gazhowe

I'm fairly new to IEM's but not having an issue with not 'feeling it'.  My band only does occasional house rehearsals (when we learn new material) so the challenge i have at the moment is improving my personal IEM mix. It was awful at first but it's starting to come together after 4 gigs, mainly due to realising I need a different bass sound in my ears to what is going to FOH.  

We use backline and put everything through the PA but have recently lowered the guitar and bass backline volume to help reduce stage volume.  We do our own on-stage mix which is sound checked by me without my IEM in and we're happy with our FOH sound.  I'm interested in silent stage but more from the point of not having to carry backline.  Unfortunately I suspect this won't happen as the guitarist likes his amp and it may require a PA upgrade which the band are unlikely to invest in.

Torpedo CAB M+ amp and cabinet simulator and IR loader.  Includes Bergantino impulse response (IR) files purchased separately.  Original power supply and packaging also included.

This is in immaculate condition having only been used twice at home.  The pedal has velcro on the bottom for attaching to a pedalboard.  I can remove this prior to sale if required.

Price includes UK postage.  Price would be £150 for local collection.

21 hours ago, Kirky said:

My IEM journey so far.   I've done gigs using methods 1 and 2 below, cheaply using AS-10 earpieces and  P2.   Sometimes I use the Zoom, which has the advantage of me tweaking my bass volume and getting some ambient room sound too.  All wired so far.

 

I think my next step is to move to no 3, and buying a P16M.  This will still be wired, but give me more control of the mix (an iPad is too fiddly for me) and a stereo mix (if I've understood correctly).  

 

If that goes well, when funds allow I'll move to wireless.    I'll also upgrade my earphones when funds allow. 

 

The band all play through the PA (a Behringer X18) and everyone else is on mono wireless IEMs.  We gig two to four times a month.

 

Any thoughts/suggestions?  

I'm basically doing option 4 but with a Presonus desk and Earmix personal mixer. 
 

My bass feed to the desk is split to two channels, one for FOH and the other for my monitor feed. The only EQ difference between the two is that the high pass filter on my bass is set at a higher point for my monitor feed. 

7 minutes ago, Pirellithecat said:

Used a passive DI box to take signal from Insert on the mixer bass guitar channel to a free channel so I now have a FOH bass feed and an IEM bass feed

I can now adjust volume and tone for on stage, In Ear and FOH independently🤞

We'll see how it goes at tomorrow's gig!!  Thanks all!

 

Hope it works out well. Let everyone know how it works out please.

18 hours ago, mikegatward said:

For my needs I’m wondering if the ADJ DMX 384 Controller would be better than the Obey 70

 

Can buy new for £104 and it has the plus a midi command to turn sound to light off and on which would be useful.

I can't comment on the Obey 70 but have used the ADJ DMX384 Commander controller.  It's an easy to set up and used controller for static lights and should meet your current needs.  It's not great for programming moving heads which is why I moved to the ADJ DMX Pro app for iPad.  Something to consider if there's a chance you will add moving head lights to your setup in the future. 

I've used several different DMX controllers but now use the ADJ Airstream DMX Pro app for iPad. It's free however you need to buy one of two receivers that connect to your lights via DMX cable. 

Airstream DMX bridge - connects to your iPad via its own WiFi network. It can be prone to dropouts in some venues where there is lots of traffic on the 2.4gh spectrum. You can scan and select different frequency ranges to help minimise risk of this happening. 
 

4Stream DMX Bridge - provides the above connectivity option plus an option to connect to your iPad via a cable, therefore avoiding risk of drop outs. 
 

Drop me a PM if you would like to know more about how these work. 

Just ordered 2 sets of Sunbeams (45-100) from the States. Came to just under £48 including delivery. 

https://www.stringsbymail.com/dr-nmlr-45-sunbeam-nickel-plated-electric-bass-strings-med-light-45-100-22362.html

2 hours ago, Bill Fitzmaurice said:

Rookie mistake, though you see plenty of old timers dong it too. Everything should go into the PA. It's not about volume, it's about dispersion of the mids and highs. Every amp, including yours, has limited midrange and high frequency dispersion. Highpass all the instrument channels at 100 to 125Hz. This means buying a mixer with at least twelve channels. If you try to save money with a six or eight channel mixer you'll either lose money by having to replace it early on or lose functionality by not having enough channels.

