-
Posts
502 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Events
Shop
Articles
Everything posted by Gottastopbuyinggear
-
This is what I was thinking of: https://www.music-group.com/Categories/Behringer/Signal-Processors/Crossovers/CX2310/p/P0132 Mixer main L and R signal outs to that, and then from that you have a high and low signal out for both left and right, lows to the inputs of the power amp driving the subs, and highs to the inputs of your powered tops. I had a very quick look at this while my band were talking about PA options recently, so this isn't based on deep research.
-
I've no doubt someone more knowledgeable will be along shortly, but I'll stick to saying that a crossover is your best bet - I'm pretty sure Behringer make something that will do the job for less than £100. Unless your tops have a crossover in them then they'll currently be trying to reproduce all the low end, as well as your subs, which doesn't strike me as a good situation. Either way, I'd be willing to bet that you'll get a better sound out of your planned set-up than you do currently, just by letting your power amp concentrate on driving the subs and the tops concentrate on putting out all the mids and highs.
-
My limited experience is that any bass sound that I like on its own seems to have way too little high end and distortion/overdrive when played with the band. I'm not sure how effective it is but one thing I've tried is playing along to live recordings of my band, through headphones, and setting up my sounds while doing that.
-
I don't know of any powered tops that will allow that. Depending on what you get then there might be a signal "through" that you could take to the amp feeding your subs, but I'm pretty sure you won't find anything that'll allow you to slave another passive speaker from them. I'm slightly puzzled by exactly how you're set up at the moment - just to confirm, your tops and subs are all passive? And your power amp speaker outputs go to your tops first, and then you have a slave output from your tops to your subs?
-
[quote name='Happy Jack' timestamp='1505211418' post='3370211'] Powered tops weigh a great deal more than otherwise equivalent passive tops, natch. Make sure your stands are up to that, and your band mates are happy lifting 30Kg speakers above shoulder height. I never really understood the attraction, myself. [/quote] From the list of tops the OP has given I think he might well find they weigh little more than their current passive speakers - we've just replaced some EV SX300's with Yamaha DBR12's and they're only about 1Kg heavier. We don't run subs, so replacing the powered mixer (weight of a small star...) was the attraction for us. FuNkShUi, I'm also far from an expert here but I think your best bet is an external crossover on the main outs, which will then have outputs for your tops and subs (or power amp feeding your subs). I think that's going to be easier than trying to use the EQ on the mixer to remove all the low end that you don't want going to the tops, and means you don't have to change the way you're using your auxes.
-
[quote name='stevie' timestamp='1505058140' post='3369190'] By the same token, if there is enough interest in building this final version of the cab, I'd be happy to negotiate with some CNC builders on everyone's behalf. We'd probably be looking at a minimum order of ten flatpack cabs to justify the CAD setup costs. As I am putting this cab together, I'm finding that the most time-consuming jobs are drilling and cutting the holes in the panels. I've just drilled the holes in the baffle for the main driver, and it took me half an hour - and I've not even inserted the t-nuts yet. A CNC'd cab could be assembled in a couple of hours over, say, three evenings and would require no woodworking expertise at all. [/quote] I'd be interested in a flat pack kit, and depending on the price quite probably two.
-
Can I ask what drivers you're using in this build, and why the change?
-
DMX Lights - software/interface/app ideas
Gottastopbuyinggear replied to redbandit599's topic in General Discussion
I went through this a few months ago, and after a bit of research I ended up with QLC+ running on a Raspberry Pi with a cheap USB DMX interface from Amazon (https://www.amazon.co.uk/Lixada-Interface-Computer-Lighting-Controller-type-1/dp/B00ZQNIAP8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1504383178&sr=8-1&keywords=usb+dmx). I've set up a few simple chases, some which change between scenes and some which fade between them. I'm using a home built USB MIDI foot controller to trigger the different chases, and I can also do tap tempo to set the rate at which they change. The foot controller's based on a Teensy board, very similar to Arduino. Depending on how tech-savvy you are that could be a way to go. You could also just trigger some chases from a laptop running QLC. A tablet would also work for control in the set up I've described, but you'll need a way of connecting the tablet to the Raspberry Pi, so you'd need to run a wifi router as well. The cheap DMX interface I've linked above is fine on OSX and Linux but a bit of a pain to set up under Windows. If you're interested I could give you a bit more detail, but it won't be for a few days as I've got quite a lot on over the next few days. -
Oh good grief...
-
[quote name='BassBunny' timestamp='1504356070' post='3364347'] Really it's a no brainer. [/quote] Damn that predictive text!
-
[quote name='BassBunny' timestamp='1504356070' post='3364347'] Really it's a no brainer. [/quote] Damn that predictive text!
-
We've bought PLI through AMPband at a cost of about £80 for the year. My reasoning is that if a drunken punter knocks over a PA speaker on themself or someone else then I don't want to risk being in a situation where someone's coming after me personally for compensation. It works out at a few quid each between the six of us so it seems like a no brainier to me.
-
Pub band - small PA options?
