Members fuzzball Posted March 8, 2006 Members Share Posted March 8, 2006 I am going to start playing coffee shops and I need a small PA system (mine is way to big for this). I think a peavey escort may be a little overkill. Is the Soundtech ST410 PA package any good, or does it sound like poop. I would also be open to suggestions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BillESC Posted March 9, 2006 Members Share Posted March 9, 2006 Fuzz, You haven't given us a clue as to what your PA system needs to reproduce... it would help. For a small venue with acoustic instrument and vocal needs, the Mackie SRM 350's could do a nice job. Certainly there are lots of choices/combinations of gear. More detail please. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members fuzzball Posted March 9, 2006 Author Members Share Posted March 9, 2006 Sorry about that I need it for small acoustic coffee shop gigs. It will be used for 2 acoustic guitars and 2 vocalists. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BillESC Posted March 9, 2006 Members Share Posted March 9, 2006 The 350's would do you well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Rbts Posted March 9, 2006 Members Share Posted March 9, 2006 I am going to make the comment that whatever you do, it will be the mics and the speakers that make the biggest difference. Even for a small coffee house PA, I think it might be good to have a little bit of reverb available... which suggests that an effects loop in the signal chain would be valuable. I guess you are going to get a mixer, and am amp (or two) and speakers.... or... you are going to get some sort of powered mixer, and some speakers.... or a passive mixer with some powered speakers (which this last would be my prefrence. My suggestion is that whatever you end up doing, it is important to get really good speakers, if you want that nice sweet sound. The question of as to whether you will need to go so far as to have a monitor set up will depend on your circumstances... but in a coffee shop, I will suggest that you might well be able to simply position whatever speakers you sue so that both you and the audiance can have advantage of them. this information is very general.... but perhaps there will be something here that is useful to you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members fuzzball Posted March 9, 2006 Author Members Share Posted March 9, 2006 Thanks for the helpful info. I agree speakers are key, and I also prefer to have a powerd mixer or a separate power amp and mixer over powered speakers. I don't need monitors so that will make things easier. Has anyone hear used the Soundtech ST410 PA ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members agedhorse Posted March 9, 2006 Members Share Posted March 9, 2006 Either a powered mixer or a mixer and a couple of powered speakers might be a good choice for this application. I would look for something with built in effects and enough basic features to continue to be convenient for this type of use. You can probably do a nice job of this for under $1,500. This type of gig generally favors convenience and portability and small unobtrusive gear... doesn't necessarily mean cheap gear though. I have a small system like this for corpotate reinforcement work and there's like $30k into it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members fuzzball Posted March 9, 2006 Author Members Share Posted March 9, 2006 Ouch, but in this case the cheaper the better, I already have a large PA and a lot of money sunk into it. Rightnow I want something small, portable, reliable, and if possible not expensive. (I know I am asking a lot, but on occasion there is a pearl in the rough). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BillESC Posted March 9, 2006 Members Share Posted March 9, 2006 How about this Sound Tech offering. S60 http://www.soundtech.com/products/systems/s60.asp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members aerorockjax Posted March 11, 2006 Members Share Posted March 11, 2006 Did anyone else notice behringer's new powered mixers have a fls (feedback locating system) just like on peavey's newer xr series? Is this feature really that popular now? Yamaha has a feedback locating light that tells you which chennel is feeding back but not the frequency. Both peavey and yamaha powered mixers would probably be way better quality unless behringer recently made quality top priority (not intending bash). I might be getting a peavey xr series powered mixer for (2-3 mics in 4 peice rock band) vocals for practices and some decent monitors/speakers. The fls seems like a helpfull feature but i not essential since it shouldn't really take that long to find the right frequencies that need a adjustament. Most important in regard to prevent feedback is correct placement of mics in reference to monitors/speakers and the guitar amps anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members pktaskes Posted March 11, 2006 Members Share Posted March 11, 2006 Originally posted by aerorockjax Yamaha has a feedback locating light that tells you which chennel is feeding back but not the frequency. The Yamaha FLS in the new EMXxxxSC's is bogus. I had the same experience that I've read all over the net. Lights just come on when you turn the channel up loud. No discernable feedback present at all. I do like the compressors they've put in though...helps a bit. I would go with a used mixer. We used a Samsom TM300 for 4 years doing the same thing you're doing. We even used to plug it in the a cigarette lighter when we did parades on th back of a flatbed. If your looking to save a bit, buy used. This one is nice...no handle though: http://cgi.ebay.com/SAMSON-SD8-500W-POWERED-MIXER-Church-Band-DJ-PA_W0QQitemZ7396279570QQcategoryZ23785QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem BUY GOOD 10" or 12" SPEAKERS!! Look locally for pickup and save $$. I saw a guy selling a pair of old JBL SR's for $299. Gone now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members fuzzball Posted March 11, 2006 Author Members Share Posted March 11, 2006 I have always had good experience with peavey power amps and mixers. I would like the escourt, but for what I need it is overkill and a little pricey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members georgestrings Posted March 11, 2006 Members Share Posted March 11, 2006 Originally posted by fuzzball Ouch, but in this case the cheaper the better, I