Members MillenniumBlues Posted December 23, 2011 Members Share Posted December 23, 2011 Hi everyone, I'm reasonably new to electric/acoustic guitars, and I have a Samson S Direct. I'm wondering if what the benefits are of an acoustic amplifier (I've been looking at the Genz Benz stuff)? I don't really have any complaints with my guitar going directly through the PA (and I don't really feel like dropping another $500 on an amp). Have I just answered my own question, or are there real benefits to an acoustic amp on stage? If so, how much power is needed. I'm a long time bass player, and I currently find that 400-500 watts is the magic number (IMO). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Danocoustic Posted December 23, 2011 Members Share Posted December 23, 2011 i like to di to the house, use an acoustic amp for my monitor (the one i use is 100w and is sufficient) i like the amp for a monitor because its a lot more "hi-fi" than a regular monitor and i get a better freq response from it for solo acoustic gigs, i just use the amp alone---it handles a vocal mic fine too---saves me lugging a whole PA around hope that helps Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Grant Harding Posted December 23, 2011 Members Share Posted December 23, 2011 As the Mr Dano pointed out, they're really cool to have and great for monitoring. It doesn't have to be one or the other - you can use both AND you can scale it down to playing really small venues or house parties where you just want a bit of a boost for leads. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Terry Allan Hall Posted December 23, 2011 Members Share Posted December 23, 2011 Hi everyone,I'm reasonably new to electric/acoustic guitars, and I have a Samson S Direct. I'm wondering if what the benefits are of an acoustic amplifier (I've been looking at the Genz Benz stuff)? I don't really have any complaints with my guitar going directly through the PA (and I don't really feel like dropping another $500 on an amp).Have I just answered my own question, or are there real benefits to an acoustic amp on stage? If so, how much power is needed. I'm a long time bass player, and I currently find that 400-500 watts is the magic number (IMO). Depends on the gig... Solo, I prefer to DI myself into the PA. Ensemble with reasonable stage volume (i.e., a musically knowledable drummer/percussionist), I also prefer to DI myself into the PA. Ensemble with a noisy "learned to play in the garage w/ two idiots who cranked their big-assed amps to "10" drummer, I'll have to use an amp, too...but primarily as a "guitar monitor", with the PA getting a DI signal from my guitars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members fixintogo Posted December 23, 2011 Members Share Posted December 23, 2011 I have both, but end up just going DI to PA 95% of the time. My Baggs Parxcoustic DI sounds wonderful, and I have a decent floor monitor that sends my guitar right back to me, exactly as the audience is hearing it. I'll use the amp for rehearsals when the PA is overkill, but usually we practice unplugged altogether. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members MillenniumBlues Posted December 23, 2011 Author Members Share Posted December 23, 2011 Thanks for the input! I read an archived thread about acoustic players who use a fender bassman 150 for stage monitoring (150 watt bass combo, 12" speaker, piezo horn, and tilt back design). I have one of these amps I never use for bass anymore, so I think I'll use my DI for the PA FOH sound and have the bass amp on stage for monitoring - see any issues with this? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Terry Allan Hall Posted December 23, 2011 Members Share Posted December 23, 2011 Thanks for the input! I read an archived thread about acoustic players who use a fender bassman 150 for stage monitoring (150 watt bass combo, 12" speaker, piezo horn, and tilt back design). I have one of these amps I never use for bass anymore, so I think I'll use my DI for the PA FOH sound and have the bass amp on stage for monitoring - see any issues with this? Likely will work fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Chicken Monkey Posted December 23, 2011 Members Share Posted December 23, 2011 I haven't played with a drummer in a good long while, but I can't imagine hauling an amp with me, unless it was a replacement for a PA. I'm going DI all the way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Chordchunker Posted December 23, 2011 Members Share Posted December 23, 2011 It also depends on the gig for me. I usually use my little Fishman mini. It has a low-z out which is handy to plug into the house, but when I play solo (so low you can`t hear me) in a big Auditorium I prefer to mic my guitar.. I`ve used all kinds of stuff including bass amps which work fine.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members garthman Posted December 23, 2011 Members Share Posted December 23, 2011 Thanks for the input! I read an archived thread about acoustic players who use a fender bassman 150 for stage monitoring (150 watt bass combo, 12" speaker, piezo horn, and tilt back design). I have one of these amps I never use for bass anymore, so I think I'll use my DI for the PA FOH sound and have the bass amp on stage for monitoring - see any issues with this? Yeah. Bass amps make good acoustic guitar amps. So do keyboard amps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members guildfire Posted December 23, 2011 Members Share Posted December 23, 2011 I highly recommend the Genz Benz amps. I have a Shen Jr that works great, very reliable and easy to carry around. I use it as a stage monitor for larger gigs and for small coffee type gigs I can use it without a PA for vocals and guitar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Seorie Posted December 23, 2011 Members Share Posted December 23, 2011 hi MB, I go into an amp (AER) where I have my sound 'dialed in' and DI out from there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jamesp Posted December 24, 2011 Members Share Posted December 24, 2011 I was never completely happy with the sound of my Baggs Radius > Padi > Loudbox 100 combination. But running the Radius > Padi > A&H Zed sounds close enough to a decent mic that I stopped bringing the amp. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DeepEnd Posted December 26, 2011 Members Share Posted December 26, 2011 Personally, I prefer an amp because it allows me to control my own sound. As for an appropriate amp, I suspect you already have a bass amp lying around that would be more than adequate. I used to play through a Peavey Firebass 700 head and TX210 cabinet and found it worked well IMHO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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