Hi everyone. I’m the play-by-play broadcaster for an NCAA Division II athletic department, and I’m trying to troubleshoot an audio issue with a new in-arena broadcast setup. Audio quality is extremely important to me because I use these broadcasts for my professional demo reel, and I’m having trouble figuring out where in the signal chain the problem is occurring.
Current setup:
- Yamaha MG12XU mixer
- Audio-Technica BPHS1 Broadcast Stereo Headset for my play-by-play microphone/headphones
- Several handheld/stick microphones used for natural/crowd audio
- Yamaha output runs through 100+ feet of XLR
- At the other end, we use an XLR-to-3.5mm adapter/cable to feed Mic 1 on a Blackmagic ATEM Mini Extreme
- The ATEM and broadcast computer are located at the top of the arena
Last year, we used a Yamaha MG10XU and did not have this problem. Our entire production setup — mixer, ATEM, computer, etc. — was down at the media tables with us, so we did not need the 100+ foot XLR run.
As far as I know, we did not touch or change the ATEM's Mic/Line input configuration when we were using the MG10XU last year. Whatever setting was already on the ATEM was what we used, and the broadcast audio sounded great.
This year, we changed the setup to reduce clutter at the media tables. The MG12XU stays down at the broadcast position with me, while the ATEM Mini Extreme and computer stay at the top of the arena. Because of that, we're now running the 100+ foot XLR cable from underneath/through the bleachers up to the ATEM setup at the top of the arena.
Here's where I'm confused: everything sounds great directly out of the Yamaha.
I'm monitoring through the MG12XU's PHONES output, using the 1/4-inch headphone plug from my Audio-Technica BPHS1. The BPHS1's XLR microphone connection goes into its own channel on the MG12XU. I intentionally like to hear myself fairly loud and clear while doing play-by-play, and my voice sounds crystal clear to me through the Yamaha.
My approximate Yamaha settings right now are:
- BPHS1/headset channel fader: between -6 and -10 dB
- Natural/crowd mic channel faders: between -20 and -25 dB
- Stereo master output: between -3 and -6 dB
- BPHS1 microphone GAIN: approximately 12 o'clock
- Natural audio microphone(s) GAIN: approximately 10-11 o'clock
- I've also backed down the MG12XU's one-knob compressor considerably while troubleshooting.
Again, the entire mix sounds great through the Yamaha's PHONES output. My voice is clear, the natural audio sounds good, and I'm happy with what I'm hearing in the BPHS1.
The problem is what I hear on the actual broadcast/recording after everything has gone through the ATEM. My voice has a harsher, almost compressed/digitized/overloaded quality to it that I was not getting last year with the MG10XU setup.
I've tried lowering my individual channel multiple times, reducing compression, adjusting the gain, etc., but I can still hear that character in the finished broadcast even though everything sounds clean in my headset.
One thing I've now realized is that I don't currently know whether Mic 1 on the ATEM Mini Extreme is configured as MIC or LINE. I won't have access to the arena setup again until our next home broadcast, so that's something I'm planning to check.
My biggest question is this:
If we're taking the XLR output of the Yamaha MG12XU, running it 100+ feet over XLR, and then using an XLR-to-3.5mm adapter/cable to feed Mic 1 on the ATEM Mini Extreme, could having that ATEM input configured as MIC instead of LINE really make a dramatic difference in the sound?
From what I've been reading, the MG12XU's XLR output is already a professional line-level signal, so it seems like LINE should technically be the appropriate ATEM setting.
What confuses me is that the MG10XU sounded great last year using whatever ATEM setting we already had. We never changed the Mic/Line setting or really thought about it because it simply worked.
Is there enough of a difference between the output/gain structure of the MG10XU and MG12XU that the old mixer could have sounded fine feeding an ATEM input set to MIC, while the MG12XU could now be overloading that same input?
I'm also wondering about the XLR-to-3.5mm connection itself. Is there anything specific I should be using to properly interface the MG12XU's balanced XLR line output with the ATEM Mini Extreme's 3.5mm input rather than simply adapting the connectors? Could the adapter/wiring potentially be contributing to what I'm hearing?
And could the 100+ foot XLR run itself realistically have anything to do with this? I know balanced XLR is designed for long cable runs, but because the physical setup changed at the same time as the mixer, I'm trying not to rule anything out.
Finally, is there anything else on the MG12XU itself that I should be looking at?
I'd really prefer not to solve this by simply turning the entire mixer way down if I don't have to. I like having my own voice fairly loud and clear in my BPHS1 while broadcasting, and right now the sound I'm getting directly from the Yamaha's PHONES output is exactly what I want. Ideally, I'd like to preserve that monitoring level while sending the proper clean level to the ATEM.
Basically, I'm trying to figure out where I should be looking in this chain:
Audio-Technica BPHS1 → Yamaha MG12XU → 100+ ft XLR → XLR-to-3.5mm adapter → ATEM Mini Extreme Mic 1 → broadcast
Since my voice sounds clean and clear in the Yamaha headphones but noticeably worse on the actual broadcast, I'm leaning toward something happening downstream of the mixer, but I'm absolutely open to being wrong.
For anyone who works with Yamaha MG mixers, ATEMs, or similar live broadcast setups:
Would MIC vs LINE on the ATEM make that significant of a difference here? Is there anything obviously wrong with the way we're interfacing these devices? And what would you test first without compromising the headphone monitoring level at the Yamaha?
I really appreciate any advice. I'm trying to get this setup producing clean, professional broadcast audio consistently and would love to understand exactly where I'm going wrong.
Thanks!