Gottastopbuyinggear replied to Gottastopbuyinggear's topic in General Discussion
[quote name='Phil Starr' timestamp='1504136154' post='3362977'] I'm sure you'll get many years of great sound from them. If you don't blame the band One school of thought is to use the same speakers as your PA for monitors, then if one goes down on the PA you can swap them out. It's worth a thought if you can afford it. Having said that I like dedicated wedges with the controls available on the front. I bought a couple of cheap Behringer 1320's to try out and currently (two years later) they are still going strong and are my 'go-to' monitors, really clear but lacking in bass which is not a problem for vocal monitors of course. [/quote] Actually I've just posted on your other thread, Phil, about side fills. Apart from the cost issue I think we'd like something slightly smaller for monitoring for most of us, though the singer still needs a relatively substantial wedge box - he likes to stand on it... I'm not too concerned about having controls on the front as we can control the aux levels from tablet/phone, although for a quick on the fly adjustment it is easier to just bend down and grab a knob so to speak. On the topic of the Behringer 1320, has it got plenty of power to compete with a pretty loud drummer? Our singer currently has one of the similar Thomann boxes - MA120 I think. It's okay, but only just - the clip light is on most of the time, and it only has his vocals and keys going through it. I think they're rated 120W at 4 ohms, so I take that to mean you have to run a slave with it to get the full 120W. I don't suppose you have any experience of the smaller Behringer one do you - the F1220D? It's a lot smaller and lighter (and quite cheap), but I'm not sure whether the quoted 250W translates into a reasonable volume. Oddly enough if you search F1220D SPL a couple of the US retailers quote it as 128dB, but that sounds unlikely to me and I know that Behringer typically don't publish that sort of metric anyway. -
PA, anyone using side fills?
Gottastopbuyinggear replied to Phil Starr's topic in General Discussion
[quote name='Phil Starr' timestamp='1504136632' post='3362981'] I had the chance to try side fills for the first time this w/e. A couple of Wharfedale Titan 12A serving backline and keys with traditional floor monitors for the frontmen. I have to say the sound was great with vocals and keys really in focus over some noisy bass. No feedback issues on a biggish despite the vocalists using cardioid mics, can't weed them off their SM58's [/quote] Based on your original post I think we're in a similar position, playing cramped pub "stages" in the main, and we're currently looking into getting some new monitors. Our current floor monitors are lacking in power a bit, and the drummer in particular has a problem with hearing much of the rest of the band, so I'd already been wondering about a small monitor mounted at head height for him. How did you have your side fills mounted - can you get small footprint speaker stands for this? -
Pub band - small PA options?
Gottastopbuyinggear replied to Gottastopbuyinggear's topic in General Discussion
By way of an update, we've gone for Yamaha DBR12's (based on reputation for reliability and the four year warranty) and a Soundcraft UI12 (based on having 8 mic preamps, should we need them, and ability to have up to four separate aux mixes). Not used in anger yet, though we have used for rehearsal and I found it really easy to get a good mix. So far no problems with the built in WiFi on the UI12, though I have also got it linked to a small WiFi router via ethernet cable. Still looking at new monitors - the Alto TS210 looks a likely candidate, although there are a lot of stories about the tweeters blowing on them. -
Audio interface for recording band live
Gottastopbuyinggear replied to Gottastopbuyinggear's topic in General Discussion
[quote name='Dankology' timestamp='1503587276' post='3359434'] If your mixer has insert points on each channel (that aren't being used) you can wire a stereo jack to a mono one (or an XLR or phono or whatever you need) to "tap" the signal without breaking the signal chain. You can even do the same thing by inserting an instrument lead part way in but if anyone knocks it you could lose that instrument in the main mix... If you Google "insert point" + "direct out" I'm sure you'll find the (very simple) wiring diagram. Even simpler if you're lucky enough to have proper direct outs on your mixer. Or something that delivers all the audio to a memory stick or laptop ) I've got a Tascam 16 track interface that was great for recording gigs - can't remember the exact model and am not at home to check but I think it has 8 phantom-equipped XLRs another 6 jack inputs plus a stereo digital input. We now use 3 x 8-channel splitters plus an Alesis HD24 - which works great apart from in places where they use a digital snake... Depending on the circumstances we also occasionally use a 4-track Tascam recorder with the board signal going into two channels and a pair of stereo mics going into the other two - not really what you're asking about but can give very satisfying results. [/quote] Sadly the mixer (UI12 - see above just posted) doesn't have insert points, so that's not an option, but thanks for the suggestion - I've just googled it so I've learned something new! The mixer will record to USB, but as far as I can tell there's no control over that, it's simply whatever's on the main outs - which makes sense in some situations but not ours. -
Audio interface for recording band live
Gottastopbuyinggear replied to Gottastopbuyinggear's topic in General Discussion
