Time for a new amp.. What is everyone using?

[keyoctave]

I'm like a lot of other posters on this thread. Don't go with combo amps. Use good quality PA gear. 6 months ago, I picked up a 6 year old pair of JBL MR-925 PA speakers. They were in excellent shape and had not been used for the past year and a half. The difference in the sound of my keyboards on stage was amazing. Full and dynamic. The cool thing about these speakers is that their sensitivity rating is 101db @ 1 watt/1 meter. Even a 100 watt/channel amp will work well with them.

[mate stubb]

Mate Stubb said: I'm lovin' my new JBL PRX515s. They pretty much kick the crap out of the Eons.

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I think those PRX 515s kick the crap out of your wallet too:

 

JBL EON G2 15: $699.00

JBL PRX 515: $999.00

 

But you pays your money and you takes your choice.

 

I haven't heard the PRX515 myself, but I'll take Moe's word for it until I do. I have a feeling they pretty much kick the crap out of the EONs.

 

And I like my EON for what it is. Great bang for the buck.

 

 

Another thing is that those Crown amps sound sooo good. They have earned my trust over the years. Sitting under my desk is a Crown DC300 (not a 300A) that I have had in continuous use since 1972. And it was already USED when I bought it. In all that time it had only one bit of trouble: a solder joint went cold.

[stepay]

I'll just spout the "you get what you pay for" line. I bought an Alesis Sumo 300 a year ago. It's been on lots of gigs since, and I even use it at home when practicing. It's good for some things, but at $199 you just can't rely on it for durability. The microphone connection is squirrely -- luckily I never relied on it for that. And, the on/off switch is now broken. Fortunately it's broken in the ON position, so I just plug it in when I want to use it. It actually throws out some decent power for organs and horns and pretty much any sound except for acoustic piano sounds -- those are thin. If I had to do it all over again, I'd get some EONs or Mackies or something like that. Well, I say that, but I'm a cheap bastard, so maybe I wouldn't.

[Legatoboy]

I use either:

 

a.) (2) EV Sx100a w/Crown Powerbase 1. (various mixers)

b.) Traynor K4 .............................."

c.) MS KBR-3D .............................."

d.) Roland KC-350 ..........................."

 

All run with a BBE362/Dual 15 EQ's in the chain before the Amp or Speakers!

 

Leslie 145 w/Speakeasy Classic Pre

 

I've been using the Traynor K4 alot these days with CX-3 sim! It's been about 4 months now and I'm starting to really miss real rotation and air moving! I may go back to the KBR-3D for awhile, though the piano probably sounds better through the K4!

 

I'm lusting after the EV SXa 360's but I only use my EV's/Crown for concert gigs which tend to be the exception. Most of the playing areas I play in tend to be small to medium.

 

The KC-350 is for very small areas or gigs!

lb

[DanS]

PA style setups are nice for the separation & sound, but more gear to cart around, and more expensive.

At the end of the night, I'm glad I use the K4.

[MikeT156]

A lot of what you use depends on what you play and how many people you play with. In a band, you can either use a KB amp and a line out to the FOH. If you do a solo act and SING too, then you need a small PA to cover everything. If you do a instrumental lounge act or dinner music gig, a small KB amp will do the trick. I like the sound of the Motion Sound KB amps. JBL powered monitors are nice if you want better stereo separation and more power.

 

Mike T.

[Blue JC]

I use either:

 

All run with a BBE362/Dual 15 EQ's in the chain before the Amp or Speakers!

lb

 

Hey lb,

 

What does the BBE 362 sonic maximizer do for your keyboards? How do you use the EQs in the chain?

[Floyd Tatum]

I'm lovin' my new JBL PRX515s. They pretty much kick the crap out of the Eons.

 

I can imagine how they would sound better, I like wood cabinets. However, the PRX515 weighs 57lbs each compared to the EON 15's 46 lbs. Too much for me, I use Eon 10's (26lbs). But, there's a PRX 512 (12" speakers) that weighs 40 lbs, that might be more manageable.

 

[kanker.]

PA style setups are nice for the separation & sound, but more gear to cart around, and more expensive.

At the end of the night, I'm glad I use the K4.

I have no more gear to carry around when using a JBL EON than if I used a K4...