already have a large PA and a lot of money sunk into it. Rightnow I want something small, portable, reliable, and if possible not expensive. (I know I am asking a lot, but on occasion there is a pearl in the rough). Well, if a pair of combos is part of your front end, just use them and add a small powered mixer, and you're home free... My modest front end consists of a pair of combos, a pair of subs, a Mackie 808s, a QSC amp and a crossover for the subs - when I do a smallish acoustic thing, I just grab the Mackie and combos, and off I go... - georgestrings Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members aerorockjax Posted March 11, 2006 Members Share Posted March 11, 2006 Originally posted by fuzzball I have always had good experience with peavey power amps and mixers. I would like the escourt, but for what I need it is overkill and a little pricey. The escort looks a bit cheesy to me and is way underpowered at 150 watts (75 watts per channel). Your not gonna be able to play with a drummer and get even close to decent vocal level or sound quality (even with a quiet drummer). Those escort speakers have a 10 in woofer and piezo tweeter. The manual doesn't list specs on the speakers such as the sensitivity, max spl, max wattage handling... I'm leaning towards a peavey xr600g. For speakers maybe a pair of pr12's, Peavey PV12M's or yamaha club series monitors. It does seem like yamaha's powered mixers are selling for less on ebay and could get a unit with more wattage which isn't bad to have on hand. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members georgestrings Posted March 11, 2006 Members Share Posted March 11, 2006 "It will be used for 2 acoustic guitars and 2 vocalists." - georgestrings Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members dboomer Posted March 11, 2006 Members Share Posted March 11, 2006 Originally posted by fuzzball I have always had good experience with peavey power amps and mixers. I would like the escourt, but for what I need it is overkill and a little pricey. If an Escort is too big ... how 'bout a Messinger? http://peavey.com/products/browse.cfm/action/detail/item/115241/number/00573540/cat/75/begin/1/Messenger.cfm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members fuzzball Posted March 11, 2006 Author Members Share Posted March 11, 2006 Thanks for the ideas, I guess I need to nut up and quit being so cheap. I should put a few bucks into a small system. I think I will sell a few cymbols that I have collecting dust to help add to the fund. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Unalaska Posted March 11, 2006 Members Share Posted March 11, 2006 What do you have as far as a large system? You may be able to use parts of it for a smaller system and may only need a small board or powered mixer. It's very convenient to be able to scale the gear back to fit into various venues. p Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members fuzzball Posted March 12, 2006 Author Members Share Posted March 12, 2006 I have a 16 channel mixer, 2 -400 w power amps, and my speaker cabs are way to big. I would like to have a small system that I could use just for small gigs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted March 12, 2006 Share Posted March 12, 2006 Originally posted by fuzzball Sorry about that I need it for small acoustic coffee shop gigs. It will be used for 2 acoustic guitars and 2 vocalists. What ever you do, please listen to the rig before you lay down the money! IMO: music should be an improvement over silence. I've heard my fair share of small coffee shop performances where the cheap/small/portable PA being used was absolutely vile. For some reason, vocals and acoustic guitar type material brings out the worst in cheap/crappy compression drivers/crossovers/horn flairs... etc.. combinations. It's like fingernails on a chalkboard... just makes you wince. What you need is: fat and warm with silky top end. A maybe: http://cgi.ebay.com/EAW-300-Watt-Full-Range-12-Inch-Speakers-1-Pair_W0QQitemZ7397408071 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members fingerstyleman Posted March 12, 2006 Members Share Posted March 12, 2006 I use a Yamaha Stagepass 300 protable PA Rig, simple to set up, good sound quality. It's the signal path into the PA from your guitars that will have larger impact on the sound produced. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members fuzzball Posted March 12, 2006 Author Members Share Posted March 12, 2006 Thanks for the tips and ideas, I have a little research to do (which is fine it will give me more time to save up the cash). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted March 12, 2006 Share Posted March 12, 2006 Originally posted by fingerstyleman It's the signal path into the PA from your guitars that will have larger impact on the sound produced. Could you elaborate on that some? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members fingerstyleman Posted March 12, 2006 Members Share Posted March 12, 2006 Originally posted by Audiopile Could you elaborate on that some? Sure, even some practicle exapmles. An acoustic gutar can either be miced or have a pick-up fitted, micing can give great results,and would certainly be the way to go in a studio, but live gives problems with feedback, and can pick up string squeeks. A good piezo pick-up, ao saddle pick-up is great, but I always find the G or B string(depending on the pick-up) sounds too loud. The guitar is a mid-range instrument, but through a PA tends to over emphasise the frequencies 1.25 - 4kHz and 31 - 125 Hz. If you use a multi-band EQ between your pick-up and the PA you can have a big impact on the sound quality. Then of course, most people like their own 'individual' sound to suit a style of play, for myself I like to use a tube pre-amplifier between the piezo on my classical and the PA. If you have an electric guiat you will almost certainly want an amp modeler, a POD or V-Amp to give you your sound. I guess what I'm getting at is that a PA just makes the signal you throw at it louder, and you might want to think about shaping that signal before you throw it into the PA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Anonymous Posted March 12, 2006 Share Posted March 12, 2006 Originally posted by fingerstyleman Sure, even some practicle exapmles. Thanks! Good info... and good points. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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