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Joined:
November 2003
Posts: 56
Location: Edmond, Oklahoma | Sorry to bring up the "what's the best acoustic amp" subject again, but there's one feature I desire that I haven't seen mentioned. Since I have an Ovation with XLR output, I'd like an acoustic amp that has two channels, BOTH of which have XLR and standard 1/4" inputs. Specifically, I'd like to be able to use two XLR inputs at the same time (guitar and mic as sources).
I tried a Genz Benz Shenandoah 100 last night, and was pleased by the sound and features. It does have the 2-channel XLR support. And it's on sale, locally :D . But at 47 pounds, it's heavier than I'd care to carry around. The other amp on my short list, the Roland AC-60, is spec'd at 21 pounds, 10 oz (sweet), but only has one XLR input, like most acoustic amps I've seen.
Does anyone know other good acoustic guitar amps with two XLR inputs? And lighter than 47 pounds?
Although I have the gear lust, I think I'll pass on the Shen 100 this time around, as I'm also preparing to buy a new bass amp. It will definitely weigh more than 47 pounds, but what can you do?
Also, I have more options for amping the acoustic guitars. I recently acquired a Roland Cube 30 monitor (not the guitar amp). That works very well with my acoustic guitars, but does not provide phantom power (if I understand correctly). And it only has one XLR input. And, if I were desperate, I could take my 100W PA. It's a low-end piece of gear, I guess, but I'm surprised by how good my instruments sound through it. Going the PA route has some attractions (4 channels, each with 1/4" and XLR inputs), but that's a head, two speakers, and wires to carry around. Not terribly convenient. | |
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Joined:
April 2005
Posts: 331
Location: San Angelo, Texas | Genz-Benz has a some smaller amps that are lighter...I have some in stock if your interested...the 60 is awesome, has the two inputs, and is light compared to Fender and some others... | |
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Joined:
November 2002
Posts: 1300
Location: Madison, Wisconsin | The 60 does have dual inputs but the sound isn't the same as the Jr or the 100. | |
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Joined:
November 2003
Posts: 56
Location: Edmond, Oklahoma | I looked at a Shen 60 last night. Only one channel had an XLR input. Otherwise, I would be more interested in it. | |
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Joined:
June 2004
Posts: 580
Location: NW NJ | I have a Shen 85 (predecessor to the 100) and love it. The 85 and the 100 and the 200 all have both 1/4 inch and XLR inputs on both channels.
An added bonus is that all four intputs are active all the time. That way, in a pinch, you can run two instruments on 1/4 inch cables and two mics at the same time with XLR cables (you end up balancing the relative volume between the mic and instrument on each channel with the instrument's onboard preamp volume control). I guess that also means that you could run four instruments through it if two had XLR outs also. Not ideal, but I have used all four inputs once or twice in a pinch. | |
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Joined:
November 2005
Posts: 33
Location: Bratislava, Slovakia | Hi.
Marshall AS100 from UK - four channels, two with XLR input, digital effects 100W
Marshall Acoustic Soloist 100W
about 650$, 21 Kilogramm
But maybe not that, what you are searching for. | |
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Joined:
February 2002
Posts: 5750
Location: Scotland | Acoustic amps are always a compromise, especiallly smaller/lighter models. A much more versatile and IMHO better sounding option is to buy an active 10" loudspeaker such as the Mackie SRM300 and a mini mixer with onboard digital effects. | |
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Joined:
January 2004
Posts: 338
Location: SE Michigan | I agree with Paul, most acoustic amps will fall short in the area of vocals. Also for some reason they all seem to have these little 6 or 8 inch speakers. You need a big speaker to get decent bass tone. But I admit that I have never tried the larger higher powered amps like the Genz-Benz or the big Marshall.
I recently sold my Marshall AR50 and bought a Yorkville NX55P which is a powered 12 inch speaker with a horn, it only weighs about 42 pound but cranks out 550 watts and sounds killer. I also picked up a small Yamaha effects 8-channel mixer, so now I have a verstile small PA that can fill a lot of different roles such as serving as a monitor with a larger PA. And although it is two seperate pieces, I think this is an advantage; I can keep the mixer near me for control and mount the speaker up on a stand if needed.
Later when funds are available I plan to buy a second powered speaker and I'll have a respectible small PA that could keep up with a full band in a small club. | |
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Joined:
November 2003
Posts: 56
Location: Edmond, Oklahoma | Actually (he said sheepishly), I already have a nice mini-mixer with two small powered speakers connected to it. I've got it sitting right beside me in my "studio": otherwise known as the room I and my toys are banished to. Toys being musical instruments and equipment, computer, bookshelves and even a weight machine.
