Well, im a singer and for the past two months i've been
singing without real monitor, i just plugged in the mic into my marshall...
So im asking you wich monitor should i buy? I want reverb!:) i've been told that i need 2 active speakers, but i haven't got a clue where should i look for it, what label, how much money do i need..
all replies are welcome and needed,
Marc
God is a concept, by which we measure our pain - J.L.
Marc- If you are singing through a guitar amp, what you need is a PA (Public Address). A basic PA consists of a Mixer where you plug all your microphones and even instruments. Then you "mix" or adjust the sound of each to get a balanced sound. From the Mixer you go into an Amplifier which amplifies this mixed signal. From the Amp you go into speakers. The speakers that play to the audience are called the Mains or Front of House. Then there are speakers on stage so you can hear yourself. These are called Monitors. Here is a very good website that will teach you all about PA's.
http://members.cox.net/pasystem1/
Go there and study and you will understand much better.
The 2 most common PA's are the Powered Mixer and the Component System. The Powered Mixer includes your Mixer, Amplifier(s), EQ, and Effects all in one unit. They are very simple to operate. However they are not usually as powerful as a Component System. In a Component System you buy seperate Mixer, Amplifiers, EQ's, Effects, etc.... It can be really expensive, but you can build a powerful system for loud bands and large venues.
If you will give me an idea of what kind of band and music you play, and how much you can spend, I'll try to give you some recommendations. I'm sure there are many others on here that can give good advice as well.
For now, go to that site and do some reading. It will help you a lot.
If you know something better than Rock and Roll, I'd like to hear it - Jerry Lee Lewis
thanks for that reply, Wes!
Ok, i can spend about 500$ and we're playing poprock,
brittpop and some rock I guess.. Anyway, my amplifier is probably to weak (15w), so i need (i think) whole new system..
God is a concept, by which we measure our pain - J.L.
Merry Christmas Marc!
Wow, $500 is gonna be tough. PA's are very expensive.
You can get the Behringer PMX2000 for $300. It is a very good Powered Mixer, the best bargain around.
I know, I own one.
It is almost impossible to get 2 quality speakers for $200 unless you buy used. Shop around, you might find some Peavey's or Yamaha's. These are good speakers. Get 15" speakers so you can run your instruments through them. Make sure you can take them back if you're not satisfied.
For new speakers you could buy 2 of these Kustoms.
However, they are not very efficient (93W 1W/1M) which means they're not real loud, and they only handle 200W peak which means they're easy to blow if you crank it up loud. If your band can keep it down a little, they will work fine though.
If you can afford a little extra, these speakers are MUCH better
These Peavey Pro-Lites are probably the lowest price GOOD speaker out there today. Very good.
You will need Speakon cables for the Behringer powered mixer. The other end has to be 1/4" for these speakers. Here is a good site for those, they are very expensive. The cables at the bottom of this page are the kind you would need.
http://www.cheaplights.com/catalog/01_info.php?sec=429
You don't need 50'. You could call Speakermax and order 25' cables and save some money.
You will eventually need Monitors so you can hear yourself on stage. But you can get those later. You can pick up speaker stands later as well.
This would get you started well for around $500. You would be able to play out in small to medium sized clubs.
If you have any more questions, let me know.
Wes
If you know something better than Rock and Roll, I'd like to hear it - Jerry Lee Lewis
Thank you, Wes, for this informations!!
I see, that this is quite complicated.. I'll search for this
speakers as soon as the shops are open. You seem to know plenty about PA systems and such. Well i'm still learning, and for now i learnt, that i will have to pay a lot if i want to be in music:)
Well, happy hollydays!!
Marc
God is a concept, by which we measure our pain - J.L.
Hi again Marc,
It takes a little study, but it's very interesting. There are some good sites that will teach you about sound. This page from Yorkville is very informative.
http://www.yorkville.com/default.asp?p1=6&p2=0&p_id=85
If you can swing the extra money, try to get the best speakers you can. This will make a BIG difference in the quality of your sound.
My personal opinion, but I think a singer should own a PA. After all, drummers, guitarists, and bass, etc... spend thousands on top equipment. Shouldn't the singer do the same? If you take good care of it, it will last you for years.
If you run across some good equipment, let me know. I have some friends that know WAY more than me. I'll check with them and see what they think. They know.
If you know something better than Rock and Roll, I'd like to hear it - Jerry Lee Lewis
One other thing you might want to look into is renting a system. You can find people in your area that already have a PA system and are wanting to rent it and run it. This might be your best bet depending on your plans. If you plan on advancing into bigger clubs someday then this might be your best bet. You can find people with PAs to rent and to run them from about $100 a night up to $400-500 a night. My suggestion is to do this. Each gig make sure you are making enough to pay the PA guy and if at all possible set aside money to buy your own PA. Buying a little a time and trying to find great deals on what you buy. Idealy for any good PA you are going to need a set of "dumps"(usually single 18" speaker cabinets or dual 18" speaker cabinets). A set of high packs(usually one 15" or 12" and a horn or 2 15" or 12" and a horn). A good mixer(atleast a 16 channel. If at all possible splurge on your mixer, because you sound will only be as good as your mixer since is what everything has to run through.) Power amps(should be enough power to run comfortably at the right omage of your cabinets and the right wattage of your cabinets) 2 to 4 monitors depending(how many singers and how loud your stage volume is) and a couple of effects units for the PA(as for not going overboard I would recommend a dual 31 band EQ, two dual compressors, and a delay unit.) You could get all these things of decent brands if you look around for used stuff and look on e-bay I would say around $6,000-$7,000 tops. Like I said rent first and save up to get your own. If your going to try to play live on PA that costs less than this you won't get too far, because there are other bands spending $30,000 on a PA that are going to sound better than you no matter if your band is a hundred times better than them.
