One of the local music stores tried to sell me a set of 10" speakers when I first got into this OMB act. He said many vocalist liked 10" and 12" speakers over 15."

After all these years, I'm comparing my 12" Carvin AG100D 100W acoustic amp $450 with my Rogue Roller PA maybe 50W 10" $198.

Well my keyboard sounds very good on both systems, however, I'll be danged if the Rogue doesn't sound better on vocals.

I tried turning knobs until I'm blue in the face on the Carvin. There isn't as many options on the settings with the Rogue as there is on the Carvin.

Is this possible? Do any of you experts here have an explanation?

I'm probably gonna start carrying both amps to the nursing homes and I’ll sing thru the Rogue. Even the Spring Reverb on the Rogue sounds very good. I can't say that I prefer the Digital Reverb on the Carvin any better but only that it has more options. Am I losing my mind or my hearing ?
Thanks for any input,
Boo


[This message has been edited by brickboo (edited 03-23-2007).]

Boo can you post two demos of each so we can hear them?

Donny I still don't know much about recording and if I did, I wouldn't know how to put it on the forun. I started all of this too late.

I'm just glad for all of the help and support from you and others to where I can get an audience to applause every now and then.

The biggest hurdle for me was getting the nerve to go out and do this after one and a half years of practice with an arranger. Remember I was just a sax player and maybe sang 3 or 4 songs and a little
doo-wop in the old days.

GK made a double-6 inch speaker amp back in the early 80's that was gobbled up by vocalists in NYC for working small rooms. I have one I use up in NW Connecticut in the summer, and it is as good as anything I have ever used for vocals, and is powerful and versatile re inputs, outputs, graphic eq, too, and light and compact to carry. I use it for kb too, and it's excellent, lacks some fullness and bass for kb, but it is accurate and clear. for vocals, it's almost a rule of thumb that smaller speakers are better. When I see
a folk singer/acoustic guitarist set up two 15-inch monsters on tall stands and spread them out across the wall in a small indoor or outdoor venue, along with a big powered mixer and a stack of effects in a rack, i always scratch my head and wonder what are they thinking???? they would sound so much better with one small clear speaker amp set next to them that takes no time to set up and break down, and no effort to shlep to the gig.

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Miami Mo

A lot depends on the KIND of music you play, the kind of people you are playing FOR, and the VOLUME you are playing at (or ever expect to).

It's all well and good to look at a couple of guitarists with too much gear (they MIGHT be used to bigger rooms), but every time you bring an arranger to a gig, well, you just walked in with a drummer and bass player, and a couple of guitarists too....! You try to do this gig with too LITTLE gear, and you sound thin, brittle and small.

Now, if this is what your audience would prefer, you're in business. But if you went in to the gig saying you could sound like a full band, you'd better have the PA to produce this. 10" top speakers (with a horn or tweeter) are actually not too bad, but ONLY if you reinforce them with a sub. Doesn't have to be that big (12" or 15" tops, self powered), but unless you put a bit of 'oomph' into the room, you are going to sound like a bad Muzak system, and basically negate any advantage the arranger gave you.

And, don't forget, you are not buying your PA for the smallest room you play, you are buying it for the BIGGEST room you are likely to play (or you have to hire a PA for those gigs). So don't go TOO small.......

Boo, when I was using Barbettas I preferred the smaller 31C sound to that of the larger 32C. The 31 has two 8-inch woofers while the 32 has a single 15.
It seemed fuller and smoother while retaining full bass response.
Your ears will tell you what's best for you.
DonM

Smaller speakers provide a much tighter response due to the smaller cones and have a much better high frequency range. They can still produce a good good bass response, you just need more of them to push air. Most bass players nowadays prefer 10 inch speakers to 15 inch. You'll see many bass player using 4 x 10 cabinets. The main advantage of 15 inch speakers is that they throw the bass frequncies over a longer area. But for a lot of rooms multiple 10 inch speakers is the way to go.

I use a powered cabinet with a 15 inch and a large horn with my keyboard but I do notice a loss of upper mid frequencies and I am seriously considering changing to a smaller speaker format.

My stagepas 300 system on poles sound terrific.......clean and punchy and enough power for any venues I play. Also are a breeze to set up and tear down.

zuki

Boo,

There are lots of great systems available, and unfortunately, lots of mediocre systems as well. As Don said, let your ears be the judge. Both Don and I exclusively use the Bose L1 for nearly every venue. Those 24 tiny speakers in combination with a long-throw sub really do an outstanding job. You may want to look into purchasing the system directly from Bose and utilize their 45-day, no-questions-asked return policy. I've used the system to perform for audiences as small as a dozen, and as large as 1,200, and never had to turn the volume beyond the haflway point for the largest venue.

while the Bose sells for $1,995, and bricklayers are all poor, you may want to look into the Logitech Z-5500, which sells for under $300 in most places. Some online sources had them on sale for $199 and free shipping a few months ago. It's an incredible system and really has lots of punch for audiences to 125 people.

Good Luck,

Gary

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Travlin' Easy

I have always been of a mind that an inferior sound system (and/or sound engineer when applicable) can make you sound worse, but a superior sound system cannot make you sound better. Many performers never understand the distinction, hence a lot of overkill setups.
First It's about the quality of the music , and second the ability of the system to amplify it properly. It's not about a super duper system making you sound even better yet.

Would you prefer to listen to Caruso on an old Victrola or
Tiny Tim on a Mark Levinson sound sytem?

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Miami Mo