I played pubs for years with everything going through the PA except the bass, as we thought it wasn't necessary for the size of venues.  Even with good quality gear (Bergantino B|Amp with a Bergantino AE410, then NXT212) everyone in the band has agreed there is a noticeable improvement in our FOH sound since I started putting the bass through the PA last year (while retaining my backline). 

If budget allows, I'd also second Bill's advice about buying a mixer with enough channels to put everything through it.  I wouldn't like to think about the amount of times I've wasted money on incremental upgrades.

On 27/12/2023 at 15:59, MrPring said:

Thanks for the detailed response! 

 

I see the custom IEM company has universal demo units. 

 

Might make an appointment to head down and listen to some options and get my impressions done from them. 

 

Definitely wouldn't be wanting to go lower than quads 🤠

Good call to make an appointment with Paul at the Custom In Ear company. Following lots of great info in this thread from @EBS_freak and others I made an appointment with Paul in August to demo the Ultimate Ears UE6 & UE11, and 64 Audio's A4s. I went for the A4s (https://www.64audio.com/products/a4s) although the UE6 did sound good too. 

I owned the Broughton HPF and LPF pedal (https://www.broughtonaudio.com/product-page/low-high-pass-filter) which is a great bit of kit however the setting numbers can be difficult to see on stage. I only sold mine because my amp has both filters built in. There is a cheaper option of a Broughton HPF only pedal that is decent value for money. 

Mainly this…

Airstream DMX is worth checking out. iPad control to a small receiver that is then connected via DMX to your lights. There are two apps, both free. The Pro app is the one to use as it is updated regularly with new features. There are two receiver options - one has only a Wi-Fi connection to the iPad and the other allows Wi-Fi or wired connection. You only need to buy one of these. If you want further information please feel free to PM me. 

Might work out better and more cost effective in the long run to upgrade to a bigger board. That way you could put your Spectradrive and Chorus on it now and avoid the need to compromise/limit your choice on any future pedal upgrades due to space. 

I usually around £30 for a set of DR Sunbeams (45-100). The last ones were from Strings by Mail and worked out less than that including shipping from the US. I’d prefer to buy from a UK retailer but it just doesn’t make sense given the current price difference. 
 

https://www.stringsbymail.com/dr-nmlr-45-sunbeam-nickel-plated-electric-bass-strings-med-light-45-100-22362.html

I tried universal fit iem’s for the first time at a couple of gigs before my band went on hold due to losing our lead vocalist (hopefully now sorted). Whilst I wasn’t happy with my bass tone through the in ears in the limited time i used them I expect this will get better though time and experimenting.
 

What was great was the noise reduction, which was the main reason for trying iems. Due my worsening hearing I’ve decided to go for custom fit and booked an appointment for later this month to try the UE6 and UE11 pros and possibly some JH11’s prior to ordering.

I’ve discounted 64 audio due to less isolation offered than UE or JH.

Does anyone have any views on comparisons between the above three models they could share please?

Thanks in advance, Gaz

47 minutes ago, jimmyb625 said:

Has anyone given the Sennheiser XSW's a go?

I'm wondering if they're worth a look as an upgrade to the LD systems we're using (MEI 1000 and U508). They're cheaper than the G4 system, but I wonder if it's false economy.

I’ve got one but only used it 3 times before we lost our singer so it’s gathering dust for now. The audio quality was good with no dropouts. Our guitarist has used one for a year and is happy with his (he moved from an xvive system due to frequent dropouts and a desire to have a stereo mix). 

26 minutes ago, Al Krow said:

Apologies if this question has been dealt with before, but with a Behringer P2 would folk recommend getting:

(i) XLR to 1/4" jack lead to connect the P2 to the desk in preference over a normal guitar cable, or doesn't it matter much?

(ii) Does the 1/4" jack need to be TRS?

We been using a XLR to XLR cable between our desk and the Behringer P2 for some time without any issues.  We haven't tried using XLR to 1/4" jack so I can't comment on that.  Can only suggest you go with XLR to XLR if you can.

I've just received my first scratch plate from Tim and I must say I'm really impressed.  I love the colour and it fits perfectly.  Great communications throughout and I received it only nine days after ordering. I'll definitely be ordering another.😎

20 hours ago, EBS_freak said:

Imagine standing with your setup now and sticking your fingers deep into your ears. Thats the isolation that an IEM will typically give you. With your IEMs, all you need is a little volume to get over that ambient stage volume. In reality, the volume you need in the IEMs can be pretty quiet - and it certainly can be a lot less than playing with no hearing protection. If your backline was for your monitoring needs only, you may as well save your back and journeys to and from the car - assuming that the PA can cover your FoH needs without backline. (I'm also assuming that nobody else on stage is requiring your bass cab for their monitoring needs).