I guess I didn't consider it seriously, because a single unit seems much more portable than multiple pieces of gear + cables. Perhaps I need to invest in a nice carrying box for all the components, rather than more gear. Undoubtedly, my wife would agree with that strategy.
I now remember considering that tactic earlier this week, but was intimidated by the prices I was seeing for powered speakers.
My Alesis MultiMix 8FX is quite compact. It has 6 channels (or 8, if you count the top two as stereo), 4 with XLR. And phantom power. And effects. If it were packaged in a single box, it would be like a Shenandoah 60 (two small speakers), but with more channels than the 100. The only thing it lacks is an integrated DI output. Oh, well. I always carry spare DI boxes, anyway.
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On another subject: I think I blew out the speakers on my P.A. system today. It's a cheap unit, or I wouldn't have experimented with it.
This week, I was invited to play bass at a new church that's trying to bring its music program together. That encouraged me to implement the next phase in my multi-stage master plan to upgrade my gear. At home, I use a 25 watt practice bass amp. But in the outside world, there have been times when that just wasn't adequate. It's still a good monitor, but not an area amplifier. I want to be able to able to function on my own, when I have to play outside or in an unfamilar setting, so I convinced myself that I need a good-quality no-excuses bass amp. Things worked out yesterday, and to my surprise, I ended up with a very nice bass amp head (from my perspective). It's Genz Benz, so I'm staying in the Kaman family. The GAS monster has gone back to sleep.
One of my criteria was to have enough power for any conceivable situation I'm likely to encounter. This unit has 225/350 watts at 8/4 ohms. Quite a step up. Problem is, I don't have a speaker cabinet for it yet. So, I thought I'd plug my P.A. speakers into it, and keep the levels very low. Worked great for about 10 minutes of practice... then it died. Now I have to get the P.A. head back out of storage, to see if I toasted its speakers. At least there wasn't any smoke. And I may have an excuse to get some better speakers for the P.A.
And I'm eager to try the bass amp as a possible acoustic guitar amp. Just have to buy a cabinet now. | |
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Joined:
February 2002
Posts: 5750
Location: Scotland | Originally posted by TimG:
The only thing it lacks is an integrated DI output. Actually, the outputs on the Alesis are balanced TRS 1/4 sockets, which means that all you need are a couple of TRS to XLR adaptors. Run one channel to the active speaker and use the other as a DI out to the main PA, no extra DI boxes required. If you want to run 2 speakers just daisy-chain from one to the other. | |
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Joined:
November 2004
Posts: 110
Location: Peoria, Illinois | Tim,
Check out the Ultrasound DS3. It has just the combination of features you are looking for. If you go to the Ultrasound web site you can print off the operating guide and read about all the features. It has 2 combo inputs that will both handle XLR and 1/4 inch signals. I have no experience with these amps, but have done a lot of reading with the hope of adding an acoustic amp to the gear. I feel like I need one for my Glen Campbell re-issue 12-string! Right now I have been playing the GC through a Roland Cube 30 set on the "acoustic" amp model, and it does not sound too bad. Make sure you look at the DS3 specifically, as the older versions do not have the feature you are looking for. The weight is listed at 24 pounds. | |
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Joined:
November 2003
Posts: 56
Location: Edmond, Oklahoma | Thanks for the tip on the Ultrasound. It looks perfect.
I must be getting distracted by too many toys. I completely forgot about the possibility of using my Roland CM-30 Cube Monitor (not the guitar amp, but the 30-watt powered monitor). I don't think it has phantom power (I'll have to check on that), but it's a versatile box with three input channels. It can function as a very simple mixer (each channel has a volume knob, plus master volume and overall tone), so any FX should be applied before entering the monitor. One channel includes XLR. My Ovations sound good through it. In order to get back to the stated goal of two XLR inputs, one could connect two of them. Might have to add a phantom power box, though. | |
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Joined:
November 2003
Posts: 56
Location: Edmond, Oklahoma | Hmmmm. There is no documentation (or specs) I could find that indicates the presence of phantom power in the CM-30 monitor. However, the guitar's XLR output worked fine through it! And the sound was good. I would perhaps have expected a little more volume from 30 watts, but good nontheless. Perhaps a dual CM-30 setup really would be a good and affordable acoustic amp system. | |
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Acoustic Amps - Again