New RCF TT-08a II - Help!

[Drayman]

Hi all,

I hope this is the right place for this post. I’m new to the board but have been lurking for a while, soaking up some of the great knowledge you all confer so kindly on us noobs. After a long hiatus, I started playing again at 63. Got involved in a punk/new wave band- something I thought I’d never do. And I’m sure I’ll be getting back to my roots with these or other band mates soon. I have a Mason Hamlin AA grand and a couple Yamaha digitals at home, and they’re great. I’m a piano, Rhodes and organ guy by birth, so I couldn’t resist the Stage 3 with 2GB of gorgeous acoustic and electric piano samples- and an organ engine- and a synthesizer! And I’m even getting a handle on the synths for those 80’s guys. Still, reproducing acoustic piano at practice and on stage seems to be the holy grail for me. So the NS3 was the obvious choice for my situation. I can midi the Yamaha P-155 digital for the graded hammer action if I miss the real piano keys too much. Which brings up amplification.

I was running the NS3 Compact stereo through a great old 1970’s McIntosh amp with some pretty cruddy old speakers. Not bad, but not the grail, either. A real pronounced dead spot at the crossover point around C3. So, after reading a lot here by cphollis, Rusty Mike, et al, and at Chuck’s excellent blog, I finally bit the bullet and got a pair of RCF TT-08a II’s. You only live once, right? And we all know grails are not cheap! (Thanks, Chuck- I think…:) Literally got them yesterday. My questions are about the human interface of the RCF’s.

First, there is no power switch. That’s fine, they have power cords with Neutrik Powercon connectors. But the version of Powercon they use, the NAC3FCA are not meant to be plugged or unplugged under power. Neutrik make those, the NAC3FCA-1, but the TT’s don’t have ‘em. What’s the solution- switched power strip? Why go to the trouble of using Neutrik and not use the breaker type plugs- especially with no power switch?

Second, unlike the QSC’s and others that have pretty basic DSP and EQ on board with displays, on the RCF there are only two push-push switches for “Bypass/Local Setup” and a “Flat/High Pass” for DSP/EQ. Other than the high pass, (which I suppose os for using a sub?), the only way to adjust EQ is with proprietary hardware and software using an Ethernet like connector. The very spartan manual says almost nothing about this, other than only RDnet can write to the unit, and using Local will erase the RCF program the next time the unit is turned on. Whaaaa???. So I’m a little bit concerned about that. Don’t want to mess up any DSP from the factory. And I don’t even know what the "local setup" is supposed to be. So I’m stumped- another reason to be afraid to plug the things in.

I’m wondering if I just have to do all the DSP and EQ through a personal mixer or something? Probably need one anyway at this point. If that is the case, do you have any recommendations? And I’d still need to know how to set the buttons. Btw I am an iPad Pro user and can run the mixer through that if it helps.

Thanks in advance from NorCal,
Dré by the Bay

[cphollis]

Hi Drayman -- congrats on your purchase! I have not seen a pair of RCF TT08a IIs yet, so what remains is simply my conjecture.

Not sure about the power handling situation, but it does not sound dire. I have a pair of FA12-ac units that are set up the same way. I simply plug and unplug them, without ill consequence so far. Like The TT08a IIs, they are external for everything: power control, EQ, etc.

Anything beyond a few basic presets (e.g. used on floor, used on pole, etc.) will require something external. The DSP is there to flatten the EQ curve, protect the components, etc. I run my flat, and use an external mixer EQ or board EQ directly depending on the room. A a small mixer will help greatly with gain staging.

I've only heard a few reports from keyboard players, but so far -- people say they sound divine!

[cphollis]

I went and looked at the supplied documentation. Use the high-pass filter button when you're using as a floor monitor *or* with an external sub, otherwise full range. That -- and external EQ if needed -- should be good enough 99% of the time without having to use their application.

[Drayman]

Thanks for the quick and informative reply, and the enthusiastic congrats! I was on the razor’s edge over getting these or the QSC K8.2’s. But given my fortunate position in life, I chose that extra 15% (that cost 80% more). You only live once.