Dood, the XR18 would have been my first choice for mixer for the reasons you stated, but I couldn't really justify the cost - I think they're about £600 at the moment? We're a pub band, playing at most a couple of gigs a month (and only in the last 10 months or so) purely for the fun of it, so whilst we do get paid we're not exactly rolling in cash. We've actually gone for the Soundcraft UI12 (eyes wide open, and fingers firmly crossed on this - I've read the stories about WiFi drop outs, so I'll be using an external router, and I'm not worried about noisy preamps - we're a pub band!). I did look at the smallest of the Behringer XR mixers but the Soundcraft won it on the fact that it's got more preamps and also the ability to have four separate aux mixes - I have a cunning plan to try and get myself and the drummer onto in-ears, but I think that's a way off yet. As I said, this is more a potential personal project - I'd probably be happy to spend a couple of hundred on an audio interface, but if it gets beyond that (e.g. with mic splitters, etc.) then it's probably getting too expensive. It was more a question of understanding what the capabilities of some of these interfaces are with respect to routing ins to outs with no, or acceptable, latency. Also the Focusrite in particular, whilst being relatively old technology, seems to be a pretty good deal at £250 at the moment - I guess they're probably about to be (or already are) discontinued. -
I'm in the process of acquiring a new PA for my pub band, and it's got me thinking about options for getting some better quality live recordings. We currently put keys and vocals only through the PA, so taking a stereo out from the mixer isn't any help, and as we only have PA tops we couldn't sensibly put the drums and bass through the PA in order to have everything in the mix for recording. I could use a couple of the aux outputs, and put everything into those auxes, but even then I think getting a decent stereo mix is going to be difficult. I was looking around at low cost audio interfaces with at least 8 inputs / mic pre's, and there's things like the Tascam 16x08, a Behringer model I can't recall the name of, and the Focusrite Saffire Pro 40 in the £200 to £300 range. The question I have is whether any of these, or similar devices, will allow me to do a multitrack recording and in parallel feed the vocals and keys inputs straight through to outputs (so I can take them into our mixer for the PA) with zero or low enough latency for the live sound. Does anyone have any experience of trying to do this? The only other solution I can think of at the moment would be to get an 8 channel passive mic splitter, to feed the audio interface and PA mixer in parallel, but even a cheap one of those is the best part of £100. At the moment this is more a personal "I fancy having a go at this" project rather than a band requirement, hence the budget limitation. We've talked about options for getting decent demo recordings together (just to support getting gigs) and the consensus seems to be that the safer option would be to spend a couple of hundred on getting that done in a studio. To be honest, while I think I could probably get a reasonable source recording, I appreciate (from a limited amount of home recording) that getting a decent mix is an entirely different matter, so I'm not willing to stick my neck out and say "buy the kit and I'll make us a demo".
-
Have you found it okay with an external router? I have jumped in now and bought a UI12, which should get its first outing tomorrow, but it'll be feeding the power amp section of a powered mixer so we can drop back to the mixer section of that if needed - only keys and vocals going through and I have a note of the settings we used in the venue last time, so hopefully it would be an easy change. I'm using an external router with it, connected via Ethernet cable, and it seemed pretty solid just sitting in the house yesterday for a few hours, but that's far from a scientific test.
-
Rechargeable power supply station....?
Gottastopbuyinggear replied to chrisanthony1211's topic in Accessories and Misc
I use a very similar setup to power a Polytune, VT Bass Deluxe and a TC Spectracomp. Lasts for ages, and I've had no noise issues at all. The only problem I have had is that the power pack switches itself off if it doesn't have a minimum of about 30 or 40mA being drawn, so I've added an LED and resistor to maintain that constant draw. -
...and yes, the manual is quite a weighty tome isn't it! I'm still in two minds about the mixer to be honest. It's hugely capable for the money, and the idea of things like automatic feedback suppression on each of the auxes, the ability to save settings for a venue, etc. are quite compelling. On the other hand, though, the immediacy of something with a bunch of physical controls that you can just grab if you need to is also quite appealing.
-
Thanks for the reply. I have to admit I'd assumed that the level on the headphone out would be higher than line level, but I appreciate that's over simplifying it and not taking into account the impedance of whatever it's driving. I think you're right about trying it just with an unbalanced cable to a monitor - it's probably only going to be a run of about fifteen or twenty feet, so it should be okay.
-
My band is thinking of buying a Soundcraft UI12, which has two balanced aux outputs, and a headphone socket which can be assigned in the mixer as a two further aux outs. I might want to use a DI box (or boxes) to convert these outputs to balanced line for sending to powered monitors or possibly a personal mixer for IEMs. Would I be right in assuming that a passive DI box will be fine for this and there would be no gain (no pun intended) in going for an active box? Anyone care to recommend a good budget, preferably dual, DI box? I'm looking at the likes of Behringer, Studiospares' own brand, or maybe the ART Dual Z Direct? It doesn't need to be hi-fi, but something reasonably robust and reliable would be good.
-
New Yamaha bass price hikes
Gottastopbuyinggear replied to hookys6stringbass's topic in Bass Guitars
I was looking at DBR 12s. Up from £362 to a whopping £486 in many shops.