PA for solo acoustic gigs

bobblehat

Hi All,

Currently working towards some gigs as a solo act .Just acoustic guitar and vocals and looking for some ideas for a PA. 

Ideally something small and portable with built in FX and loud enough for small gigs.I have a larger PA If needed but it would be a pain in the arse to carry around on my own.My current PA is about 20 years old so haven't really kept up with the latest developments.

Current budget is about £500 but would prefer to spend less until I start making a few quid.

Not looking to buy for a couple of months ,just looking to see what my options are.

Any help much appreciated.

IanSavage

There's the Peavey Escort which is a pretty bare-bones but easily transportable system for that kind of thing; however personally I'd rather hunt around secondhand for a HK Lucas (you'd need to feed it from an external mixer if you wanted effects, but you can get a two-channel Behringer or something with effects for thirty quid) or (and it pains me to say this, as for years I've maintained that the company represents 'better sound through marketing') save up the pennies for a secondhand Bose L1. 

If it were me (and it kind of is, I'm looking at doing the same thing!) I'd make do with a 12" active PA speaker (a Mackie SRM / HK / RCF would be perfect (ideally Italian-made Mackie or RCF, not Chinese) or a decent Studiomaster or something) and a little desk with effects - you'd sort that for a couple of hundred quid tops, and just for reinforcing yourself a bit in pubs would do the job perfectly. One-handed carry as well. 

citizen68

We just got 2 x Yamaha DXR15's for our band. One of these (or even the 12" DXR12) might do as there are three separate inputs on the actual speaker which can be mixed from the speaker - would need a separate effects unit though..very portable..

bobblehat

IanSavage said:

There's the Peavey Escort which is a pretty bare-bones but easily transportable system for that kind of thing; however personally I'd rather hunt around secondhand for a HK Lucas (you'd need to feed it from an external mixer if you wanted effects, but you can get a two-channel Behringer or something with effects for thirty quid) or (and it pains me to say this, as for years I've maintained that the company represents 'better sound through marketing') save up the pennies for a secondhand Bose L1. 

If it were me (and it kind of is, I'm looking at doing the same thing!) I'd make do with a 12" active PA speaker (a Mackie SRM / HK / RCF would be perfect (ideally Italian-made Mackie or RCF, not Chinese) or a decent Studiomaster or something) and a little desk with effects - you'd sort that for a couple of hundred quid tops, and just for reinforcing yourself a bit in pubs would do the job perfectly. One-handed carry as well. 

Thanks for that ,

I did wonder whether a decent single 12" active speaker would do the trick. Want to keep it as cheap and simple simple as possible.

  

Danny1969

For acoustic gigs the Bose L1 or L2 system is really good as you can stick it behind you and it serves you and the crowd at once, and really does throw a wide radius pattern. These things are hopeless for bands but I like em for acoustic gigs, they really are the perfect solution those who don't want to have speakers on stands and monitor on floor

I think even a used one is a bit pricey though but there's a good earn in one man acoustic shows ...... so  probably pay for itself in the long run

jpfamps

I would also recommend the single powered 12" speaker option + small mixer.  

This will be easily within your budget, is very portable and the speaker could be used as a monitor in your main rig.

The main issue you need to address in my view, is how you are intending to amplify the acoustic guitar to best effect, assuming you do want to amplify it of course.

If you are using an on board pickup, in my opinion, to get best results (which in this case would be to get a nice natural accoustic sound FOH) you will need some decent eq. 

Alternatively you may consider micing the guitar.

bobblehat

jpfamps said:

I would also recommend the single powered 12" speaker option + small mixer.  

This will be easily within your budget, is very portable and the speaker could be used as a monitor in your main rig.

The main issue you need to address in my view, is how you are intending to amplify the acoustic guitar to best effect, assuming you do want to amplify it of course.

If you are using an on board pickup, in my opinion, to get best results (which in this case would be to get a nice natural accoustic sound FOH) you will need some decent eq. 

Alternatively you may consider micing the guitar.

Will be using on board pickup, I have used mics in the past and they sound great but not worth the extra hassle and its a pain not being able to move.

jpfamps

bobblehat said:

jpfamps said:

I would also recommend the single powered 12" speaker option + small mixer.  

This will be easily within your budget, is very portable and the speaker could be used as a monitor in your main rig.