Not too surprised at the paucity of keyboard reports on the TT’s, given the short supply and the price. Also, it seems not too many have heard your gospel of self-powered PA for keyboards. When I was hunting for the TT’s, I contacted RFC USA who put me in touch with their NorCal distributor. He had never heard of anyone using TT’s for our purposes. He also told me that RFC in general have a very slow supply chain. It’s not uncommon for orders to take 8-12 weeks to get to the distributor, let alone retailers.

P.S. Re 8” vs 10” for keys: I have a very old friend who has a fancy Yamaha synth and recently finished a complete restoration of a vintage Rhodes suitcase 88. He doesn’t do much with acoustic piano sounds. Yet he was just telling me he regretted getting 10” speakers for his rig. So there’s some unsolicited independent confirmation.


Cheers!

[Drayman]

Don’t know why that got posted twice. I’m new to this.

I will definitely take your word on the Neutriks. I only went down this rabbit hole because I am considering buying it making a power cable to connect the two speakers to eliminate one more plug in the mains. I have been using the CBC (circuit breaking connector) versions on some powered hand tools, so I thought they were all circuit breakers. But I’d shouldn’t be a problem. The tools are put to much harder use, and sometimes outdoors. Plus, difference between the two connectors is minor and not visible to my eye. None the less, I thought I’d share what Neutrik has to say in their literature for the curious at heart:

Re NAC3FCA:
Attention: The powerCON is a connector without breaking capacity, i.e. the powerCON should not be connected or disconnected under load or live!

Vs the NAC3FCA-1:
Circuit Breaking Capability (IEC 61984) when mated with powerCON XX Series Receptacles.

From the XX data sheet:
The powerCON XX is a connector with breaking capacity (CBC), i.e. it can be connected or disconnected under load or live.

[JohnT]

Why do you say there is no power switch? This image clearly shows the switch.
https://images.reverb.com/image/upload/ ... dqcxnb.jpg

[FZiegler]

Your linked photo doesn't help - it's clearly gen. I - gen. II looks quite different. Nominal power seems to have increased as well - while max. sound pressure is still 128 dB.

BTW: Was the horn already rotatable in version I ?

[Dave Ferris]

Your linked photo doesn't help - it's clearly gen. I - gen. II looks quite different. Nominal power seems to have increased as well - while max. sound pressure is still 128 dB.

BTW: Was the horn already rotatable in version I ?

Yes that reverb picture is Ver. 1. And no rotatable horn in ver. 1. I linked a couple shots of my ver. 1s

Looking on a few sites like B&H, I was able to get a partial glimpse of the back of Ver.2 and yes, there's no on/off switch. I do find that strange. My pre amp/di JMK Audio JM-110 doesn't have an on/off switch either. I guess everything will be powered on/off by my Furman power strip.

A few weeks back I spoke with someone in service at RCF and he told me there's probably less then twenty TT-08A II units out in the field, so really no user feedback yet. I saw these in person at their NAMM debut in Jan. of 2019, a year before covid hit. I can only guess they weren't made available for sale until later in 2019.

In any case, thanks Drayman for the post. I'm considering these myself for my CP88. I owned the K8.2s for a few weeks and while I found their overall sound to be highly impressive and the dispersion to be better then my TT-08As, I was still missing that hi fi detail, so I returned the QSCs.

Regarding supply-- The dealer I use is Craig Calistro in CT. and he told me they ship within three days.

[Drayman]

Here are pics of the actual units. Controls, what there are, are cryptic and the manual is no help.
I got them plugged in to the NS3C using trs to xlr adapters. No volume and thin sound. The old Mac stereo sounds better, but it has RCA inputs so it matches better. I guess I’m going to have to pick up a mixer to do some real gain staging and Z matching. Any suggestions? At least two stereo keyboards and a mike for now. Thx!

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[Drayman]

Oh, and the horns do rotate, but it’s not a trivial process. Not is it in the manual. There’s a video on YouTube by a DJ who completely disassembles the TT for some reason. You have to remove four Allen screws - two too and two bottom - to get the screen off. Then once inside, four more for the horn. Maybe if the speakers would be permanently in the floor I’d do it, but for switching back and forth from stands to monitors, it may not be worth the hassle.

I will admit they are built like tanks. Glad I got the 8’s!

Don’t know why you’d ever do this, but here’s the DJ disassembly link:


Cheers