New phantom power cable with bidirectional MIDI by Best-tronics

rjmmusic

rjmmusic

Administrator
Staff member
I just wanted to point out that Best-tronics is now making a 1 cable solution for phantom powering the GT. It has a 7-pin MIDI connector on the GT end and two 5-pin MIDI and a DC power connector on the other side. This is designed to work with the Axe-Fx III and Kemper Profiler.

https://btpa.com/AS-MSTRMBIP-XX.html

We will continue to offer our phantom power boxes. The main reason you might choose the box it is that it's easier to repair - cables can be swapped out with (fairly) standard cables if needed.
 
rjmmusic said:
I just wanted to point out that Best-tronics is now making a 1 cable solution for phantom powering the GT. It has a 7-pin MIDI connector on the GT end and two 5-pin MIDI and a DC power connector on the other side. This is designed to work with the Axe-Fx III and Kemper Profiler.

https://btpa.com/AS-MSTRMBIP-XX.html

We will continue to offer our phantom power boxes. The main reason you might choose the box it is that it's easier to repair - cables can be swapped out with (fairly) standard cables if needed.
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Great idea but way way over priced - until they ask a realistic price not many will sell. Greedy.
 
For the quality of construction and materials that Bestronics use, it’s a reasonable price. I have just recently purchased a midi cable from them, and the cable and cover is far better quality, and the connectors very much heavier duty, than the Rocktron and similar cables I have purchased in the past. To each his own, as we all have different needs. For my uses, it’s a small premium to pay for not losing connection on a gig between two items I’ve already spent $4000 on.

All that said, though, I have the RJM box with three regular BTPA cables connecting, and a couple of spares in the pedal case. It’s about double the cost of the BTPA cable here, but more swappable. The old belt and suspenders approach! Perhaps I’d have just bought two of these cables if I’d have been starting from scratch.
 
$180 + custom charge + VAT to get a 15 foot cable to the UK will probably be around $240 - that’s a lot of money for a MIDI cable despite the quality.
 
Ahhh, across the pond! That explains your concern. The cost is a fraction of that in the States! Point well taken...

None of what they’re doing is proprietary though. Surely someone in the UK can do that for you at a reasonable cost.
 
Rick said:
Ahhh, across the pond! That explains your concern. The cost is a fraction of that in the States! Point well taken...

None of what they’re doing is proprietary though. Surely someone in the UK can do that for you at a reasonable cost.
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Searched everywhere- unfortunately nothing :(
I darnt tell you how much my GT16 cost..... I love it though.
 
I have tried many cables and BTPA.com make some of the best. They have a fair price for excellent quality cables that perform better than ALL of those fancy cables. I have bought and sold many custom cables from them and will only buy from them. I believe you should spend 10% of your budget on cable with low capacitance and wide frequency response if you want to get the most out of your gear. But, I never thought BTPA was overpriced because I have seen the quality in the 50 cables I have purchased from them.

I have seen the wiring diagram on the forum and I am sure it's in the Wiki also. I encourage you to make your own. I just finished my Home Rig with custom cables and bulk connectors from BTPA. The last thing is a 1' jumper cable from the Phantom Power Box and the patch panel. I cut a couple of their cables in half and soldered them to the front panel to save time. If time weren't and issue I would have made all the cables with bulk product from BTPA! Next day off i will tidy everything up and I won't have to access the back for anything. Back.jpg Front.jpg
 
Andy Power said:
Searched everywhere- unfortunately nothing :(
I darnt tell you how much my GT16 cost..... I love it though.
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Give these guys a shout I use them quite a lot in the UK. https://www.designacable.com. I usually deal with Matt he's very helpful.

I recently got a pedaltrain panel made by the guys at BTPA for my GT and a couple of other connections. Pricey? yes but the quality is outstanding.
 
