mikiek
11 posts
Mar 04, 2014
6:29 PM
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Been playing now for about a year and a half. Just me & my Cds - unplugged. A few months back I picked up one of those Bottle o Blues mics with the Smokey amp mainly just to get some volume.
First off let me say I prefer the acoustic sound and don't care much for the amped up overdrive sound.
I don't have enough experience to say whether the B-O-B is any good, but I'm not wild about the Smokey. I have an old Crate GX-60 guitar amp (solid state) that I started plugging into. Fun but definitely missing something and I think the amp is wigging out.
Last week I got a couple of pedals - LW Delay & Reverb. I like what they do particularly since they keep with my acoustic preferences - no distortion.
Given the condition of the amp I may be looking at replacing it soon, maybe with a new mic as well.
It seems like most of you like the tube style amps - from what I gather the tubes help to get the overdrive sound. Given that's not what I'm looking for I'm wondering if I should be looking at tube amps for my sound.
I'm leaning towards a clean mic (Audix Fireball?) and a clean sounding amp. If I want to dirty things up I could go with something like a LW Harp Attack or something similar.
I'm really yapping away here so my questions are:
1. Is the setup I described reasonable?
2. If yes, what would be some options?
I'm not looking for something big. Just a practice/jam amp is all I'm looking for.
Thanks for reading....
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jnorem
76 posts
Mar 04, 2014
6:55 PM
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What you want, it seems to me, is what essentially would amount to a small PA system and a good quality low impedance microphone. And a microphone stand.
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Call me J
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isaacullah
2655 posts
Mar 04, 2014
6:55 PM
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I think it's reasonable. Audix Fireball is a very clean mic, which you want. An SM57 or SM58 style vocal mic will be pretty clean too, if you don't tight cup it. I use a Behringer XM8500 dynamic mic, which stays pretty clean too. For an amp, don't get one meant for guitar. Get a Keyboard amp, a bass amp, a "powered speaker", or a "portable PA" type amp. Crate, Roland, Peavy, KC etc. all make good amps like this in the $150-300 range (more $$ typically gets you more volume). Look for one with at least a 10" speaker.
This setup will let you go completely clean at good volumes. You can use your reverb and delay pedals,a nd if you get a Harp Attack or Amp simulator, you can get a dirty tone that way really easily. Personally, I use a Zoom G3 multifx unit, because I can get all of that in one pedal.
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Greg Heumann
2628 posts
Mar 04, 2014
7:01 PM
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Audix fireball- - warm clean acoustic tone, almost no effect when you cup it
SM58 - - warm clean acoustic tone, some compression/overdrive effect when you cup it
SM57 - - warm clean acoustic tone, dirties up considerably when you cup it.
To me the 58 would make the most sense. The Fireball is a 58 with one less dimension of dynamics.
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***************************************************
/Greg
BlowsMeAway Productions
See my Customer Mics album on Facebook
BlueState - my band
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Last Edited by Greg Heumann on Mar 04, 2014 7:02 PM
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Jehosaphat
698 posts
Mar 04, 2014
9:02 PM
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All good advice above.Very unusual question on the forum in the sense that most everybody starting out seems to be looking for that 'phat chicago tone.
Clean can be done by just simply plugging in a mike into a PA with the channel set up to be harmonica friendly (by ear)if your playing at a Jam.
But if you'd rather have an amp for home and a Jam situation well there are a lot of choices ,but if you want it to be that versatile to do both you do need to look at something more powerful ,say between 30-100W
If i was going down your route i wouldn't disregard valve amps totally there are some guitar amps that take a lot of fiddling around to get them to 'dirty up'.
A fender Blues Deville comes to mind for a start..having owned one, if i was going to go down the clean avenue that would be a definite choice.
In my experience even playing clean harmonica a good Valve amp does better than S/S but yes they cost a lot more and are usually a lot heavier ('specially if there are stairs involved)
Anyway just another slant on things..good luck on your journey.
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Jehosaphat
699 posts
Mar 04, 2014
9:02 PM
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All good advice above.Very unusual question on the forum in the sense that most everybody starting out seems to be looking for that 'phat chicago tone.
Clean can be done by just simply plugging in a mike into a PA with the channel set up to be harmonica friendly (by ear)if your playing at a Jam.
But if you'd rather have an amp for home and a Jam situation well there are a lot of choices ,but if you want it to be that versatile to do both you do need to look at something more powerful ,say between 30-100W
If i was going down your route i wouldn't disregard valve amps totally there are some guitar amps that take a lot of fiddling around to get them to 'dirty up'.
A fender Blues Deville comes to mind for a start..having owned one, if i was going to go down the clean avenue that would be a definite choice.
In my experience even playing clean harmonica a good Valve amp does better than S/S but yes they cost a lot more and are usually a lot heavier ('specially if there are stairs involved)
Anyway just another slant on things..good luck on your journey.
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mikiek
14 posts
Mar 04, 2014
9:22 PM
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Did some quick looking around at some keyboard amps. Most all seem to have a lot of features a harp player wouldn't need - mixers, stereo, effects, etc. I'm thinking I probably want the pedals to do all that.
