tl;dr - Is it OK to ask jam session buddies for donations towards a cheap psuedo-PA?
I have a jam session with 8-12 buddies on Sunday nights. We've been running at one place or other for about two years. It's currently at my place (18x30). There's a rhythm guitar (acoustic), a bass (me with a teeny amp), and a fiddler with a little auxillary percussion. And singers. Lots of singers. Mostly karaoke quality, but there are a couple really talented ladies that are worth a listen and one fellow that's getting much better very quickly.
A week ago, I bought a little no-name acoustic guitar amp, a vocal mic, a 1/4" adapter, and a stand for next to nothing. It was intended for me to hear my background vocals during practice so as to not caterwall quite so dreadfully. I was setting up on Sunday and one of the singers said "Ooooo, a mic!". Then she grabbed it and sang Little Talks in quite an impressive manner. It woulda been better if there was more than 1x4 and 10w.
A different singer said "Why don't we have more of those? We need mics!" The peanut gallery was emphatically in favor. My reply was something along the lines of "PA gear is expensive and I ain't got none" and "Mics are easy; amplification is not" and "Give me another beer" Some chatter ensued about how we might remedy the situation. They sent me to take a look around.
Took a look on CL. I like CL usually, but PA gear is expensive. Even the used stuff. I don't have $500 and couldn't find anything cheaper, so it looked like that way wasn't on the menu.
Took a look at GC. I don't like GC usually, but PA gear is expensive. They have some off-brand stuff that's really cheap and I wanted to listen. I just wasn't impressed. One was really shrill in the highs and another one had a broken XLR (on the in-store demo). Others didn't ring my value-for-money bell and everything that I liked was just too expensive. Not surprisingly, that's not the place either.
Took a glance at my local classifieds. Hahahahhahhahhahahahhahahahahhahaha. No luck.
On my way home from the day job, I can plan a route that passes by 5 different pawn shops and a music store. So, I looked around the other day. I saw a Pyle compact PA system (New retail cost: $699) on sale for $700 from $850. Told the pawnbroker about the over-the-top pricing discrepancy and offered $400 but he passed, which was OK; I didn't have it anyway. Noted but was afraid to power-up a Behringer powered mixer that smelled like burning insulation. Saw a couple Kustom 12's marked up as drastically as the little Pyle. ($300 each for those little cabs? BS!) There was a 60's P (I think; $4500 anyhow) and a neat Mini-moog too.
And a Peavey KB100 (Keyboard amp, 3 channels, 75w ss, 1x12, 59 lbs) from the early 90's at one of the pawn shops. $72 before negotiation. The ticket said it's been sitting for over a year, so it'll actually be maybe $50-55. Keyboard amps are good for PA right? Google confirmed that there are a couple people using this amp for that very purpose, and an idea was born.
During our discussion last week, one of the singers said "I'll donate some money if we can get something in here, don't even need to own it or anything". There were a couple of "Yeah!" and "Me too!" as well. And the idea was furthered.
Then I got a flyer from GC touting cheap mic-cord-stand packages for $40. And the idea was finalized.
The real question: Is it gauche to ask the jammers for donations to the PA?
I really like the idea. We use my house weekly and I often buy booze/cook food for like a dozen people, so I don't even feel bad about asking. I won't give up control or ownership, but it's only like $100 total to get to a two-channel type situation. I suspect that we could get that amount together pretty quick. It really would help the sound and I think it'll do just fine filling the rehearsal space even with the massive orchestrations.
What do you guys think?
I have a jam session with 8-12 buddies on Sunday nights. We've been running at one place or other for about two years. It's currently at my place (18x30). There's a rhythm guitar (acoustic), a bass (me with a teeny amp), and a fiddler with a little auxillary percussion. And singers. Lots of singers. Mostly karaoke quality, but there are a couple really talented ladies that are worth a listen and one fellow that's getting much better very quickly.
A week ago, I bought a little no-name acoustic guitar amp, a vocal mic, a 1/4" adapter, and a stand for next to nothing. It was intended for me to hear my background vocals during practice so as to not caterwall quite so dreadfully. I was setting up on Sunday and one of the singers said "Ooooo, a mic!". Then she grabbed it and sang Little Talks in quite an impressive manner. It woulda been better if there was more than 1x4 and 10w.
A different singer said "Why don't we have more of those? We need mics!" The peanut gallery was emphatically in favor. My reply was something along the lines of "PA gear is expensive and I ain't got none" and "Mics are easy; amplification is not" and "Give me another beer" Some chatter ensued about how we might remedy the situation. They sent me to take a look around.
Took a look on CL. I like CL usually, but PA gear is expensive. Even the used stuff. I don't have $500 and couldn't find anything cheaper, so it looked like that way wasn't on the menu.
Took a look at GC. I don't like GC usually, but PA gear is expensive. They have some off-brand stuff that's really cheap and I wanted to listen. I just wasn't impressed. One was really shrill in the highs and another one had a broken XLR (on the in-store demo). Others didn't ring my value-for-money bell and everything that I liked was just too expensive. Not surprisingly, that's not the place either.
Took a glance at my local classifieds. Hahahahhahhahhahahahhahahahahhahaha. No luck.
On my way home from the day job, I can plan a route that passes by 5 different pawn shops and a music store. So, I looked around the other day. I saw a Pyle compact PA system (New retail cost: $699) on sale for $700 from $850. Told the pawnbroker about the over-the-top pricing discrepancy and offered $400 but he passed, which was OK; I didn't have it anyway. Noted but was afraid to power-up a Behringer powered mixer that smelled like burning insulation. Saw a couple Kustom 12's marked up as drastically as the little Pyle. ($300 each for those little cabs? BS!) There was a 60's P (I think; $4500 anyhow) and a neat Mini-moog too.
And a Peavey KB100 (Keyboard amp, 3 channels, 75w ss, 1x12, 59 lbs) from the early 90's at one of the pawn shops. $72 before negotiation. The ticket said it's been sitting for over a year, so it'll actually be maybe $50-55. Keyboard amps are good for PA right? Google confirmed that there are a couple people using this amp for that very purpose, and an idea was born.
During our discussion last week, one of the singers said "I'll donate some money if we can get something in here, don't even need to own it or anything". There were a couple of "Yeah!" and "Me too!" as well. And the idea was furthered.
Then I got a flyer from GC touting cheap mic-cord-stand packages for $40. And the idea was finalized.
The real question: Is it gauche to ask the jammers for donations to the PA?
I really like the idea. We use my house weekly and I often buy booze/cook food for like a dozen people, so I don't even feel bad about asking. I won't give up control or ownership, but it's only like $100 total to get to a two-channel type situation. I suspect that we could get that amount together pretty quick. It really would help the sound and I think it'll do just fine filling the rehearsal space even with the massive orchestrations.
What do you guys think?
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