zac362 Posted November 22, 2011 Share Posted November 22, 2011 think this is the right place for this, but due to recent events, my band has found its self with out a frontman, which is fine, I'm looking forward to finding a new 5th member. The major downside is that our frontman provided all our PA equipment. after looking online for a bit, I've come to the conclusion that i don't know what I'm looking for or what I'm looking at, if theres anyone out there who could give me a quick run down of what id need and maybe recommended brands (nothing to lavish, were only a pub band and all a bit skint) that would be fantastic. Cheers Zac. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ben604 Posted November 22, 2011 Share Posted November 22, 2011 what do you plan to run through it? What type of band? How many punters do you play to? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zac362 Posted November 22, 2011 Author Share Posted November 22, 2011 2 guitars, bass, bass drum, snare, vocals rock and pop covers band, so everything from guns n roses to duran duran, and usually to full, fairly big pubs, but we're looking to move on to bigger things, maybe some function stuff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
icastle Posted November 22, 2011 Share Posted November 22, 2011 What were you using before the frontman left and was it about the right size, both physically and power wise? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lozz196 Posted November 22, 2011 Share Posted November 22, 2011 Check out Behringer - I know some may knock their equipment, but in an old band we had a Behringer PA/Speakers/Monitors, and used to do 2hr gigs with it. Worked well, no problems, and sounded good. Main thing I`d go for if sorting a pa again is a powered mixer, rather than mixer/power amp combination. Just easier to lug around, and cost is roughly the same. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JTUK Posted November 22, 2011 Share Posted November 22, 2011 Find the singer/frontman first as he may well have his own stuff.... As for decent stuff and bang for buck.. I am assuming you just want tops and the power/EQ section. PV is decent enough and cheap... but depends how discerning you are with Vox and I'd avoid if poss. But probably best budget stuff around...and is very durable JBL isn't what it used to be and the horn units have been fragile, IMRE... what a let-down and come down from a great height..!! Mackie gets good reviews and is decent enough. If the band has a degree of stability and you think ti will last..look into e-bay for HK and Martin stuff and down a level, EV. Way better starting points and your vocals will thank you for it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ben604 Posted November 22, 2011 Share Posted November 22, 2011 You're going to need a fairly hefty PA to run all that through. We spent £900 on 2 tops and a sub, all Mackie (SA1521 x 2, SWA1501 x 1) and we wouldn't be able to run all that through it. I used to run my bass through it, and while it sounded great, it did affect the vocals, they were notably quieter when I was playing certain notes. A quick list of what you'll need with estimated used prices: 2 powered Tops - 15" - £500 - £700 for a pair 2 powered Subs - 15" or 18" - £600 - £700 for a pair Speaker stands - £20 each for sub to top poles or £45 each for floor standers 2 powered Monitors - 15" - £400 a pair Vocal Mics - SM58s - £50-60 each Kick Mic - essential! D112 - £60-70 Mic Stands - Studiospares.co.uk boom mics - £13 each A Mixer - £100+ depending on the desk Cables, lots and spares - £10+ each You'll also need cases to keep everything safe and working. We've probably spent that much over the last 12-18 months and have all the equipment listed above. Basically, I bought it all as and when I could afford it, then the band paid me from the following gigs. We also borrowed bits and pieces here and there until we had a full rig. Personally, I think it's massively important not to skrimp on the PA, we get complimented all the time on our "sound", and the PA is a massive part of it. It's so frustrating to see a band play a song really well, but it sounds pathetic because they bought a cheap PA. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zac362 Posted November 22, 2011 Author Share Posted November 22, 2011 Thanks for taking the time to list all that for me, its much appreciated. so its gonna be quite a pricy endeavour but i was expecting as much to be honest, and like you say, its worth spending the money to get a decent sound. Thanks again. Zac Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charic Posted November 22, 2011 Share Posted November 22, 2011 What sort of budget are you on? And if you are wanting to buy new then digital village (dv247.com) will sort you out, they generally know what they are on about and wont force anything on your which is more than you need. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zac362 Posted November 22, 2011 Author Share Posted November 22, 2011 budgets undecided at the minute really, it was gonna be a case of seeing the sort of amount we'll need to spend then seeing if we can scrape it together Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charic Posted November 22, 2011 Share Posted November 22, 2011 In which case £10k should cover it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zac362 Posted November 22, 2011 Author Share Posted November 22, 2011 haha no problem, time to start raiding the back of the sofa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geddys nose Posted November 22, 2011 Share Posted November 22, 2011 [font=arial, helvetica, sans-serif]Like Ben said don't skrimp on the PA and if your looking to go into functions buy bigger than you need now, The older HK stuff is pretty bullet proof but heavy but sounds superb -you can get a Actor system for about £1500 thats 4 subs and 2 tops powered.[/font] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil Starr Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 Don't know if this might help, there are other related articles as well, though you might need to go via my profile page to track them all down [url="http://www.ultimate-guitar.com/columns/gear_maintenance/a_guide_to_live_sound_speakers_and_amps.html"]http://www.ultimate-guitar.com/columns/gear_maintenance/a_guide_to_live_sound_speakers_and_amps.html[/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VTypeV4 Posted November 23, 2011 Share Posted November 23, 2011 How many times have you been to see a band and thought 'these guys are great but it doesn't sound good in here' ? You wouldn't want that to be you now.. If you wouldn't skimp on your bass gear then don't on PA stuff either. Much like bass gear, inexpensive stuff can work well as long as it's correctly setup. I appreciate most of us can't afford 20 thousand watts of EAW or Turbo Sound stuff but the suggestions as mentioned above and even Peavey stuff will see you well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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