Andy Power said:
Great idea but way way over priced - until they ask a realistic price not many will sell. Greedy.
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Thanks for the feedback. Definitely not a "greed" thing. We have, and always will, stand behind not marking up products insanely to give some sort of allure that it is "high quality" as many boutique cable manufacturers do.

The cable needs to be spliced for the 3 arms to come out. It takes time to do this properly. To add, you are plugging some high dollar item gear, if the splice point were to break and short - there is potential for damaging this gear. To defend against this, we cover the splicing point within a metal shell. We then pot the metal shell with a custom epoxy from the Fiber Optic division of our company. This provides a rock solid splicing point and will ensure there are no moving parts within this area, plus it will make it pretty darn hard to break. To do this requires extra components and time. Also, when you factor into what this cable is replacing (box is $79 + the cost of two MIDI cables) - I would reckon it is pretty par for the course.

Living overseas certainly doesn't help the case (we are trying our best to negotiate better shipping rates with carriers), so that I can agree on - our hands are tied there.

Again, thanks for the feedback - I just wanted to give an explanation on how it certainly is not a "greed" thing. There is a lot more to it than that.
 
BTPA_USA said:
Thanks for the feedback. Definitely not a "greed" thing. We have, and always will, stand behind not marking up products insanely to give some sort of allure that it is "high quality" as many boutique cable manufacturers do.

The cable needs to be spliced for the 3 arms to come out. It takes time to do this properly. To add, you are plugging some high dollar item gear, if the splice point were to break and short - there is potential for damaging this gear. To defend against this, we cover the splicing point within a metal shell. We then pot the metal shell with a custom epoxy from the Fiber Optic division of our company. This provides a rock solid splicing point and will ensure there are no moving parts within this area, plus it will make it pretty darn hard to break. To do this requires extra components and time. Also, when you factor into what this cable is replacing (box is $79 + the cost of two MIDI cables) - I would reckon it is pretty par for the course.

Living overseas certainly doesn't help the case (we are trying our best to negotiate better shipping rates with carriers), so that I can agree on - our hands are tied there.

Again, thanks for the feedback - I just wanted to give an explanation on how it certainly is not a "greed" thing. There is a lot more to it than that.
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It's always great to get a reply straight from the business on things like this. I didn't know there was so much going into that cable. And the point on replacing what you would need to use otherwise (as I did) make this a very cost effective option for USA users. If I were starting again from scratch, I'd likely be looking in this direction.
 
BTPA_USA said:
Thanks for the feedback. Definitely not a "greed" thing. We have, and always will, stand behind not marking up products insanely to give some sort of allure that it is "high quality" as many boutique cable manufacturers do.

The cable needs to be spliced for the 3 arms to come out. It takes time to do this properly. To add, you are plugging some high dollar item gear, if the splice point were to break and short - there is potential for damaging this gear. To defend against this, we cover the splicing point within a metal shell. We then pot the metal shell with a custom epoxy from the Fiber Optic division of our company. This provides a rock solid splicing point and will ensure there are no moving parts within this area, plus it will make it pretty darn hard to break. To do this requires extra components and time. Also, when you factor into what this cable is replacing (box is $79 + the cost of two MIDI cables) - I would reckon it is pretty par for the course.

Living overseas certainly doesn't help the case (we are trying our best to negotiate better shipping rates with carriers), so that I can agree on - our hands are tied there.

Again, thanks for the feedback - I just wanted to give an explanation on how it certainly is not a "greed" thing. There is a lot more to it than that.
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Thanks for the reply, your cables do indeed look good and I’m sure the quality is also excellent, but your postage costs are sky high - I didn’t pay that much to get my GT16 over to the U.K. such a shame but when I add the post and then the custom charge and VAT it courts almost triple
I hope you can negotiate better shipment prices or make them available in Europe.
 
This cable just arrived in the mail. The splice point is definitely metal. Feels very solid and reliable. The overall quality of the cable is above average.

Now, once my GT-22 arrives, I can plug it in and report back on how the cable functions. Just waiting for GT-22s to get back in stock and start shipping again.
 
