Amplification and looping questions!

[halluxone]

First, I'd like to beat a dead horse for the final time.

 

So....after researching the living hell out of powered speakers, I've come to the conclusion that my Mackie SRM350v2's just aren't cutting it. They are hissy, don't give me enough bottom end, and can't function as a stand-alone band PA if need be.

 

I am looking at the K-10 and K-12 speakers that most seem to agree are good options...my question is whether the 10" versus the 12" speaker makes a significant difference in the quality of the sound. I play primarily acoustic and electric pianos, clavs, and minimal synthey stuff. Roland 700GX on bottom, Electro 3 on top.

 

I've read that the K-10's sound dispersion is wider (90 deg vs 75 deg) than the K-12, so does that lend itself to be a better stage monitor versus a true PA speaker? I'd rather not lug around the extra weight, but has anyone A/B'd these? Is one truly better for keyboard amplification than the other, or is it just a matter or more bottom end on the 12's?

 

Ideally I'd love to use these speakers as stage monitors primarily, but it would be nice if they can double as our FOH speakers too. Although the K-Sub is available, I'd rather not have to bring one as most of our shows are 50-200 people at most.

 

Second question, totally unrelated to the first...

 

I've been a fan of musicians/bands that use looping technology to build multiple tracks in a live situation. Keller Williams, for example, is an acoustic guitarist (gulp) who loops percussion, bass, guitar, midi'd instruments, and vocals on the fly. It ends up being a pretty fun way of contructing and deconstructing songs. Do any of you use this kind of stuff at home or on stage? If so, what samplers/programs/workstations do you use? I'd love to build tracks on the fly but don't want the typical "arranger" way of doing this.

 

 

Thanks for any advice,

Allen

[halluxone]

Bump?