correctly I spent about 20 bucks for the bare converter. You add cables and make up some case or fit it into something. These things are actually rather small....mine were about 2x2 inches and maybe 3/4 inch thick. Easy to DIY.

Stephen Hall · March 9th, 2009, 07:39 PM

I'm powering my R4 Pro via a Remote Audio battery distribution system (BDS 2).

A 12/14v Lithium-Ion NP1 battery powers the R4 Pro and my SD 442 mixer.

I used one of the extra BDS cables that came with the starter kit to make an adapter for the Edirol AC adapter that came with the R4 Pro.

Now, I can either plug the Edirol into my BDS in my location bag, or plug the Edirol AC power wart into the adapter I made.

Works like a champ.

Stephen H

Dana Love · March 9th, 2009, 09:40 PM

Excellent!

As an aside, the Edirol guys sent me to EXTERNAL PORTABLE RECORDER BATTERY SYSTEMS. It's a less expensive solution, albeit kind of kludgy. The BDS is exactly what I was looking for - sweet.

Dana Love · April 9th, 2009, 07:45 AM

To follow this posting up, I picked up a Remote Audio BDS2 (Remote Audio | BDS-V2 Battery Distribution System | BDS1/6 | B&H) and the required cables. The solution is incredibly awesome.

Plugged in to one of my A/B TrimPacs, the R-4 recorded for more than six hours straight. I had one pair of inputs providing 48V power, but only plugged in one Oktava MK012 mic. The other pair were taking signal from two Sennheiser G2 wireless receivers. The LCD display was on all the time. A pair of headphones were plugged in all the time. (I list these just to say the amperage draw was consistent with typical use.)

In effect, I think I ran a better than real world test. While the R-4 says it has a 2 amp draw, this shows about a 2/3 amp draw. I expect plugging additional power-hungry mics would increase this to the 2 amp threshold.

So, in short: Anton/Bauer is incredible. Remote Audio rocks.

Chris Sweet · March 16th, 2010, 02:08 PM

Hey guys I just built a wall plug from a 9V-2A AC adapter before stumbling upon this thread. This rating is meant for DC? Correct? (mine doesnt work) Should I build another one that is 12V-3A AC? Also, I never received the edirol adapter with my unit.. is this simply a female xlr 4-pin to female barrel tip adapter?
Thanks!! :)

March 8th, 2009, 08:14 AM	#1
Dana Love Regular Crew Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Chesterfield, VA Posts: 63	Edirol/Roland R-4 4 pin XLR adapter? Does anyone have a source for an AC to 4 pin XLR adapter for the Roland R-4? I keep seeing it mentioned as an option, but I'm unable to find it on B&H or Edirol's site. There's got to be something to bridge between the AA batteries it chews up and wall power....right? :) Anyone have a part number, or one for sale?

March 16th, 2010, 02:08 PM	#12
Chris Sweet Regular Crew Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Vancouver Canada Posts: 89	AC Adapter Hey guys I just built a wall plug from a 9V-2A AC adapter before stumbling upon this thread. This rating is meant for DC? Correct? (mine doesnt work) Should I build another one that is 12V-3A AC? Also, I never received the edirol adapter with my unit.. is this simply a female xlr 4-pin to female barrel tip adapter? Thanks!! :)

March 8th, 2009, 09:10 AM	#2
Daniel Epstein Trustee Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: New York, NY Posts: 1,267	Dana, Here is a link to a typical 4 pin power supply with cable IDX \| IA-60 Single Channel DC Power Supply \| IA60A \| B&H Photo I used to modify 12 Volt regulated Power supplies by cutting a hole in a case and adding a surface mount four pin. Cost was about $100 dollars plus making a cable. The cases were a little more fragile than the above unit so they had to be handled carefully

March 8th, 2009, 10:22 AM	#3
Karl Lohninger Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Los Angeles Posts: 82	Pretty much any power supply delivering the correct voltage and amperage (I suppose 12 to 14 V) will do. Attach a XLR 4-pin and voila. Shouldn't cost more than 30 bucks.

March 8th, 2009, 03:59 PM	#4
Daniel Epstein Trustee Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: New York, NY Posts: 1,267	Karl is correct about the voltage but you need a pretty powerful supply to run the unit properly. The Power Consumption of the unit is 1.2 Amps so Edirol has the PSB-1U a 2000mA power supply. "Their Own" power supply doesn't use the 4 pin. The 4 pin is really for external battery systems like Hawkswood boxes for Np-1's. You can probably get an Edirol power supply directly if it didn't come with the unit.

