Need advice on running my own PA

M

Michaelyugo

New member
Hello all,
Tried to post this just a couple minutes ago but it didn't post...if this repeats, I apologize.
I recently bought a Carvin PA (PA620/805) and a small Kustom monitor to do acoustic gigs at local bars and cafes. I've been playing out for a year but always used house PAs with people running the sound. This will be the first time I'm running my own and I'm wondering if there are any basic guidelines I can use to do an initial adjustment for my mic and line levels? I'm going to run a mic for vocals and harp and my acoustic through a DI box with an Acoustic Exciter. I won't have anyone to stand out in front to give me a heads up on tweaking the sound so if there are any basic rules to start from, I'd appreciate any help you can offer.

Cheers,

Michael
 
This is a tough one as you need to be able hear what the PA is putting out whilst you are playing. If you are standing in front of the speakers (to hear what you sound like) you run the risk of everything feeding back.

So, two options.

1) get to know your kit very well and have some ball-park settings to start with. This is primarily for vox however, the exact settings will depend on the shape of the room etc. Set everything up onstage so that no drunk people can "help" ! This is also good as you don't want to leave kit unguarded as people can and will spill beer on stuff, steal anything that isn't nailed down etc etc.

2) Have a friend help with the sound. This is great as they can also help carry stuff up staircases etc etc. If they know what they are doing they can also start with simple stuff like turning things down if they start to feedback.

I started out as the "friend" it it has gotten me into a whole world of trouble !
 
Thanks...
I kind of thought this would be hard to answer because of all the variables... I'll just get there extra early and hope adjust on the fly.

Thanks again
 
PAs are a little different from guitar amps in the way you set them up. Start by turning down the master volume and turning off all efx. Bring up your mic volume, gain and trim, set these fairly high on your individual mic chanels. With the master volume still low you can move to in front of the speakers to listen to what the audience will hear without much risk of feedback. Make any adjustments to EQ to get your best sound, if your PA is small you may want to up the highs just a little, highs cut through crowd noise a little better than lows at lower volumes. Then return the mic(s) to where they will be for your performance, bring up the master volume untill you begin to hear a slight feedback then back it off a little. Cup your hands around the mics, if you still get any feedback lower the master a little more. Do a soundcheck with the bartender/manager to be sure you are within an acceptable volume range. If you are too loud turn down the master, if not loud enough you need a bigger PA or directional mics. Setting the individual chanels high and the master lower will give the mics a little more punch and clarity, if you use reverb, use less than you think you need, reverb will increase the likelyhood of feedback. Try this a few times at home before you go out to set it up for a gig, that way you will have a good idea of the steps and it will go much faster and smoother. I hope this helps, and good luck.
 
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