Tubster

Does geographic location play a part? North vs South, small town vs city etc? my recent experience has been in USA - Florida and Seattle. Audiences in Seattle were much more into the music but it was a given that people in both places would try to hold loud conversations next to the band. Now in Spain and Spanish audiences seem more attentive but perhaps they are trying to figure out what is being sung?!

Yamaha DXR12 or QSC k12.2 plus small passive mixer. DXR are a big step up from DBR series. Yamaha have just introduced a new DZR series which look great on paper but are a chunk of change north of the DXRs but if specs are to be believed, should be amazing. RCF have plenty of great products in their range. In bargain basement, the ALTOS get a lot of positive mention alongside the cheaper EV. Unfortunately, like many things in life, you get what you pay for. good luck

We HAD a UI 12 with the problems you mentioned and went back to analogue - soundcraft 20 channel (previously) on sale for around £899 which we picked up for £249 brand new!! Fabulous desk with 12 channels more than we need but who cares?! Keep,an eye on Gear4Music as that is where we got it. They get great deals from time to time. However, mixer only has 2 auxes but we can manage. Many on here singing the praises of digital but we have soured on it after our negative experience - give it a few more generations IMO. . Every time UI is mentioned, there is discussion of a fix by using external boxes of one sort or another but who needs that?. We, like you, want 100% reliability. We can’t afford to be farting around with digital glitches. loved the UI when it worked. Believe tha the 24r is a much more robust unit. Like the look of the ZOOM l12 - could ld this be what you need - has 5 independent headphone mixes https://www.thomann.de/gb/zoom_livetrak_l_12.htm

We HAD a UI 12 with the problems you mentioned and went back to analogue - soundcraft 20 channel (previously) on sale for around £899 which we picked up for £249 brand new!! Fabulous desk with 12 channels more than we need but who cares?! Keep,an eye on Gear4Music as that is where we got it. They get great deals from time to time. However, mixer only has 2 auxes but we can manage. Many on here singing the praises of digital but we have soured on it after our negative experience - give it a few more generations IMO. . Every time UI is mentioned, there is discussion of a fix by using external boxes of one sort or another but who needs that?. We, like you, want 100% reliability. We can’t afford to be farting around with digital glitches. loved the UI when it worked. Believe tha the 24r is a much more robust unit. Like the look of the ZOOM l12 - big surprise! Live recordings - yes please. Good luck with your return to analogue and very interested to hear what you end up with.

BOURNEMOUTH Mid 80s and our soul/Motown band is expanding, we are looking for a keyboard player. Get a call from bloke in his 40s who tells us of his talented daughter. Our guitarist took call and explained all the relevant stuff. Dad assures him that she can blow through this material - no problem! Family turns up at guitarist’s house with keyboard, stand, armfuls of music scores. Pretty 17 year old sets up behind singer but no amp - keyboard has built in speakers we are told so all will be good. We show her set list and she counters with one of her own including “tie a yellow ribbon” and “viva España”. Smirks are beginning to appear on faces of various personnel but no one seems to have the heart to say anything. Guitarist is just about to when girl cranks up her built-in drum machine and launches into “España” in a hideously tuneless voice. Some band members attempt to tag along musically and both girl plus both parents are grinning enthusiastically as she blazes on oblivious to the suppressed laughter emanating from behind. Trumpet player is overtaken with mirth and just manages to get outside the door before he explodes into laughter. We find him 10 minutes later weeping uncontrollably by the stairs! When song ended it was a difficult moment for all but our ever diplomatic guitarist explained we were perhaps doing the wrong material for her talents. The family seemed very satisfied with the explanation and left the house beaming from ear to ear! To this day I feel guilty for the poor girl but in reality there was little that could be done. We went on to hire the fabulous “Mr Amazed”, but that as they say, is a story for another day.

Well, these come in at just under a ton in weight and 200,000 dollars. Wonder what a recommended amp setup would add?! https://www.stereophile.com/content/wilson-audio-specialties-alexandria-xlf-loudspeaker

A friend of mine in Seattle owns several WAL basses. He loves them but he has 2 other brands that he also favours, for tone early 90s G&L but for tone and lightness - MIKE LULL. I own a LULL PJ and it would probably deliver what you are looking for.

Many posters have recommended capable software packages, generally what they use. I suggest that you ignore such suggestions as you have a MAC and you have GARAGEBAND so software and computer are taken care of. Simple interface like focusrite - perfect. You have everything you need minus recording skills. You need to locate a GARAGEBAND user who can come round your house and take you through the software. Bet there is someone on here who could help you. I’m located in SW Spain so unless you’re coming on holiday, sorry - can’t help. good luck, your “ah ha” moment is just around the corner!

Won Ebenezer, I own a blue one. great basses. I think some of the later USA Cirri adopted the Millenium pre amp.

Perhaps you would have better luck Stateside. Don’t think the DLM mackie stuff has had wide adoption in UK and Europe. From what I saw/heard when living in USA, there are far better options - QSC, Yamaha, RCF etc. Size wise it looks tempting but....

Hooray......if it works for you, then the EVOX is your answer. Another thought, can the band adapt to the volume the EVOX is comfortable putting out? Bet it can. Would love to use a pair. Light, easy load and quick set up/strike. Enjoy!

