OK, I'm seriously thinking of forking out for a PA system.

[AxtoOx]

Bass, Guitar, Drums, Singer. May add another guitar/singer. Need a PA for small venues and the like. I'm the only one in the band that can afford it and I'm not going down the "Hey, let's all pitch in" road. That's just a disaster waiting to happen.
What are Y'all using?
Any suggestions?
I was looking at the JVC PRX series. How QSC?
Crown Amp and Passive Speakers or Powered Speakers?
Help. I only have so much money, and this is an investment.

[Kenny Allyn]

Small venues ... good idea

I own our board and monitors, the guitar player owns the mains ... it's a simple system two mains on poles with 15" drivers two 12" monitors and a YAMAHA EMX powered mixer 500 watts a side the system works very well for our blues based band ... we use it for vocals and a small signal I DI to it when I use a small amp.

We can expand it if needed with a second amp and more speakers ... but we never needed to. We have found that if we need anything bigger than what this does, it's a venue that has FOH sound with a sound man etc:


... Love the Yamaha mixer/amp ... can't say enough good about them.

[AxtoOx]

Originally Posted by Kenny Allyn

Small venues ... good idea

I own our board and monitors, the guitar player owns the mains ... it's a simple system two mains on poles with 15" drivers two 12" monitors and a YAMAHA EMX powered mixer 500 watts a side the system works very well for our blues based band ... we use it for vocals and a small signal I DI to it when I use a small amp.

We can expand it if needed with a second amp and more speakers ... but we never needed to. We have found that if we need anything bigger than what this does, it's a venue that has FOH sound with a sound man etc:


... Love the Yamaha mixer/amp ... can't say enough good about them.

That's a lot less expensive outfit than I'm being recommended. These guys are talking $$$'s.
How many monitors do you use? Does everyone need one, or can you strategically place them and get away w/ less?
I do like the JBL/Crown powered mains, but $1200 a piece? and JBL has them price protected. No deals anywhere.
Yamaha seems to make good everything.

[Kenny Allyn]

As I said we find the system works ... for us ... ask yourself ... how much do you need, where will it be used and how much do you want to carry around?

The system we use is designed to work in 90+ percent of the situations we need using our own system ... as I said we can rent add on amps and speakers if needed (haven't yet). The bigger clubs and such provide PAs and soundmen etc:

The mains and monitors are private label (there is a company that makes them here) and work well, JBLs are great too.


... Check the local acts that have their own systems ... see what they use.

[AxtoOx]

Originally Posted by Kenny Allyn

As I said we find the system works ... for us ... ask yourself ... how much do you need, where will it be used and how much do you want to carry around?

The system we use is designed to work in 90+ percent of the situations we need using our own system ... as I said we can rent add on amps and speakers if needed (haven't yet). The bigger clubs and such provide PAs and soundmen etc:

The mains and monitors are private label (there is a company that makes them here) and work well, JBLs are great too.


... Check the local acts that have their own systems ... see what they use.

I understand you. I'm looking for as many options as possible. These JBL PLX's are the "New Hot Thing" and the salesmen are pushing them. I was thinking Crown amp, Cerwin Vega or JBL passive speakers. JBL has some decent priced passive monitors. Cerwin Vega is not what they used to be I'm finding. A&H board, 12 or 16 channel. DBX Driverrack PA. Cables. I want to avoid a snake. We'll mix it. I think I can do that under the $8000 the kid at GC quoted me. I think I'll drive up there and look myself. I'm in good w/ the assistant manger. I'll have him do the deal. I'm gonna blow off this kid, and I've already gotten into an agument w/ his counterpart (much to the guitar dept. mgr's dismay).

[Kenny Allyn]

We keep our mixer on stage ... wireless is great to spot check the mix ...

... I think were into the whole system for maybe 2K ...

[Pbassred]

I have a 1.5K rig. mics, stands, and a big, big car.
The down side:-
I get no thanks for doing it. In fact last time out the band
only wanted me to set up one side. First set was a train wreck.
Everyone's an expert twiddling knobs, but no one bothers to learn.
I get stuck loading out cause they had to catch trains.

I get to charge for it's use. I bet they hate that.