I'm not trying to get out cheap, but I would rather have my money pay for a top quality speaker(s) rather than a lot of electronics.
On another note, a lot of the amps come with more than one speaker in them. I'm not talking 2x10 or 4x10 - what I'm seeing is a 10"-12" speaker with tweeter and maybe a mid-range as well. Almost like a home stereo speaker.
I seem to recall reading here that those types of speaker combinations don't do well for harps.
Any ideas for something with maybe volume, tone controls and a really good speaker?
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rockmonkeyguitars
22 posts
Mar 05, 2014
5:27 AM
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My favorite amp for acoustic playing is the roland KC. It does have a built in mixer that you say you don't need but it sounds amazing and has Low Z and Hi Z inputs so depending on what mic and pedals you choose to use it can do just about anything. It's line level inputs also means you can hook your mp3 player up to it for some backing tracks and it's got a line out if you want to connect your amp to a pa or to a soundcard for recording
For microphones that are clean the shurs sm58 is amazing if you are holding the mic. If you are using the mic on a stand than I really like the AKG C3000b. It's a condenser mic which means you have to use phantom power, but it sounds amazing with harmonica
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HawkeyeKane
2345 posts
Mar 05, 2014
7:19 AM
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I'd go with a SM58 or an XM8500 depending on your budget. A Peavey KB2 would be my vote for a decently priced clean amp....or if you want some effect to play around with, you could try a Peavey Nano Vypyr modelling amp, which has both a clean microphone channel and a modelled effects channel.
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Hawkeye Kane
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mikiek
16 posts
Mar 05, 2014
7:30 AM
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Thanks rockmonkeyguitars. The KCs look interesting. I like that they have both types of mic inputs.
Two new related questions:
1. I'm seeing 10", 12" and 15" speakers in the cabinets. As far as playing harp goes, is bigger more better?
2. Is anyone familiar with the Orange Crush amps? For the accoustic sound I'm looking for they seem to fit the bill.
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jiceblues
293 posts
Mar 05, 2014
8:01 AM
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A SM58 and an AER COMPACT 60 could be the good way to go for you .The AER is a little & portable PA for bar& porch playin' .1 channel for singin' mic (use this one for the harp mic)& another channel ( or input ) for an electro-acoustic guitar (you can use it for harp mic , but you have less volume) .This little PA is pricey ,but smaller than many amps , and it's the better "clean harp sound" i've ever heard .No tubes , very good quality and longlasting .It's made in Germany .When i get some cash , i buy one to play and sing in clubs and pubs .BTW , no overdrive .
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hooktool
115 posts
Mar 05, 2014
9:03 AM
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Has anyone tried the "Four Force" amp? I know some guitar players are liking them, and I wondered about it as a practice amp. $119 at MF.
John
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rockmonkeyguitars
23 posts
Mar 05, 2014
9:06 AM
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mikiek, the Orange Crush amps are pretty terrible. They have a very compressed and buzzy tone that is bad for guitar and worse for harp.
In terms of speakers, bigger is not always better. It is all about personal preference. The larger speakers tend to have a spongier bass but the bass is fuller. The smaller speakers have a tighter, clearer bass. I tend to gravitate to the 10" speakers but that doesn't mean they are better.
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rbeetsme
1500 posts
Mar 05, 2014
3:26 PM
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Don't overlook a good tube amp with a stick mic (SM58 etc.) Tube amps give you a nice warm tone.
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LSC
603 posts
Mar 05, 2014
4:08 PM
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+1 on the SM58 with an AER Compact 60/2. I think an even better mic is the Shure Beta 87a but the 58 has been a go to mic for decades.
I've been using an AER Combo for several years and have done hundreds of gigs with it. It is built like a tank, superbly engineered and sounds fantastic. I can't tell you how many times I've been complimented on the sound, especially from pro players.
A lot of money yes, but you will never want to buy another amp unless you decide to get a 2nd one.
On top of that they are very versatile. Get a small mixer, I use a Mackie Pro8, and you can add another instrument and vocals. I used that set up for a singer-songwriter contest I ran and it was brilliant. Although rated at just 60 watts I've used mine in a pinch as a vocal PA with a full on blues/rock band and never got the master volume above 12:00. I bought a 2nd Combo 60 and the matching AG-8 powered monitor, a couple of tall mic stands and heychickaday got a PA that a ten year old girl can carry.
BTW, the AG-8 is a Combo 60 without the pre-amp. I no longer need a PA of my own so my AG-8 is for sale. My Combo 60 stays till I die. Best value for money piece of gear I've ever purchased.
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LSC
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LSC
Last Edited by LSC on Mar 05, 2014 4:11 PM
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garry
504 posts
Mar 07, 2014
6:40 PM
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if it's at all possible, get the mic first and go to a store and play through whatever you're considering buying. nothing you read here is going to tell you half as much as blowin' through it and seeing if it moves you.
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