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[Hugh Proctor]

Thanks for the advice.  I've got my gear racked up pretty good. B***inger UB2442FX mixer, eq, and Feedback Destroyer all live in a DJ style slant front case.  My effects and amps are in homemade plywood cases, with handles, painted flat black.  I've got power strips in each case, and patch bays to tie the cases together.

Your idea about the snake really hit home.  That is probably what I will buy next.  I like to keep the mixer off stage, but current cable lengths limit how far away I can get.  A snake makes a ton of sense, and it will make us look more professional, with a cleaner looking stage set up.

Mics are currently Shure PG48's for vocals, Nady instrument mics on drums and guitar/bass amps.  I should probably improve the vocal mics, but I don't know how much bang for the buck I would get.

[Jeff Wheeler]

Hugh Proctor wrote on Sun, 08 August 2010 07:56

I should probably improve the vocal mics, but I don't know how much bang for the buck I would get.

It's not hard to improve on the mics you mention, but there certainly are other areas where you need to spend money first.  To be honest, I would start with a decent FX unit.  This may not make sense at first, but a good reverb and tap-delay is likely to improve your sound/capabilities more than spending the same amount of money on any other item.  The Behringer built-in FX leave much to be desired.

[Hugh Proctor]

I've got a Peavey DeltaFex I use for reverb.  The built in effects on the B****nger went out not too long after I got the mixer.  Made a horrible periodic ticking/scratching sound in the mix, even when no effects were being used.  Had to pull the effects board out of the mixer to make the ticking go away.

[Ned Ward]

Not a problem. I just bought a small 8 ch subsnake to go from my mix position (Stage Left) to the middle front of the stage; I realized at our last show I was running 8 30' cables:
4x vox
2x keyboard/guitar player
2x monitors

Now with the snake, I lay one cable, the snake head lives between the monitors and smaller/more manageable cables for the 8 needs.

Mics - I'd upgrade your mics and bass DI before effects, but that's me. Why? Too many gigs where we got there, had zero time to setup before playing, and didn't set up effects. For bar gigs, ensuring vocals are clear and feedback free should be top priority; effects would come next. In fact, running things dry gives you more time to play and mix levels vs. worrying about effects types/levels.  I'd spend money accordingly there. SM58's should sound better than a PG48, but never having had a PG48, can't say.

Jeff's point is equally valid; since the OP is playing while mixing I'm, trying to recommend solutions that Keep It Simple from what I've learned.

Amp/Drum mics - I haven't heard the Nady so I can't comment on their sound quality; I have found that in most of the bar/pubs we play in, we haven't needed to mic drums other than possibly kick and snare, and then rarely. Guitars - the SM57 is a great all-around mic; there are many mics better than it for specific jobs, but you can't go wrong with a few to use on guitar amps, snares, vocals, etc. Also they're $100 and not more.

Feedback Destroyer - I had an older one (the DSP1124P) and never used it as I didn't have time to fool around with it. Friday I set one up in our rehearsal room, and it's definitely not a 100% solution - it kills a big part of the sound, and there's lots of grainy system noise in there (I knew this going in that it wouldn't be perfect, and for $75 4 years ago, it owes me nothing). Are you using this on your Kustom Monitors? I'd suggest getting either a DBX231 or similar and use this to ring out the monitors; if you then want the Feedback Destroyer on after as a safety measure, great but  I wouldn't use it as your be-all end all monitor EQ. While they do have parametric EQ, cutting with sliders is a lot faster when you're under the gun.  I did just get a FBQ2496 for $50 on eBay to replace the older unit, and will see if that makes our rehearsal space more livable. Better monitors down the road will help tremendously with your feedback woes as will mic placement.

[Jeff Wheeler]

I was responding under the assumption that the OP is the sound guy for the band, not also a musician who is on-stage playing in the band.  It doesn't seem entirely clear.

Ned Ward wrote on Sun, 08 August 2010 19:50

Amp/Drum mics

I see this as a "money channel" problem, first and foremost.  Fix the things the audience will hear most clearly, then worry about the rest.

The OP's budget is probably small and purchasing decent mics for everything may take some time.  Going from PG48s to SM58s might be a great change for them, and it might not, depending on their voices and mic technique.  But having a decent reverb does make a pretty big difference even with a really low-budget PA, cheap mics, etc.

If the OP is both sound guy and musician, he may consider other options such as a vocal foot pedal, an FX unit within reach of the stage and setup with useful presets, a volume or mute pedal on the FX device output, whatever.  There's more than one way to skin a cat.

Ned Ward wrote on Sun, 08 August 2010 19:50

Are you using this on your Kustom Monitors? I'd suggest getting either a DBX231 or similar and use this to ring out the monitors; if you then want the Feedback Destroyer on after as a safety measure, great but  I wouldn't use it as your be-all end all monitor EQ.

I own six Kustom wedges, and I use them for hours every week. (karaoke)  They are very beamy and you really need to ring them out with the mic in just the right spot, otherwise you will have feedback every time the singer steps into that spot where the wedge actually sounds good.  A small step to either side and vocal intelligibility is totally lost, but you can still hear plenty of mud and HF.

EQ can only do so much for those things.  While it is certainly a needed tool; I wanted to point out to the OP that they are very poor wedges and an upgrade will make a night-and-day difference in musician happiness.  Whether or not it will do anything for the audience depends entirely on how well the musos deal with crappy wedges.