Live Performance questions

[jndietz]

When playing live, whether it be outdoors or indoors, what is a good setup to start out with? I'm investing in some large loudspeakers right now, and then going to invest in a Yamaha powered mixer.

as far as floor monitors and a subwoofer go, how does that all get set up? does it all come out of one amp? or does it need to come out of seperate amps? I was reading the manual to a Yamaha powered mixer, and it said I could have floor monitors and live monitors come out of one amp, but what about a subwoofer?

 

[Dani Pace]

Are you looking at a stereo powered mixer or mono? Not that it matters, the monitor outs (monitor send) are not normaly speaker outs, they are line outs. Better mixers have assignable monitors, this allows the sound man to control which speaker(s) each chanel goes out to. Most powered mixers only have power for the main speakers, power amps for the monitors are seperate. The number of chanels you will need will depend on how many mics you need and how many instruments you want to run through the PA. It's always nice to have a couple more than you need. Powered monitors (with built in power amps) are nice, they allow you to control the volume of each individualy, and have a line out to let you string as many (or as few) as you need or can afford. Most sub woofers require a seperate power amp designed for low frequencies. A good PA will improve the sound of almost any band and good monitors are a "must have" for the band to hear what everyone is doing. You want lots of power (RMS watts) for a PA, more than you really need if possible. More power means you don't have to push the PA as hard so you get less distortion, a PA is ment to amplify the sounds without changing them.

 

[jndietz]

I have two 600W passive monitors in the mail right now ... and will be in the market for a good powered mixer soon. i will also be getting floor monitors soon as well.

not really sure what route to take, i was checking out yamaha powered mixers and they seem really nice.

 

[Air Duster]

Honestly, for a real PA set up you're going to want a few power amps. It's a great investment anyway because then you know you can handle whatever live situation comes up. Whoever said it up there is correct, you're gonna want to have more power on tap than you need rather than "just enough" or too little. You never know what may come up.

I've had excellent luck with Crown.