CaptNasty said:
This cable just arrived in the mail. The splice point is definitely metal. Feels very solid and reliable. The overall quality of the cable is above average.

Now, once my GT-22 arrives, I can plug it in and report back on how the cable functions. Just waiting for GT-22s to get back in stock and start shipping again.
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Nice one, if you are in the States then it is indeed good value, but to get it into the UK would be three times the cost .... so it just would not be worth it.
 
Andy Power said:
Nice one, if you are in the States then it is indeed good value, but to get it into the UK would be three times the cost .... so it just would not be worth it.
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Everyone has to make their own decision on things like this.

For me, I want a single cable run from the rack to the GT/MM. To do that another gadget can be added to the rack or a purely cabled solution can be used. If I were in the UK and using a US manufactured product, paying triple the cost in order to get phantom power would make sense to me whether it be for the brick or the cable. YMMV. Alternatively, I would look for a custom cable manufacturer in the UK to build a custom snake.

That brings us to this: the same math applies to the phantom power brick, right? At an average price of $75, if you triple the cost for VAT, etc; the phantom power brick would cost $225. I just don’t see a big difference in cost. Are you hung up on the idea of paying north of $200 for a cable but are ok with spending that much on an appliance? I think that an additional $15 is a small price to pay to get a pure cabled solution. I prefer to keep my rack as simple as possible. Again, YMMV.

RJM is a US company. You are in the UK. As a result you pay through the nose. I would point out, we Americans have been paying the “Marshall tax” for decades in the form of shipping, taxes and tariffs on Marshall products entering the US from the UK. You do not see Americans on Marshall boards with their nose out of joint because they do not have access to affordable Marshalls like you guys in the UK do.

Just because it is not a solution for you does not mean that it is not a solution for others here, especially US based customers. At this point with 4 of your 6 posts in this thread being about the cost of this cable and how it impacts you in the UK, you are being trite and redundant. This is not a solution for you... we get it, HUA.
 
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Capnasty, Before I ask you to ‘do one’ - RJM shipping costs were incredibly cheap much cheaper than the cost of the cable charge, yes I needed to pay VAT on my GT it was still good value etc...
I did get in touch with a UK company who said they would make me one but would not guarantee it??? Unless I sent them the exact wiring diagram which I obviously cant do. Oh well. The RJM box option is working ok
Your maths skills are not great.;)
 
Andy Power said:
Capnasty, Before I ask you to ‘do one’ - RJM shipping costs were incredibly cheap much cheaper than the cost of the cable charge, yes I needed to pay VAT on my GT it was still good value etc...
I did get in touch with a UK company who said they would make me one but would not guarantee it??? Unless I sent them the exact wiring diagram which I obviously cant do. Oh well. The RJM box option is working ok
Your maths skills are not great.;)
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My math skills are fine. If exporting triples the cost, 75 x 3 = 225. You also threw the $240 number out. 240-225==15. Looks like my math is fine, based on the data provided. You never mentioned what the actual difference was in shipping costs. Or should we just guess?

Perhaps your communication skills are what is lacking? Did you provide all the details or were you vague (after all, the only concrete thing you said was that it was triple the price with shipping, vat , etc)? Your whining skills are above average though.

So if you already have a phantom power solution why are you on this thread whining about the price? You do not need this solution and the cost is a non-issue as you already have a solution. Are you generally a negative person or do you have an axe to grind? If you are grinding an axe over cost, go look in the mirror and get mad at yourself. You chose an imported product, you decided to go with inflated costs.

Nothing you said addresses or changes the core premise of what I was getting at. You decided to use an imported product. Prices are much higher end of story. You don’t get to whine about that.

I seem to recall that there may be a diagram on this site for such a cable, but I could be wrong. Might be thinking of Fractals forum. At this point you can go try to find it yourself. I would normally try to find such information to help someone out, but in this case...nah.
 
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