I got mine because "someone aught to". However if you are giging regularly you should be able to pay for it out of earnings. If you aren't giging regularly, hire it and a driver. You can't let the band all leave it to you.

[T-Bird]

Hi, Pbassred

Hmmm, a decent PA, a van, bassplayer, now why that sounds familiar???

MEE TOOO, man it sucks sometimes, are we stupid or something? Well at least You get compensated for it....

Regards
Sam

[BetterBottomEnd]

Check out Carvin they have some PA packages I've never been super impressed with their speakers but they're good for the money. Carvin gear is also pretty solid and reasonably priced.

[Monkey]

I have a Yamaha system that I like a lot: EMX-12-channel powered mixer, 1x12 mains on stands, and a powered sub. I also have a set of Peavey monitors. It is great for the small to medium size rooms we usually play, and even works for small outdoor gigs.

Believe it or not, I can get all the equipment listed above, plus a 4-space rack, 2 Aggie GS112s, a couple of equipment bags and a bass or two in a Honda Civic hatchback!

[Stanley Design]

I use a Yamaha EMX mixer into two Yamaha S115V's, but right now we are only supporting vocals.

[Fat.Mike]

My band uses our mando and fiddle players' parents equipment. (They are from duncan as well...) It's all mackie, similar to the ONYX series, has powered 12's (SRM450's?), firewire, and a nice board. Works well, not enough bass at times for my taste (but that's how most of us are!). I might remedy that with a (cheap) 15" and power amp once I find a job.

[Phalex]

Carvin makes some mighty fine power amps. The price is as good as the Chinese made QSC and Crown amps.

[Bass Aficionado]

I was going to post somethig very similar, but thought I would just latch onto this thread.

If you were given $1800 to start from scratch on a PA for a band that plays small clubs or small outdoor parties, what would you recommend. Quality second hand equipment would be my preference. I would just like a base to build from or for other band members to contribute to.

[Eilif]

Originally Posted by Kenny Allyn

Small venues ... good idea

.

+1, Don't go overboard. If you spend over 2k, you are likely to be buying gear that clubs, larger venues and festivals already provide. You could probably even keep it around 1500 if you buy smart.

I've heard great things about Carvin and Yamaha gear.

[sb69coupe]

Originally Posted by Bass Aficionado

I was going to post somethig very similar, but thought I would just latch onto this thread.

If you were given $1800 to start from scratch on a PA for a band that plays small clubs or small outdoor parties, what would you recommend. Quality second hand equipment would be my preference. I would just like a base to build from or for other band members to contribute to.

I'd suggest a powered 12 channel board, something along the lines of the Yamaha EMX-5000. A pair of Yamaha S115V speakers for mains, and a powered sub (QSC, Mackie, etc). You could throw in a pair of monitors if budget allows. You can run the mains off one side of the internal amp, monitors off the other side, and use an aux send for the sub.

[lamarjones]

Yamaha makes a great powered mixer, we use the mackie 808m powered mixer. 8 channels, and frankly you don't need to put everything through it. Mainly vocals, kick drum, and a little bit of this and that. If you can, don't run bass through it. (this is still for small clubs and practice, right?)

We use two wedges for monitors, and two mains when we play out. I have had bands where everyone maintains that everything must go through all monitors and mains and everyone must hear all the stuff through the pa, and then bands where we managed what went through them and blended with our existing gear. By far the latter groups were more professional people.

SMALL CLUBS, remember those words.....

[southpaw]

Carvin power amps are very durable, powerful, inexpensive and realiable. We use a DCM1000 to power the mains and an old PA1200 as a mixer and to power the monitors. Depending on the size of the venue we use either Yamaha 15's or Carvin TRX12 series for mains and a couple of 12" wedge monitors.

Durability and reliability? We've used this setup on over 400 gigs, both inside and outside over the past few years. And yes, as a bass player, van owner, PA equipment owner, etc. . . I haul all of the stuff, all of the time just like you guys.

[ntimkovich]

if i can weigh in, here's some things to consider:

* active vs passive speakers: active speakers are way more convenient, but more expensive typically. also, if the amp breaks in it, then you have to replace the whole unit, even if the speaker itself is OK. having passive speakers gives you more flexibility in that you can replace the amp or speaker separately, and you only have to run one cable to the actual speaker (as opposed to running the audio cable and power cable out to it). with passive speakers, you also have to worry about matching the amp with the speaker -- not usually a problem, since today's amps/speakers are pretty standard (8 or 4 Ohms).

