Question - Practice with or without PA gear?

[msmooth]

I tend to practice just playing my acoustic and singing. I have noticed when I do this I get thrown off by the was things sound different when playing though my system. I don't want to set my whole system just to practice, since I don't have the space to keep it set up.

Just was wondering if anyone else has had this issue pop-up?

[Louis Schwartz]

It's an issue for me, too, but I try to set up and practice with my PA or amp as often as I can. I don't bother for straight sessions of guitar practice, but I need to practice my mic technique, my various bits of pedal-board dancing, and the general physical feel of playing with amplification. It's a different experience than playing acoustically. I have to move my body differently, and there's avery different finger to ear and voice to ear relationship.

 

Louis

[Bob Dey]

Doesn't seem so necessary if you're just playing acoustic and singing. Using backing tracks, effects on guitar or voice, loopers etc. kind of demand that you practice with some kind of amplification.

[moogerfooger]

I practice both ways. My acoustic piano is in my living room and my studio is in the basement. I keep my Bose system up in the studio so I can practice with the same rig I play out on . But I usually spend a hour + a day on the piano up stairs.

[mchalebk]

While things are somewhat different when playing through a sound system, I've never had much of an issue with it. However, this is not uncommon. If it's an issue for you, I would suggest setting up some kind of test rig and playing through it on a regular basis until it is no longer an issue. Probably wouldn't have to be a full setup, just something so you can clearly hear yourself through the system.

[Notes_Norton]

I tend to practice without the PA gear because it's too time consuming and a PITA to set it up. I do know that for some reason I tend to be able to sing higher on the mic (or it seems like that anyway) so I take that into consideration when learning new songs. Sometimes it also takes a time or two on the gig to fine tune the balance of the instrument volumes of my backing tracks.

 

Notes

[pogo97]

My thinking is that if you're genuinely practising or rehearsing, then you should be clear about what it is you're practising. If you're working up songs, mucking around with the PA is probably just a distraction; if you're polishing your sound, the PA needs to be there. etcetera

[steve mac]

I am with Pogo, I learn songs from scratch whilst sitting on the balcony with an unplugged solid body, although I do sing into an unplugged mike on a stand as it's got my harp holder attached, but once I have them there or thereabouts, I plug into an Acoustic amp to work out sound effects , harmonies etc.

[TIMKEYS]

 

I have a little fx mixer that I plug my keyboard and mic into and just use head phones. I also have a tablet with the audio plugged into the mixer and can hook up a digital recording rig to it. . makes a very nice woodshed set up for learning songs. Mic technique is important for live performance so running through the mixer with headphones is a good pa simulator.

[deepflight]

Singer here. I have a small PA/monitor that I sometimes practice with because it allows me to hear how I sound rather than how I sound to myself; this can be a helpful thing to know.

[Notes_Norton]

Hey! If you can't practice on stage, where CAN you practice?

 

Sorry I couldn't resist, but on the other hand, there is some truth in that.

 

We have a regular Tuesday afternoon gig. The regulars that come out are like family. If we try something new, we tell them that, ask them if it's OK to practice (of course it's really just fine tuning) and they all get into it. In the rare occasion that we fall flat on our faces, it's a big laugh for everyone.

 

But it's a very intimate gig, and the family is close to us. It's our 6th year there, and even though we play Tuesday afternoon, we pull the biggest crowd of the week (and they do 7 days). We know many of the people by name, get worried if they don't show up for a couple of weeks (Ken and Dutchie had that nasty flu that was going around and missed 2 weeks), and we know their favorite requests. It's a lot of fun. And if playing music isn't fun, you aren't doing it right.

 

More often than not, even by learning new songs without the PA set, most of them are just fine the first time out. We've learned to compensate and we don't disturb the neighbors (some of which are disappointed that they can't hear us). When a song isn't right the first time, it's usually just a minor 'mastering' issue that only we notice. It might be too low volume wise, or the string part might need to be boosted a bit, etc.

 

We have over 500 songs, and some of the older tracks I wish I could do over, but I'd rather learn a new song. Then next Tuesday we can practice it on stage.

 

Actually there is a difference between practicing and rehearsing, and when I used practice in this post, I really mean rehearse.

 

Notes

[pogo97]

Actually there is a difference between practicing and rehearsing, and when I used practice in this post, I really mean rehearse.

 

Notes

 

There is a difference between practising and rehearsing. To my mind, practising is general work toward mastering your craft and rehearsing is getting ready for a performance. How do you differentiate them?

[Notes_Norton]

I agree that practicing is work to master your craft, but I also add learning your part before getting with the rest of the band before rehearsal.

 

I was in a concert band in school, and plenty of 5-7 piece rock bands. We always had to learn our parts before getting together to rehearse the tune. If everybody had to wait until the tune was under each person's fingers in rehearsal, it would be a terrible waste of time. Come to rehearsal ready to play your part - practice your part at home - it's a mantra.

 

Even in our duo, Leilani and I map out the parts we are going to sequence, the parts we are going to sing, what instruments we are going to play live, and what parts we are going to play on those instruments. Then I sequence the tune and when the sequence is done, I learn my parts while Leilani learns hers - that's practice. Then we get together in my small studio and rehearse it without a PA. During rehearsal we get the kinks out, find out if what we planned works (it usually does) and if not what we need to do to fix it.

 

Notes

[msmooth]

 

Thanks for the Responses.

 

I did set up the PA and rehearsed with my wife yesterday and will do so again tonight with a bassist. I'm glad I set it up. I was able to try different mics to get the sound I wanted and to set the amount of delay/reverb so that I won't have to mess with it very much when setting up for a gig. I also was able to work out a volume issue for my guitar which is the difference between using a pick and finger picking ( I use about 50% of each).

 

I wouldn't have set it up to practice by myself or learn songs. I am hoping that this summer when we move into our new place I will be able to keep a small system set up in my office/studio room.

 

Mike