March 8th, 2009, 04:54 PM	#5
Karl Lohninger Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Los Angeles Posts: 82	These power supplies are sold by the thousands and usually work just fine: see example here: [url=http://tinyurl.com/ako28z]. (Please note that this url will expire in a few months or so it's just an ebay link.) This power supply delivers 12V and 4Amps. Plenty enough. Costs like 12 bucks. The only thing to be aware of when using switching supplies (which nowadays though pretty much everybody does) is to check for funny noises that theoretically could get transmitted into your system. I personally never had that problem, but know from others that it could happen. A cable choke generally would take care of that. Total costs with all parts incl. shipping: less than 30 bucks. 4-pin xlrs are used for all (wall or battery) power supplies that nominally deliver 12V - at least in the movie world. Sometimes also 24V - so careful here (batterie packs for film cameras!).

March 9th, 2009, 06:25 AM	#6
Dana Love Regular Crew Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Chesterfield, VA Posts: 63	It's shameful that English is my first language...and my question was so poorly posed. I meant to write "DC to 4 pin XLR" in my original post. To expand: Roland makes a PSB-1U to connect the 9.0V DC 2 amp plug on the R-4 to wall power. I'm trying to meter 9.0V DC 2 amp power out of an IDX battery, but I've not been able to find anything which can do that. IDX makes mounts (like this url: IDX \| SD-1E Endura Power Belt Adapter \| SD-1E \| B&H Photo Video) with both 4 pin XLR at 12V DC and a camcorder-specific 7.3V DC. Is there a cable to go from the 12-14.4V DC 4 pin XLR off an IDX/AB battery to the 9.0V DC 2 amp plug on the Roland R-4? I've not been able to find a solution, but I figure every R-4 owner can't be burning through AA's all day, every day. My sense is I'm missing an obvious solution, either an Edirol/Roland part not shown on their site or an IDX solution buried in the incredible knowledge base here.

March 9th, 2009, 11:31 AM	#8
Karl Lohninger Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Los Angeles Posts: 82	Let me try again .... your recorder asks for 9V, correct? But you don't need a 110V power supply delivering this 9V but you want to use some kind of battery pack that delivers 12V and want that to convert to 9V ! Is that right? In this case you would need a DC to DC converter. One that takes nominally 12V (lithium batteries fully charged give you 16.8V) and spits out 9V. You can go either the ebay route and try to find something there (always check amperage) or you go to the source, like check Mouser, they have this thingies in all variations. I did that myself a few times and if I remember correctly I spent about 20 bucks for the bare converter. You add cables and make up some case or fit it into something. These things are actually rather small....mine were about 2x2 inches and maybe 3/4 inch thick. Easy to DIY.

March 9th, 2009, 07:39 PM	#9
Stephen Hall Regular Crew Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Seattle, WA Posts: 51	I'm powering my R4 Pro via a Remote Audio battery distribution system (BDS 2). A 12/14v Lithium-Ion NP1 battery powers the R4 Pro and my SD 442 mixer. I used one of the extra BDS cables that came with the starter kit to make an adapter for the Edirol AC adapter that came with the R4 Pro. Now, I can either plug the Edirol into my BDS in my location bag, or plug the Edirol AC power wart into the adapter I made. Works like a champ. Stephen H

March 9th, 2009, 09:40 PM	#10
Dana Love Regular Crew Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Chesterfield, VA Posts: 63	Excellent! As an aside, the Edirol guys sent me to EXTERNAL PORTABLE RECORDER BATTERY SYSTEMS. It's a less expensive solution, albeit kind of kludgy. The BDS is exactly what I was looking for - sweet.

April 9th, 2009, 07:45 AM	#11
Dana Love Regular Crew Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Chesterfield, VA Posts: 63	To follow this posting up, I picked up a Remote Audio BDS2 (Remote Audio \| BDS-V2 Battery Distribution System \| BDS1/6 \| B&H) and the required cables. The solution is incredibly awesome. Plugged in to one of my A/B TrimPacs, the R-4 recorded for more than six hours straight. I had one pair of inputs providing 48V power, but only plugged in one Oktava MK012 mic. The other pair were taking signal from two Sennheiser G2 wireless receivers. The LCD display was on all the time. A pair of headphones were plugged in all the time. (I list these just to say the amperage draw was consistent with typical use.) In effect, I think I ran a better than real world test. While the R-4 says it has a 2 amp draw, this shows about a 2/3 amp draw. I expect plugging additional power-hungry mics would increase this to the 2 amp threshold. So, in short: Anton/Bauer is incredible. Remote Audio rocks.