[mate stubb]

I'm lovin' my new JBL PRX515s. They pretty much kick the crap out of the Eons.

 

I can imagine how they would sound better, I like wood cabinets. However, the PRX515 weighs 57lbs each compared to the EON 15's 46 lbs. Too much for me, I use Eon 10's (26lbs). But, there's a PRX 512 (12" speakers) that weighs 40 lbs, that might be more manageable.

Yup. As I said in another thread, I went to try out the 512 and came home with the 515. I was prepared to deal with less bass out of the 512, but the midrange went harsh on my Nord Stage piano when I cranked it, and stayed smooth as buttuh with the 515. I would have liked to try out the FBT and SXA offerings too, but couldn't track any down.

[Legatoboy]

Blue JC,

 

Without getting too technical in terms of it's audio time correction thing that the BBE's do, it basically tightens up the bass and the midrange and adds clarity to the high end. It also has the effect of making the sound image stand up in the front of the amp better and it helps me hear more details of my piano and synth sound. It kind of props up the sound coming from the speakers and gets the bass and treble to the same spot at the same time. I use it a 12 o'clock for the bass and the treble 'process', sometimes 10 to 11 o'clock on the high end. Can't use too much.

 

I run my EQ in stereo before the BBE so the BBE enhances what I have EQ'd..... with both those units, it's a very effective sound processing, for me at least. Some people don't like BBE. I tend to EQ in a subtle curve also unless the room is way out or the band gets loud and I just want to boost certain freqs so I can hear better!

 

Keys> Stereo Mixer-Stereo outs> Dual 15 EQ > BBE365> stereo in on Amp.

 

Sometimes, depending on the amp, I won't BBE/EQ my Organ sound, it takes something away from it when running sim or rotor!

lb

 

 

I use either:

 

All run with a BBE362/Dual 15 EQ's in the chain before the Amp or Speakers!

lb

 

Hey lb,

 

What does the BBE 362 sonic maximizer do for your keyboards? How do you use the EQs in the chain?

[Blue JC]

Thanks lb.

[Mr. Nightime]

We've got a BBE connected to our PA. The only time I notice it is when it's not there. There's a nice clarity that it adds that help the vocals to be more intelligeble.

 

[Legatoboy]

BBE stands for "Barcus 'Beery' Electronics" btw

 

(no just Joshin - 'Berry') the same people who made those early acoustic piano pickups in the 70's that Chuck Leavell and alot of others used.

 

BBE story . . .

 

I have a BBE362 in each of my 3 gig racks and one in my home studio. I picked up 2 about 4 years ago for 75$ each new at GC. They usually sell for $99 unless you get the ones with more options or balanced outs which can get pretty pricey.

lb

[kanker.]

They still make those pickups, even improved them since...

[Legatoboy]

Kanker,

 

I read a review a few years ago that said some newer designs out performed them (BBE's). They may have caught up by now!

lb

[Wizz]

I just purchased a JBL Eon G2 with the 15 inch woofer. Use it once at rehersal with my Motif ES6 and the band members were complimenting on my playing, the Motif ES6, and/or the Eon 15 G2.

[Postman]

Barbetta Sona 31c. Little guy, but packs a punch. Works well for a Chapman Stick, too.

 

http://www.barbetta.com/html/Live/Sona_31/sona_31.html

[UpNorthBuckeye]

Powered Mixer - Samson 14 channel, 2x 500 watts.

Cabinets: either Carvin 1584s (3-way) or smaller Carvin 2-ways (can't remember the model number) for smaller gigs.

 

The band got over it. Also, when I started playing LHB a year ago, I had all the power I need. I put one cabinet near the drummer so he can hear the bass. Sounds great. The 3-way crossovers in the Carvin cabinets are great, no muddy sound, no break up. Of course, I hardly get close to clipping the amp so no distortion from that source, either.

 

Been playing with an OLD OLD Roland RD300s, so I've also been using a digitech verb unit and a Boss chorus pedal; getting a newer kb now so I can ditch the peripherals, I hope.

 

Great thing about having all the sound equip is that when you need to go do a thing at church, and you need a mike, presto, you're good to go. Or you are asked to help with some local charity event --- you can emcee, play CDs if you have to, etc.