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Last gig with an amp!

#21
I went ampless once. The production company was supposed to provide backline according to the contract, but they didn't. All I could get to hear myself onstage was through the vocal monitors. They had no bottom end at all - their monitors were designed to do just vocals. The sound was awful.
 
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#22
IEMs are the way to go. Otherwise, why would almost all large touring acts use them? My old band used IEMs for 12 years and it was great. And we did "rehearse" after soundchecks with no issues. All the audience, or people in the bar, heard were the drums but the band had no problems.

My current band is back to amps on stage. I hate it. Load in/out is a pain. It's loud on stage. I can't hear the other musicians as well as I would like. Doing IEMs right takes a solid financial investment up front, but it is well worth it in the long run.

I've found most of the people who find reasons not to use IEMs and go ampless are those who have never done it, or did not do it properly. I read very few posts where people say "I'm so happy we ditched our IEM set up and went back ..."
 
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#23
MLC_BassPlayer said:
IEMs are the way to go. Otherwise, why would almost all large touring acts use them? My old band used IEMs for 12 years and it was great. And we did "rehearse" after soundchecks with no issues. All the audience, or people in the bar, heard were the drums but the band had no problems.

My current band is back to amps on stage. I hate it. Load in/out is a pain. It's loud on stage. I can't hear the other musicians as well as I would like. Doing IEMs right takes a solid financial investment up front, but it is well worth it in the long run.

I've found most of the people who find reasons not to use IEMs and go ampless are those who have never done it, or did not do it properly. I read very few posts where people say "I'm so happy we ditched our IEM set up and went back ..."
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Yes! I have the best mix in my IEMs that I control using Mixing Station on my iPhone. Lead vocals, guitar vocals, guitar, bass, and 8 channels off of the drum kit. Best part is that the volume can be set to suit me. I have complete trust in the person out front running FOH from a tablet.
 
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#26
Just to play "devils advocate" here and fully understanding the "different strokes for different folks" and alllll that.
For me personally, I would detest never using an actual amp again. I have no interest in those "in ears" things.
Never having an amp would be to me like never hearing real music again. No vinyl. No orchestras etc. Just hearing music from a little phone speaker for the rest of my life. Unthinkable. I need an amp. I need to feel and connect with that amp and speakers. Kind of like never seeing my wife again and only kissing a computer screen on a video-call with her forever. But I digress. Just my thoughts. I'm not liking the direction the "future of music" is going very much personally.
 
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#28
bstringrandy said:
So the popular adage goes with age comes lighter gear. I turn 65 next month, what is wrong with me? View attachment 5366754 I took this out last weekend. It was a beautiful outdoor gig. I did it partly to prove to myself that I could still load and unload it. It was awesome! We recently upgraded our PA from passive sub/mains to a LD linear array system. The sad thing is that I now have a music room full of amps that I no longer need. We’re on IEMs so we’ll be amp-less on stage. I was using various amps to help fill in the low mids and low end depending on the venue. With the frequency response and power of the new system, it’s not required even at big outdoor venues. I’ll hold onto my stuff for awhile and rotate them as practice amps. From now on, just DI from the pedal board! :)
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Regardless, going forward, you should hold onto that badass blue line SVT and refrigerator 8x10 and use it as your house rig that is never to be moved again. You and your (still) strong back should walk away from the table a winner. :D
 
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#30
BassAndCigars said:
Just to play "devils advocate" here and fully understanding the "different strokes for different folks" and alllll that.
For me personally, I would detest never using an actual amp again. I have no interest in those "in ears" things.
Never having an amp would be to me like never hearing real music again. No vinyl. No orchestras etc. Just hearing music from a little phone speaker for the rest of my life. Unthinkable. I need an amp. I need to feel and connect with that amp and speakers. Kind of like never seeing my wife again and only kissing a computer screen on a video-call with her forever. But I digress. Just my thoughts. I'm not liking the direction the "future of music" is going very much personally.
Click to expand...

