:roll: i purchased a pa system, 2800 to 3000. problem is i know nothing about them. it a yamaha 8 channel powerd mixer with on-board effects, also got a power amp just to power the huge subwoofer. also 2 monitors from the mixer. it does all kinds of stuff. when i play solo acoustic and sing with it it sounds great, but when a whole band gets involved its a mess, too much noise, then too much feed back. tried micing the whole band ,also tried just micing the vocals... do you know of any books for teaching these things. ps the jam space is a garage with carpet hung up to dampen noise. i suspect i have too much equipment for the size of the space... thanks
leave your ego at the door , play the music, love people.
It will take time to understand mike placement and gain structure. Why not have everyone turn down a little until you get use to it. There are requirements which cannot be fulfilled solely by adjusting the PA system; technical architectural conditions need to also be met. Adjusting the system is determined by the sound-pressure-level and frequency characteristics required for where the system is set up. Here's a couple site's that may help get you started. You might want to search for gain structure, ringing out a P.A., Equization.
Joe
real easy fix for now until u understand more about PA
1. move monitors away from mics
2. play quiter( as forrok star stated above)
3. make sure all the highs are up a little and lows turned down some (this will make it less muddy to start with)
4. If your just practicing don't mic anything dont' use the sub just mains and monitors
5. SINCE YOU HAVEN'T LEARNED ABOUT THEM YET, DO NOT (REPEAT) DO NOT MIC ANY INSTRUMENTS EXCEPT SAY AN ACOUSTIC GUITAR. JUST USE IT FOR VOCALS
6. If you follow step 5 when u perform you won't need ur subs for a while since you just micing vocals.
7. Learn about Gain Structure and how to run a PA in general as far as EQ and mic placement.
Learn your PA then u can mic everything and so forth until then keep it simple (TURN DOWN EVERYTHING, and JUST MIC VOCALS)
follow these steps you should be fine for now................If you have more questions email me at [email protected] or IM bignoiseproductions (yahoo) or warpedtele (AOL)
No matter where you go.... There You are! Law of Location
jayrod36
An excellent website to learn about PA systems and how they work is Scotts PA Tutorial. Go through the tutorial. It will explain very basic to very complex systems and how they work. You will also become familiar with terms you might not know at this time. Plus, they have a great message board with very friendly and knowledgeable folks who are always very happy to answer any questions you might have. Check it out.
Are you an acoustic group? Acoustic guitars are very prone to feedback. You usually have to keep monitor volume very low, or use soundhole plugs to reduce the chance of feedback.
Speaker placement is very important. Keep your mains or FOH (front of house) speakers well out in front of any microphones. Monitors should be placed in front of mics with the back of the mic aiming at the woofer of the monitor. The front (part you sing in) of a mic should never face a speaker. Feedback is simply a circle of sound where sound from your speakers is going back into the mic and being amplified again.
There are many factors that cause feedback. If you are practicing in a basement or small room, sound reflects everywhere. This is a big cause of feedback. Every room is different. You have to learn to use the EQ to "equalize" the different frequencies for each particular setting. This too is covered at Scott's PA.
It takes a little study to understand PAs, but it's a lot of fun and very interesting. If you have any more questions, feel free to ask.
Wes
If you know something better than Rock and Roll, I'd like to hear it - Jerry Lee Lewis
thanks a ton man , i'm gettint right on it.
leave your ego at the door , play the music, love people.