* powered vs unpowered mixers: the same argument above applies here -- if the amp breaks, you have to replace the whole thing. but you get more convenience by not needing to lug around a separate amp(s). one thing to keep in mind here is that there aren't a lot of high-end mixers that are powered. i have never used a powered mixer that really blew me away with quality. also, if you need to expand the number of inputs, etc., it's easier to replace just the mixer, rather than needing to go get a new mixer AND a new amp.

* most venues/shows can be sufficiently covered with only two main PA speakers. there are mixed opinions on needing a Sub. i think it's OK to go without, especially since adding a Sub requires that you use a crossover of some kind, and it's much harder to get it to sound right. of course, if it's your rig, you can play with it and figure it all out, but it's more work. one more thing -- subs are HEAVY and BIG. you already have a bass amp, right?

* in monitor land, i find that two floor wedges are usually enough. the bass amp covers stage volume pretty well, and drums rarely need to be mic'd, so it's mostly for vocals and acoustic guitars (really, for any source that doesn't have it's own dedicated amp). another point to keep in mind is how many Aux sends your mixer has, as that will limit the number of monitor mixes you can do. most low end mixers only have 2 aux sends.

the only other factors to keep in mind when buying a PA is how you are going to power it, and cabling. those Furman power conditioners are nice and rack-able, potentially making your whole system tightly packed, with only one power cable coming out. as far as cabling, make sure you have all the right cables to connect everything, and be sure to get long enough cables. i have a big collection of cables of differing lengths, and it's worth it. just don't forget to budget in cable money.

that's a good place to start. i've learned that convenience vs. flexibility is a ongoing battle, especially since i do it all myself, like you.

hope this helps!
nick

[lamarjones]

Originally Posted by ntimkovich

if i can weigh in, here's some things to consider:

* active vs passive speakers: active speakers are way more convenient, but more expensive typically. also, if the amp breaks in it, then you have to replace the whole unit, even if the speaker itself is OK. having passive speakers gives you more flexibility in that you can replace the amp or speaker separately, and you only have to run one cable to the actual speaker (as opposed to running the audio cable and power cable out to it). with passive speakers, you also have to worry about matching the amp with the speaker -- not usually a problem, since today's amps/speakers are pretty standard (8 or 4 Ohms).

* powered vs unpowered mixers: the same argument above applies here -- if the amp breaks, you have to replace the whole thing. but you get more convenience by not needing to lug around a separate amp(s). one thing to keep in mind here is that there aren't a lot of high-end mixers that are powered. i have never used a powered mixer that really blew me away with quality. also, if you need to expand the number of inputs, etc., it's easier to replace just the mixer, rather than needing to go get a new mixer AND a new amp.

* most venues/shows can be sufficiently covered with only two main PA speakers. there are mixed opinions on needing a Sub. i think it's OK to go without, especially since adding a Sub requires that you use a crossover of some kind, and it's much harder to get it to sound right. of course, if it's your rig, you can play with it and figure it all out, but it's more work. one more thing -- subs are HEAVY and BIG. you already have a bass amp, right?

* in monitor land, i find that two floor wedges are usually enough. the bass amp covers stage volume pretty well, and drums rarely need to be mic'd, so it's mostly for vocals and acoustic guitars (really, for any source that doesn't have it's own dedicated amp). another point to keep in mind is how many Aux sends your mixer has, as that will limit the number of monitor mixes you can do. most low end mixers only have 2 aux sends.

the only other factors to keep in mind when buying a PA is how you are going to power it, and cabling. those Furman power conditioners are nice and rack-able, potentially making your whole system tightly packed, with only one power cable coming out. as far as cabling, make sure you have all the right cables to connect everything, and be sure to get long enough cables. i have a big collection of cables of differing lengths, and it's worth it. just don't forget to budget in cable money.

that's a good place to start. i've learned that convenience vs. flexibility is a ongoing battle, especially since i do it all myself, like you.

hope this helps!
nick

lol, you agree with me on ebay, I totally agree with you here! convenience vs flexibitily!!!!