 

UE6 vs A4s are going to be largely separated by price. If you can afford to go to A4s, then the balanced armatures in the A4 will reveal a greater level of precision, especially in the mids and lows. The UE6 has a warmer timbre due to the inclusion of dynamic drivers and arguably not as detailed (but you know, I'm talking in uber obsessive terms terms here, the UE6s are going to sound way, way, way better than the majority of universal IEMs). If you haven't clocked already, the UE6 is a great IEM in that it has greater headroom than 3 balanced armature based IEMs (by using dynamic drivers in the mids and the low (dynamics have more headroom than BA). So the key bit for bass players, is that where you need the headroom (in the lows), a balanced armature IEM would need 2 bass balanced armatures drivers to have similar headroom to the 1 dynamic driver in the low.

 

The easiest thing to do is listen to the difference and see if the extra money of the A4 is worth it to you... (you may even prefer the sound signature of the UE6. I love the UE6 and would be one of my top choice IEMs for sure).    

 

 

Thanks @EBS_freak, that's very helpful.  I’m assuming the A4s would have greater definition due to the 3xBA's in addition to the Dynamic driver for the low end, compared to the 2xDynamic drivers and 1xBA in the UE6 Pro.  If I get on with the borrowed IEM's initially I'll book an appointment with the Custom IEM company in Leeds and ask if it's possible to demo both (assuming with Universal buds) to see which ones I prefer.

My backline provides some of the FoH sound and the drummer and singer also need it for monitoring so I don't think I'll be able to remove that from the equation any time soon.   The spec for the a4s show a maximum of 20db isolation v 26db isolation for the UE6 Pro.  That seems like a significant difference in real terms.  As I'll be pretty close to my backline and the drums would you recommend I prioritise additional isolation over any tone preference?

After reading this mega thread with interest I’ve decided to take the plunge into iems. We have a pretty good live sound (everything is mic’d up and through an RCF pa) but my hearing is not great so the reason is to help protect what hearing I have left.

It will be a stereo wireless feed from a Presonus StudioLive 32SC via a Sennheiser xsw-iem wireless to a set of borrowed 64 Audio u6t’s to see how I get on with iem’s.  If I like them I’ll probably go down the custom route for improved isolation and fit, and have been looking at the UE6 Pro or 64 Audio a4s. I’ll still be using backline so my only slight concern is whether the iem volume I need will cause an issue. 
 

I would be grateful for advice from anyone with experience of making the switch to universal fit iems and still using backline please. Also, any opinions on the merits of the UE6 Pro v a4s would be appreciated too please. 
 

Thanks in advance. Gaz

1 hour ago, LukeFRC said:

Their first advice was to deal with warrentee repair via wherever you buy it from 

Thanks, I’ll try that approach. 😎

Thanks for posting @LukeFRC, my DC7 also doesn’t work when it’s cold. At first I thought it was due to a dodgy IEC lead and then assumed that was like that by design. I’ll contact them with a view to sending mine back for inspection in February when I have a lull in gigs. 

The Sennheiser XSW-D pedalboard wireless set is worth checking out.  I've been using it for a year now and really pleased with it so far. 😎

https://en-uk.sennheiser.com/xsw-d-pedalboard-set

11 hours ago, andydye said:

Having done a bit of googling, it looks very much like the drop-out is a known issue with 'some' line6 units, I just appear to have all of them at my house for some reason  

 

seriously considering jumping to Sennheiser, would've been Shure but they have discontinued their GLX products 

I used a Line6 G30 for years with no problems and only sold it as I wanted a bug type transmitter.  Unfortunately the used Line6 G10S I bought has constant dropout issues so is consigned to home use only (where it still has the issues). 
 

I bought a Sennheiser XSW-D pedalboard wireless last year that also has a built in tuner.  It’s been rock solid so far and I’m very happy with it.  Might be worth checking out if you haven’t done so already. 

I used Strings by Mail recently which worked out at less than £30 per set including shipping IIRC.  Here’s a link:

https://www.stringsbymail.com/electric-bass-strings-660/dr-661/lo-rider-1056/