Tom Brookes Music Posted June 20, 2014 Share Posted June 20, 2014 Hey folks, my new band are getting ready to start gigging...it's blues and funk covers, we're at the stage where we're talking about monitoring. Deal is, everyone sorts themselves out, so if you want a monitor wedge you buy it. Ditto iem. Basically I was going to go down the wired iem route with the cable gaffa taped to my guitar cable (I've seen a few guys do this and there's minimum fuss) however, I swap between two guitars regularly (yep sorry not on bass in this band!) each has it's own cable as I run them into an ab splitter on my pedal board. I don't really want anymore cables on the floor to get tangled so I'm thinking of a wireless system. I can't justify the money of a Shure system really. Has anyone any experience of the LD systems stuff? They do a back for under 250 with two sets of receivers and iem so if me and the singer bought it together it'd work out quite cheap and we could upgrade the actual earplugs over time. Thoughts? What are other people using? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JapanAxe Posted June 20, 2014 Share Posted June 20, 2014 No experience of LD. I used to have an entry-level Trantec system (transmitter and 2 receivers), and that cost (IIRC) £440 in 2002. I imagine prices have come down since then as they have become more popular and other brands have entered the market, so the low price doesn't necessarily mean it's poor quality. A couple of things to be aware of - - If you share your setup with the singer, then you will have the same monitor mix. - Make sure the radio frequency range isn't about to be sold off to taxis, 4G or whatever. - The Trantec earphones were shocking. At the price point you are looking at, I would expect them to be 'functional' at best. - If/when you upgrade your earphones, bear in mind that isolation is a two-edged sword - yes you are saving your hearing, but the instruments that don't go through the PA will only be audible as 'spill' through your vocal mics. Even so, I would definitely recommend IEMs over wedge monitors. They are smaller and lighter, the audio quality is usually better, and they keep down the on-stage volume and reduce 'volume wars'. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jakenewmanbass Posted June 20, 2014 Share Posted June 20, 2014 In my limited experience of IEMs when you get good ones you're in heaven, when you get cheap ones you're in hell... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Telebass Posted June 22, 2014 Share Posted June 22, 2014 I've been using LDs for some years. Upgrading the phones is not something you can put off, as you're unlikely to hear much, if anything, clearly. This goes double for bass. The reality is that this is something where cutting corners is not going to work. Get the Shures if at all possible, then upgrade the phones later. That way the starting point is better and won't put you off the whole idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.