I get it, different strokes for different folks. The technology today in linear array systems is amazing! I’m even hearing stuff in our break music that I never heard before in our old system. To me, it’s all about the FOH mix and giving the person running it all the flexibility they need to adjust to the venue. My IEMs has the clearest mix imaginable with me hearing everyone and every channel. I do get some “feeling it” from the subs. Obviously, the best part aside from no ringing ears at the end of the night is the load in/load out. :)
 
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#31
bstringrandy said:
So the popular adage goes with age comes lighter gear. I turn 65 next month, what is wrong with me? View attachment 5366754 I took this out last weekend. It was a beautiful outdoor gig. I did it partly to prove to myself that I could still load and unload it. It was awesome! We recently upgraded our PA from passive sub/mains to a LD linear array system. The sad thing is that I now have a music room full of amps that I no longer need. We’re on IEMs so we’ll be amp-less on stage. I was using various amps to help fill in the low mids and low end depending on the venue. With the frequency response and power of the new system, it’s not required even at big outdoor venues. I’ll hold onto my stuff for awhile and rotate them as practice amps. From now on, just DI from the pedal board! :)
Click to expand...

Yeah, amp amps are going the way of the dodo for sure. I will say, playing in an ensemble with a full complement of musicians that know how to play in concert with one another is a lost art, but I would much rather perform like that than using cans or buds any day of the week.

And at age 71, I have no issues getting gear to and from a gig, not that I’m hauling around an SVT and a fridge around on every gig..LOL…
 
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#32
The biggest challenge with IEM's is having very limited crowd feedback. To solve this put an ambient mike at the front of the stage and dial some into your mix. I only bring an amp for very small (limited PA or accoustic) gigs and larger outdoor gigs to supplement the subs if needed, probably 5% of the time.
 
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#34
Beautiful rig. I understand the appeal of both sides of the equation. I would love to hear more about the LD system you ended up with. We have been kicking around possibilities for line array systems for a few years and so far have been sticking with our older-school powered mixer plus cabs on stix. Which LD model did you end up with?
 
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#35
soulstew said:
Beautiful rig. I understand the appeal of both sides of the equation. I would love to hear more about the LD system you ended up with. We have been kicking around possibilities for line array systems for a few years and so far have been sticking with our older-school powered mixer plus cabs on stix. Which LD model did you end up with?
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We are running 2 LD Systems Maui 28 speaker arrays. Handles all the venues we’re booked in.
 
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#37
I'm not amp-less yet. We do in ear monitors...to replace floor wedges. My guitarst is all fractal but still has his amp as well. We have the floor wedges at venues in case our IEM fail. Lots of failsafes in place. My issue is my earphones get sweaty, sometimes pop out (at one time it like I had two earring dangling), and sometimes the sound is sorta "sterile" compared to the stage volume mix.

I can't afford custom in ears..... and we don't have an onboard mixer machine in our gear to have preset mixes in our ears.... it all has to be done by the sound man.

However, I like learning and I like the challenge of understanding how all this works.

So I keep lugging my Ampeg SVT-CL and my back keeps hurting :D
 
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#39
We do IEMs, but many of the band members have said something like “Everything works okay direct in the IEMs except for the bass, I need to feel the bass.” I’m okay with that! For me, the IEMs allow me to hear everyone else really well and while I can hear my bass just fine with IEMs, the feel isn’t the same.
 
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#40
u2brothr said:
I'm not amp-less yet. We do in ear monitors.... and we don't have an onboard mixer machine in our gear to have preset mixes in our ears.... it all has to be done by the sound man. :D
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The key for me was having my own mixing capability via iPad on stage. I control my mix and overall volume. If anything goes wacky I can fix it quickly. I don’t like IEM’s without that. IEM’s change the way you hear the band and ambient crowd noise, and take some getting used to, but when I pull one out on stage and hear how loud the volume is, my ears thank me for putting them back in. I still have an amp on stage most of the time.
 
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