The main issue you need to address in my view, is how you are intending to amplify the acoustic guitar to best effect, assuming you do want to amplify it of course.

If you are using an on board pickup, in my opinion, to get best results (which in this case would be to get a nice natural accoustic sound FOH) you will need some decent eq. 

Alternatively you may consider micing the guitar.

Will be using on board pickup, I have used mics in the past and they sound great but not worth the extra hassle and its a pain not being able to move.

In that case I would inclined to have some sort of parametric eq for the acoustic.

In my experience for a more natural acoustic sound, a narrow cut somewhere between 1-2 kHz is beneficial with most acoustic guitar pickups. Often it's easier to identify the problem frequency here by sweeping a parametric boost through this region to home in on the nastiness and then cut. The mid sweep in most desks isn't narrow enough, so a dedicated eq pedal is better.

A lot of advice re eqing acoustic guitar on the web is more mixing in a band context, either in the studio, or live where avoiding feedback and sitting in the mix is a greater priority than getting a natural guitar sound.

maltingsaudio

Mate of mine just bought the fender bose copy which sounds good for acoustic gigs but gets a bit untidy when you up the volume, there are also some  great deals to be had on the HK Nano system which is within your budget. However my 2ps worth is to have a look at an acoustic amp like the AER or Marshall soloist which have mic and guitar channels and are quite ballsy enough for a small solo acoustic  gig. If the gig requires more power then take a bit of your band PA with you. 

Danny1969

Yeah the AER is awesome we use an AcoustiCube 3  but they are really pricey now. Fishman Loudbox is a cheaper option but never tried one

rich75

citizen68 said:

We just got 2 x Yamaha DXR15's for our band. One of these (or even the 12" DXR12) might do as there are three separate inputs on the actual speaker which can be mixed from the speaker - would need a separate effects unit though..very portable..

+1 for the yamaha DXR powered speakers. My (quite loud) band uses a pair of DXR15s as our main PA speakers and I also use a DXR12 as an on-stage keyboard and acoustic guitar amp. They sound really good and have got plenty of power to spare - I suspect that a single DXR12 with a small mixer/fx would do the job comfortably.

Phil_aka_Pip

@Danny1969 I saw a dance band (Inertia Reel) playing everything from barn-dance-y stuff to Rolling Stones covers (quite accurately too) using those Bose thin towers strategically placed behind the band and out in front. The sound was excellent. You may have said the Bose things don't work in a band from an experience you've had, while they might not be right for every band, I think it's a bit harsh to say they won't work for any band. tbh, I was impressed when I heard them. Inertia Reel have drums, electric bass, keys, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, and most of them sing.

Danny1969

Phil_aka_Pip said:

@Danny1969 I saw a dance band (Inertia Reel) playing everything from barn-dance-y stuff to Rolling Stones covers (quite accurately too) using those Bose thin towers strategically placed behind the band and out in front. The sound was excellent. You may have said the Bose things don't work in a band from an experience you've had, while they might not be right for every band, I think it's a bit harsh to say they won't work for any band. tbh, I was impressed when I heard them. Inertia Reel have drums, electric bass, keys, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, and most of them sing.

Yes it was a bit of a sweeping statement. I was playing with a Shadows trib band on Wed evening and we had the guitars miced up into a Bose L2 setup behind us with no problems. 

It's just if your average soundguy trys to wind a load of 40hz to make the bass drum thump you in the chest (bass drum is the new lead vocal these days) the Bose system just won't do it. The things internally hi passed around 80Hz and it just can't move enough air for anything low and loud. 

jpfamps

It's just if your average soundguy trys to wind a load of 40hz to make the bass drum thump you in the chest (bass drum is the new lead vocal these days) the Bose system just won't do it. The things internally hi passed around 80Hz and it just can't move enough air for anything low and loud. 

In my view that's a good thing.

Phil_aka_Pip

@Danny1969 yes, if you want loud bass register stuff you have to shift air and I don't give a damn about the Hi-Fi wallahs who will tell you that a 6" cone will deliver bass with the right porting - the best it will do is let you think you're hearing deep bass, I say you need a F--K 0FF size woofer with an o/p stage capable of supplying current to deliver bass, so there's no way those thin columns will do it. However unless you're into dub reggae or drum'n'bass I can't see the Bose columns being a problem, especially if your bass player's rig is contributing to FOH sound as well, which it will in most small venues.