Heard both systems at Jimenez in Chiclana, Spain. Very impressive but the ‘marmite’ look withe Mark signature yellow will really divide opinions. I was taken aback by the large number of small jack connectors. Like the fact that they are standard jacks but made it all look rather messy. The bigger system swept away the smaller one for tone but that could have been due to the source material and eq. The sales guy mentioned prices of €1200 and €1600 per side which seemed attractive. I find myself initially drawn to these mini column array thingies but then common sense intervenes and I go back to the flexibility and expandability of Yamaha dxr, qsc k12.2 et al. However, at first listen, the Markaudios are very compelling. They are entering a crowded marketplace so pricing is all important. Spain is a very price sensitive market so I shall keep my eye on sales. sorry, a very subjective and flimsy first encounter but our band would give them a good workout if the distributor needs to get them out there -the bars and chiringuitos we play are a perfect environment.

G&L L2k

I like Roland quality but the 120 bass combo does not IME measure up to current standards of sonic vitality and is a bit of an underpowered and overweight contender by today’s standards. I borrowed one with a view to buying it and used it at rehearsals over a couple of weeks. Could not bring myself to gig it. It just seemed to miss the boat on every level except its build quality. In the OP’s case, choice will be dictated by budget but consider other combo offerings from Ashdown, Blackstar, GK, TC etc. Then there’s the thorny issue of should head/cab take preference?! I don’t own one but a Markbass 121p is a great practice/small gig combo and crushes the Roland on all counts. Depends how much you can get one for. Good luck.

Sure

I have an Empress wood l2k Usa made, under 8 lbs, maple neck with hsc. Tobacco sunburst, minty. Has to go! Let me know if interested. The l2k controls take a bit of getting used to but once you’ve done the course, it’s a doddle! M -series modern and more polite. Don’t know Tributes just USA stuff.

I,will, thanks a lot

Ped with you on the Octaver. Had the 60b where Octaver was a class act but just a hopeless ‘burble’ on the b1on.

Bought AMP THREE used at a decent price. Have TH500 and 2x Bergantino CN112. Use AER 95% of gigs, sometimes with a smidge of PA assistance. Covers trio playing at pretty decent volumes. Love mine but it came in at the right price. Agree that there are probably better solutions these days, as others have outlined but yet to see a combo one box solution.

Tocamos entre Cadíz y Màlaga. Mi Español es fatal! The RCFs are great but I still maintain 12” is the way to go with vocals vs 15”. However, there is no perfect solution but it’s fun trying. RCF has such an amazing range. I have QSC as I brought them with us from the US. My main point by mentioning the ALTO is that a small, inexpensive and compact sub can add a great deal to a pair of smaller speakers such as the rcf 310a. Not saying that ALTO is the ultimate small compact sub but it works for us for now. Nice thing is you can go rent a sub and give it a whirl. Do you play in Spain?

A very interesting read - veering wildly but all useful,stuff. Couple of points caught my eye Re speaker brand choice and mixers. 1.The qsc vs Yamaha vs RCF thing. They all do a nice job but of the 3, qsc wins for me (yes we have them, not k12 but k8 and the y kill!). However, we pair them with a small 12” alto sub which handles additional low end on bass, kick and keys. It’s a 350 Euro piece and so far has been exemplary creating by far the biggest positive change in our sound. It’s easy to lug and was cheap but what a difference!! Another poster mentioned having RCF 310a - well perhaps this could be your solution? We are In SW Spain and do bars, chiringuitos, lots of beach type places up to about 250 people. Above that, pa is supplied. Our focus is on high quality, compact and easy to schlep. Behringer is ubiquitous here in installations. Nothing wrong with Behringer per se, but being used and abused by countless bands, filling up with sand and at the mercy of the sun, all factors which tend to degrade the output - we avoid when we can. IMO, using 15”s for vocals is not ideal. The RCFs with larger coil for the highs might offset the ‘slowness’ of the 15 but my money is on 10” or 12”s for vocals. Ideally, we would choose higher end rcf, Meyer, nexo etc but keeping it real our next step will be to get a pair of qsc k10.2 and use the k8s as monitors. 2. Mixers - saw the suggestions re digital. The advantages are huge but we mix from the stage. We tried one, after various hiccups including mid-song cutting out concluded that we did not need the aggro and picked up a 20 channel soundcraft (overkill for a trio?!) but Gear4Music were knocking mfx out for £249. It works ALL the time. oh yea, use an AER AMP THREE for most gigs and di out to the board. Have to confess to being a dinosaur but might consider a qsc 12.2 next time round!

G&L L-2000 covers most things IMO. USA used or Tribute brand new meet the budget. good luck!

It seems that 9v is used by some acoustic guitar pre-amps

The phantom power relates to microphone or other item that requires power. Certain mics require ‘power’ for operation - these are usually condensers. These tend to be 48 volt. 9 volt, I have no clue! the DI PRE/POST. most often used to send a signal from the amp to a PA. PRE means that the signal is sent without any influence from the tone controls of the amp - a flat signal is sent. POST sends the signal as you hear it from the amp. Most sound engineers would prefer to receive a pre signal so that s/he can then adjust the tone from the mixing desk. Welcome to AER users!