Tech 21 into PA

[Gruntfuttock]

My pedalboard comprises of: Tuner. HCSE. Gemini lll. Tech 21 Liverpool. HoF reverb. Can I plug this board directly into a PA unit? I’m becoming too old to lug heavy amps around.
Thanks Dave

[Iain Purdon]

In principle, yes you can and there’s much to be said for it. The PA needs to have the guts to handle the full range of audio frequencies at gig level. Others here will have more detailed advice, I’m sure, but in my book it’s the way forward. If your pedal board can deliver the “sound” you like, the PA should simply make it louder.

Best wishes - Iain

[Gruntfuttock]

Many thanks Ian. That confirms my thoughts on the subject

[Jay Bass]

The overall sucess of pluging directly into a pa system will depend on the pa itself as mentioned by iain
you will need a decent monitor system to hear yourself properly as most pa speakers are placed in front of the stage
the other option is to use a small amp as a backline and go out of the DI into the pa, this amp only needs to be loud enough for you to hear yourself on stage .
as the main pa will be loud enough to fill the venue.
all depends on the venues you are playing.

[bazmusicman]

I did this with a ETAP 2HW ECHO into JOYO AC TONE (the same as Tech 21) into a BOSE L2 PA and it worked just fine.

Regards,
Baz.

[Gruntfuttock]

Many thanks Jay and Baz!

[SJB]

I set up my G3x into my MV50 line out into mixer and then the PA at one of the club evenings. It was routed to the FOH and Stage Monitors.
Someone said that this setup had been tried before - without good results.
I then asked how my sound was - very good was the reply.
So I then said that was my setup - reply - Wow.

So a lot depends on the PA I suppose. The MV50 line out is supposed to have amp and speaker emulation. I have used it on video's - MV50 into my Daw.
This is an ideal setup if playing area is limited in space. And of course you carry less kit.

[Garystrat]

Getting good results is about impedance matching the signal going into the PA, most PA’s will be able to handle the different levels from different sources, it’s a question of using the right inputs and setting them correctly!

As an example if you look at the inputs on this Yamaha Stagepass link you can see sockets 1 to 4 have switches for instrument and line level input, plus a phantom power source required by some mic’s. Sockets 1 - 4 are can accept XLR cables, the CABLES can be either balanced or unbalanced, for long cable runs balanced cables will prevent signal interference and audio errors, Sockets 3 -4 also have a centre socket for a 6 mm jack plug (standard guitar jack).

https://uk.yamaha.com/en/products/proau ... oduct-tabs

You will also see a number of other different types of input/output connectors, these are for things like audio output from player and iPad type devices or output to monitor speakers/headphones.

Below is a link that explains Instrument level input, if you want know about other inputs click the appropriate link on the page:

https://www.sweetwater.com/insync/instrument-level/

The manual on the Tech 21 Liverpool states that the output has unity gain, in other words the signal going in will match the signal going out:

https://www.sweetwater.com/insync/what- ... ld-i-care/

The above information holds good for audio interfaces and direct connection to a computer, if you are making a connection to a computers sound card this will normally be “Line In” (a standard output socket for headphones will match this). The other connection you may have on a sound card or device is SPDIF, this is a fibre optic connection for high quality results, in this case the device providing the signal is doing the conversion from audio to digital signal (ADC) and by passes the sound cards input conversion. When the computer has done the processing for you to be able to hear audio it has to convert the digital signal back to analogue (DAC).

Note: Often sound bars for TV will have an SPDIF connection, it’s worth considering because a fibre optic lead can transfer data faster and should give the best results, it’s also very thin and neat.

Regards

Gary

[nivramarvin]

I use virtual amps in the Amplitude CS software (that is for free) and send the signal of my iPhone through an iRig HD Adapter directly to the mixer. Whenever possible, I position the PA boxes so that I can hear my guitar well without using an actual amp or monitor. The RCF boxes on the video are powerful enough that you can usually do without subwoofers, even outdoors.
At the moment I like to take my green PRS copy (€249) because it is comfortable to play, has 24 frets and a well-functioning vibrato arm. Only the bridge pickup sounds a bit shrill in single coil mode.

I only carry my real amp (Mesa Boogie Mk.2, 33 kg) when I'm performing with the whole band.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/311a15dpqqa6q ... g.MOV?dl=0

[Gruntfuttock]

Gary Strat. Getting good results is about impedance matching the signal going into the PA, most PA’s will be able to handle the different levels from different sources, it’s a question of using the right inputs and setting them correctly!

Hi Gary. I’ve altered my pedal board. I’ve now included a Behringer 802 mixer so both guitar and BT’s can go into the mixer and then into the main PA. This would also give me more control of balance between guitar and BTs, and I would be able to tweak the. EQ of the BTs. I had a few problems recently re connecting my iPad to various PAs. With this set up I can connect my iPad to my 802 and the 802 to the main PA using two cables with standard jacks.