phantom power and line inputs

[tsw]

Sorry in advance for what is probably an elementary question. As is the mark of the beginner, I'm afraid of blowing something up if I make a mistake here.

I'm running the outs of my Alesis HD24 into the line inputs of my Soundcraft M12. I'm wondering if I'll blow up my HD24 or something if I turn on the phantom power (it's global) to power up a mic that I'm running into an XLR input on an open channel of the M12. I'm hoping not, because it seems like a colossal pain in the ass to have to unplug every line input just because I want to plug a mic into a single channel and turn on the 48v.

thanks,
andy

[JHinton]

it shouldn't hurt it, but you should definitely consider getting an external mic pre so you don't have to worry.

[Professor]

If the Heavens allow and the stars align, then Soundcraft should have designed the mixer so that the phantom power only comes out the XLR connections since that's where the mics plug in.
What you may notice, depending on the design is that the mic input will not work at all if the 1/4" line input jack is filled on the same channel. Many console designs today will use a 1/4" jack that opens up the contacts that connect the mic input through to the rest of the channel, so you would have to unplug the one 1/4" connector on the channel where the mic is connected.

Either way, you should be perfectly safe with the line input connections and the 48v and you shouldn't need any additional preamps until you're ready to add them for their sonic values. And you made an excellent decision to ASK FIRST. You've got some money in that gear, and it's better to be safe than sorry. We all started somewhere and tend to try to help the new guys along. Though don't panic if we occasionally answer with something like "don't ever do something like THAT!!!!" well, assuming it's followed by a "just kidding'.
-Jeremy

[tsw]

Jeremy--Thanks a lot for the info. As far as outboard pre's, I've got a few, but it's still nice to know that I've got the mic pre's in the board if I should need them. I'm finding the pre's in this board to be particularly nice, in fact.

thanks,
andy

[Electricide]

I can't imagine that they would design that console to allow phantom power to head out the 1/4" line level jack.

[soundguy]

I can't imagine that they would design that console to allow phantom power to head out the 1/4" line level jack.

just remember, this is the same company that thought it would be a good idea to put the entire monitor output through a $0.87 shorting headphone jack before it exited the console....

dave