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Post by chad on Jan 30, 2015 17:51:01 GMT
thinking of getting an acoustic amp to use, pre PA for gigs, never bothered in the past and was wandering what you fellas use amp wise, if any? I know there are some expensive ones out there like AER, I'm not sure if it's going to make much difference to be honest.
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mandovark
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Post by mandovark on Jan 30, 2015 19:18:50 GMT
Personally I prefer to go straight into a PA (through an Orchid acoustic pre-amp) as far as possible.
I have a Marshall AS50R that I sometimes use for ceilidhs when there isn't much of a PA available. I don't really like to use it because (for me) it colours the sound far too much - it can make a cheaper guitar sound good, but if you actually like the sound of the guitar you're playing and you just want to make it louder, it's probably not the best option. That said, it's fairly cheap and very reliable.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 30, 2015 22:09:48 GMT
Well, I absolutely adore my Acus One8, by far the best amp my guitars have ever played through. I have tried many through the years: Rivera, AER, Trace Elliot, LR Baggs, Fishman. The Acus is the one that best makes my acoustic sound like an acoustic. Very flexible mixer section. The whole Acus range is very modular too- you can get sub woofers, extensions cabs and even a lovely little wedge monitor, as and when the need (and funds) arise! It helps that they look pretty cool too- the standard of woodwork on the cabs is wonderful Robbie
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ocarolan
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Post by ocarolan on Jan 30, 2015 23:10:25 GMT
Very rarely use an amp into PA; like mandovark I just go via K&K preamp or Orchid preamp. For standalone use I do have an AER Alpha, from which it is simple to get decent acoustic guitar and vocal sounds, but I haven't used it as a monitor, other than for electric bass. What situations do you play in chad? Do you want the amp primarily for extra eq and vol control near to hand, or largely for monitoring purposes? Solo/band? Keith
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Post by delb0y on Jan 31, 2015 8:07:00 GMT
I've just started experimenting with using an acoustic amp as a monitor. It's way better for me than going straight into the PA - I can adjust the volume and tone to just how I want them, and also send a clean signal to the PA so the sound man (my duo partner) can do what he needs do to make the out front sound nice. I find I can play much better with this set-up. I use a cheap Cort acoustic amp. It's physically quite big but was cheap and as this was an experiment I didn't want to fork out too much.
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Post by chad on Jan 31, 2015 8:49:21 GMT
Thanks for your replies fellas, going to check out some of those products, the Acus one8 sounds interesting, sorry for not explaining what I need it for,, basically at the moment I just plug straight into the PA there's no problem hearing my guitar it's really the age old holy grail, getting the best acoustic sound at high volume. The sound I have at the moment is really nice I must admit but, I would like to know if there's a better way.
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mandovark
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Post by mandovark on Jan 31, 2015 9:22:33 GMT
Thanks for your replies fellas, going to check out some of those products, the Acus one8 sounds interesting, sorry for not explaining what I need it for,, basically at the moment I just plug straight into the PA there's no problem hearing my guitar it's really the age old holy grail, getting the best acoustic sound at high volume. The sound I have at the moment is really nice I must admit but, I would like to know if there's a better way. If you don't actually need an amp for volume or monitoring, then a good acoustic preamp might be what you're after. I use the Orchid because it makes it easy to switch between instruments and styles. I also have a Fishman, which is fine if you want the same setting throughout but is a bit fiddly if you need to make adjustments mid-set. I've also heard good things about K&K and LR Baggs, but I haven't had chance to try them myself.
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Post by ocarolan on Jan 31, 2015 10:11:27 GMT
Thanks for your replies fellas, going to check out some of those products, the Acus one8 sounds interesting, sorry for not explaining what I need it for,, basically at the moment I just plug straight into the PA there's no problem hearing my guitar it's really the age old holy grail, getting the best acoustic sound at high volume. The sound I have at the moment is really nice I must admit but, I would like to know if there's a better way. I'm deffinitely with mandovark on this one. A preamp is the way to go for what it seems you want. An amp is not necessarily going to get you a better sound. A preamp may well - it will certainly be a more tweakable sound, and allow you more control to give soundman (if there is one!) a good basic signal that just needs a little tweaking for the room. Good quality preamps are available for a lot less cash than good quality combo amps and are more incorporatable in other setups should your playing situations change in future. Keith
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Post by stringdriventhing on Jan 31, 2015 10:17:00 GMT
I've got a Marshall 50 watt acoustic amp. I think it's the ASD50 or something. It's ok, but weighs a ton. My pal has a Fishman Loudbox Mini, which is a great 60 watt amp and they seem to have come down in price recently - under £300 online.
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Post by chad on Jan 31, 2015 10:21:04 GMT
sounds like a preamp is the way to go, Orchid look pretty good, think I'll try and find someone that uses one and give there one a try, thanks again for the input very helpful.
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Post by andrewjw on Jan 31, 2015 13:26:35 GMT
Another acoustic preamp well worth a look is this one... www.tonebone.com/pzpre.phpVery flexible inputs and outputs plus a useful boost switch... I've had one since they first came out...completely reliable , silent in operation , tank construction yet compact... I like it!
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Post by scripsit on Jan 31, 2015 13:59:22 GMT
Agree about the Tonebone: very easy to use and capable of transparent acoustic sound.
Kym
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Post by plumbum on Jan 31, 2015 14:13:38 GMT
I have a Fishman Loudbox Performer which is a great acoustic amp and has enough muscle to amplify two instruments and two mics (with a small mixer) for small gigs (with no pa). You can go straight through to a pa but I have never bothered as it would be another thing to lump to the gig and fiddle about with when setting up on stage. My experience is it's already hectic enough trying to sound check in a short time. So on balance I'd tend to agree with the others that trying to mould your sound through a decent pre-amp sounds best.
if you're sure you want to try an amp then the Fishman is great. Robbie's also sounds great live.
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Post by andyhowell on Feb 1, 2015 22:14:15 GMT
If looking at preamps make sure to check out the Headway preamps.
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Post by sigmadel on Feb 2, 2015 1:42:34 GMT
I've been giving this lots of thought recently too and for just under the £300 mark theres loads of choice . The Marshall 50 watt but with 2 speakers and 1inch driver . Laney 80watt which gets great reviews and a bit more omph . The Vox 70watt looks and sounds superb with a tube / valve channel and normal tranny channel . The Fishman loudbox mini 60 watt again compact light and good quality , there are probably more but in the price range I'm at then it'll probably be one of these . Don't forget as I've done in the past you can still go through the amp to the pa using it as a monitor .
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