Al Krow

@Raj_Shredder That is quite the vinyl record collection you have!

I think the key limitation here is that the Xvive U4 that Ian is using is mono not stereo?

Sending love mate. We're here for you if you ever need anything x

$1,800 for the the Stadium Floor, so maybe £1,750 over here? vs £1,450 for the Quad Cortex But it does seem like quite a step up from Quad Cortex, which is going some? I guess the context for a guitarist is a Mesa Boogie Mark VII 1x12 Combo Valve Amp would set you back £4,200

As some of us maybe aware, Line 6 originally announced Helix on 11 June 2015 i.e. today is the 10th anniversary. @Paddy777 spotted that there's a livestream at 7pm and kindly posted the link and comment below 👇 which I've taken the liberty of pulling across from another thread: "That’s what the livestream is “in aid of” or that’s the justification of it, but they’ve really pulled the big guns out - they’ve invited loads of guitar influencers to Line6HQ for it and really built it up. The speculation is that they’ll announce Helix firmware 4.0 which will have NAM compatibility but that could be wishful thinking or completely unfounded - they might even announce or give a teaser for next gen Helix 2.0 but the counter to that is that the current Helix software is only 18 months old and so I’m leaning towards the former, but I haven’t got a clue"

Oh that is interesting news re. there being a 'big announcement' tomorrow. Because Line 6 announced Helix on 11 June 2015 i.e. tomorrow is the 10th anniversary of Helix!

Pleasure to give something back to Lee. Thanks for organising this Andy x

+1 for Nux 5.8 GHz. Been using them regularly on gigs (100+) for the past couple of years, and have a worked a treat. Previously had the Boss WL-20s which were great sonically, but I was often getting drop-outs with them in the more crowded 2.4 GHz space particularly following a switch by a couple of us in the band to wireless IEMs.

Hi Phil, the ZARs are a little bulkier - see pic: The IEM (in ear monitors) Bible thread - Page 53 You'll read that a few others also upgraded to the ZARs following my tip-off, and generally found the move positive (or at worst neutral): "I have to say that since upgrading to the KZ ZAR's, I find the listening experience altogether more enjoyable." - acidbass "I did gigs the last two Saturdays with them and on those gigs, specifically the last gig, my in ear sound was the best I have had. In fact it was the best on stage sound I have had full stop and as a result I felt I played better because I was so into the sound I was getting." - Woody

Hi Ian, TLDR: recommend upgrading your IEMs. Plenty of options: in my case I've found KZ ZARs work very well and at around £50 from Ali Express they're excellent value. Combine with a decent preamp pedal and a tailored mix from your desk and you'll be good to go! The desk we both use (A&H CQ18T) has very decent preamps and the quality of sound was a step up from our Soundcraft MTK12 which isn't bad, by any means. We are also both using Xvive U4s (which btw are purely mono, so not sure your cunning plan for stereo is going to succeed!) My first IEMs were also Shure 215s. I'd say they were ok (say = 4/10). I subsequently upgraded to Shure 315s (= 5/10). Having read through the first 300 posts (!) on the IEM bible thread, I got some KZ ZS10s which seemed to be the BC go to value model at the time. The KZs with their multi-drivers were a definite step up in articulation and clarity over the Shures (= 6.5/10), but a little harsh in the treble and I found them a little wearing, and I was half tempted to give up on IEMs at that point. I then came across KZ ZARs IEMs, which are double the price of the ZS10s (but still amazing value at £50 on Ali Express), but have been worth every penny for me. Fuller more rounded response (= 8/10). The CQ18T also allows each of us to have tailored mixes, and I've found the combination of a decent preamp pedal and tailored mix from the desk (with the bass guitar boosted in my personal mix) has made IEMs work very well for me. Hope that helps!

That's generously put Phil, thank you. But I think Doc J is also correct: sometimes it's a case of us being content to play something that "just works" rather than putting the time and effort to learn something trickier but ultimately truer to the what the original band intended, and frankly often just a much better bassline than the "flattened" / simplified version I've certainly been guilty of settling for! I'm not going to deny that I loved the appreciative smile from a pro guitarist who was depping for us for a function gig last year when he heard me playing the correct bassline on Go Your Own Way. And yes a few members of the audience do notice too!

Just seen you're looking at something for vocals also and want to avoid gear duplication...in which case the single PA top / FRFR option may well be the better option for you if you're looking for something that covers all the bases (excuse the pun!) Do you have PA already? If not, there's a whole separate rabbit hole for you to dive into e.g. Compact budget PA set-up to put bass through (without back-line) - I ended up ditching my backline for a pair of RCF 912As, but there's plenty of other options! And many of those PA speakers have been widely used as FRFR speakers by BC'ers: the RCF 732A seems to be a popular option and would handle vox better than my 912As due to better mid range horns.

Yes, and the Fender Rumble 500 is also much loved by BC'ers too!

We put our full band through a pair of RCF 912As, without needing a sub, and they provide us with a very decent bass response. A single 912A should therefore be able to very comfortably handle bass if you want to use it as a 'FRFR' powered speaker, and will cost a fraction of the price many of the more traditional separate amp & cab set ups that many BC'ers use. But perhaps the better comparison is with something like a Markbass CMD 121P combo, in which case the price differential is not so large, particularly if you are comparing used prices.

Kinda reminds me of discussions I've had with bandmates and deps around playing a part that fits the song vs playing the bass line / guitar riff / drum pattern of the song. Must admit I really appreciate working with drummers who include the fills and nuances of particular songs we cover vs simply bashing out a rhythm and tempo that fits the song. Maybe that's equivalent to us just playing the root notes? Sure it can be "fun" to keep things simple, and horses for courses, if that is all we want to be doing with our music - getting out and gigging can be massively fulfilling in itself! But equally if we don't have to settle for less, then why not aim to be the best musicians we can? And I'm saying that knowing I've got a very long way to go...