Re: [Harp-L] Micing a Harp Amp into the PA

[Richard Hunter <turtlehill@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Rick Davis wrote:
<I may be an apostate on this but I actually prefer to use a line out in
<most situations.  A good line out will sound as good as a mic in most
<settings, and better in some settings.

Not an apostate view at all, but it begs the question of what a "good" line out is.  The answer is that a good line out gets its signal post-amplifier stage, not post-preamp stage.    

Most line-outs on inexpensive amps take their signal from the preamp (usually a 12AX7 tube in a small amp), BEFORE the signal hits the amplifier stage (where a 6L6 or similar tube pumps up the volume on the distorted signal from the preamp).  In other words, you get all the distortion and none of the fatness in the line-out tone; your sound is the sound of the preamp, NOT the amp.

This isn't necessarily a bad thing; like any sound, it can work in some situations. But you're generally better off with a line-out that gets its signal post-amplifier stage.  Ron Holmes modified my Crate VC508 to take its line-out signal post-amplifier, and it's much more representative now of the real sound of the amp.  If you plan to use the line-out on your amp regularly, it's a good idea to have an amp tech do a similar mod on your amp.  

Of course I almost always use my Digitech RP for live performance now, and my signal to the board is always a line-out with that rig.

regards, Richard Hunter





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