Playing with a mic through an Amp..

I've gone through a bunch of threads here about which amplifier to get, and what to look for in the amp, but I couldn't find anyone talking about using a mic at the sound hole of your uke to play through an amp.

I'm gearing up to play some live shows with my band at school, and need to get an amp.

I'm using a microphone to play through the amp (none of my ukes have pickups), what should I look for in an amp?

Should I look for amps geared for acoustic guitars?

I'm looking for something for small gigs like coffeehouses and such, and around the 200$ and under range in terms of price.


Any tips would be a great help,
Paul

Acoustic amp is preferable because it acts like a mini PA -- it doesn't color the sound like an electric guitar amp does.

As far as your price range goes, you may have to look for used. Try to find something with at least 30 watts. You could go for less wattage, but a room can get noisy and drown out smaller amps.

For a new amp, this Behringer Ultracoustic could do the trick -- 45W will work in most situations that you mentioned. Plus -- at just over 20lbs, it's not too heavy. I don't have this one, but I do have one of their powered PA speakers that works well.

Not much help for what amp to get but idk if you know this but if you dont want to use a microphone you can always buy external pickup. I dont believe that they are too expensive.

Stackabones said:

For a new amp, this Behringer Ultracoustic could do the trick -- 45W will work in most situations that you mentioned. Plus -- at just over 20lbs, it's not too heavy. I don't have this one, but I do have one of their powered PA speakers that works well.

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I bought this very amp and am soo pleased with it. The sound quality is amazing! This was the first amp i bought and i wouldnt change it for anything! It comes with two channels and it has a XLR conector on the other channel with loads of effects too.

hope that helps

Sam

one80 said:

I bought this very amp and am soo pleased with it. The sound quality is amazing! This was the first amp i bought and i wouldnt change it for anything! It comes with two channels and it has a XLR conector on the other channel with loads of effects too.

hope that helps

Sam

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Cool, Sam! Thanks for the review. :shaka:

In all those threads on amplification that you already visited, fellow member Howlin' Hobbit mentions his setup a few times as well. He uses a microphone all the time, check his posts as well.

UkeNinja said:

In all those threads on amplification that you already visited, fellow member Howlin' Hobbit mentions his setup a few times as well. He uses a microphone all the time, check his posts as well.

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I need to find those! Some situations could be difficult to go mic only, but most of time it would be the best sound.

Here's a review of several amps I've played and/or own (I own about 4 dozen amps for different applications):

http://www.ukuleleunderground.com/forum/showthread.php?t=5333&highlight=battery

I use the MXL990 large diaphram condensor microphone that requires phantom power, on Howlin' Hobbit's and Nina Coquina's recommendations. It has a wide pattern that picks up voice and instruments from several feet away. All the amplification on the stage is battery powered. This photo is from last Halloween evening, playing for a crowd of about 150 at the Ocean House in Carlsbad, California. Ric

Kustom make some nice budget acoustic amps as well. The very least you want is an amp with some kind of reverb - even if it is just a standard electric amp.

Shadow makes a very nice stick on (the soundboard) acoustic (originally for nylon string guitars) pickup with volume and tone control. It is tiny, so it won't be in the way. You can fix it temporarily or permanently. The sound quality is excellent, it is easier to work than a microphone. It should retail for around $120 including lead from pickup to amp (has a mini jack on the pickup side and regular jack on the other end). I found these one of the 'truest' pickups.

You can also make a pickup for under $10 bucks. I've done it to several:

http://www.ukuleleunderground.com/forum/showthread.php?t=8560&highlight=pickup

ricdoug -- I've read your reviews of the Carvin and it looks like a good fit for what I want to do. I'm also considering the Crate Taxi50, which is around the same price -- but less wattage and a bit lighter, too. I know you reviewed the Taxi30, but have you any experience with the Taxi50?

Here's an entry in my blog that talks about my sound system.

Howlin Hobbit said:

Here's an entry in my blog that talks about my sound system.

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Thanks! Great blog entry.

ricdoug said:

I use the MXL990 large diaphram condensor microphone that requires phantom power, on Howlin' Hobbit's and Nina Coquina's recommendations. It has a wide pattern that picks up voice and instruments from several feet away. All the amplification on the stage is battery powered. This photo is from last Halloween evening, playing for a crowd of about 150 at the Ocean House in Carlsbad, California. Ric

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Ric, Is that a MXL990 ,not a 990s right. Is everyone in the middle singing and playing through it. What do you have the MXL hooked into? It looks like the guy on the far left, Bass player and maybe the far right are going through separate amps and the rest are being picked up by the condenser. I am interested as i have not found a good setup for small gigs. I also read HHs link.

Stackabones said:

ricdoug -- I've read your reviews of the Carvin and it looks like a good fit for what I want to do. I'm also considering the Crate Taxi50, which is around the same price -- but less wattage and a bit lighter, too. I know you reviewed the Taxi30, but have you any experience with the Taxi50?

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When I bought the Carvin S400D (D for digital effects), I had been through about two months of testing acoustic amps like the Crate Taxi TX50 (I already owned a TX15, which I commonly mistakingly refer to it as a TX30), Roland AC60 and AC90, Crate Gunnison, Kustom Cimmaron and several others. The Carvin S400D won hands down in tonal quality, versatility, build quality, acoustical output and cleanliness of sound. The tonal quality of the Taxi Limo TX50 was not even close to the sound of the Carvin S400D. At medium to large size gigs, you need to get the sound above the heads of the audience, or it will be absorbed and sound like mud. The Carvin S400D and the newer Crate Taxi Limo TX50SE are stand mountable. The Carvin S400D runs 6 hours at full power with the extra battery (three hours full power with one battery) and the Crate Taxi Limo runs 2 hours at full power. I bought my Carvin S400D with the extra battery, extension speaker, 50' speaker cable and speaker stands. Ric

Carvin S400D manual:

http://www.carvinguitars.com/manuals/s400d.pdf

Crate Taxi Limo TX50 manual:

http://img3.musiciansfriend.com/dbase/pdf/man/m_487761.pdf

Ukuleleblues said:

Ric, Is that a MXL990 ,not a 990s right. Is everyone in the middle singing and playing through it. What do you have the MXL hooked into? It looks like the guy on the far left, Bass player and maybe the far right are going through separate amps and the rest are being picked up by the condenser. I am interested as i have not found a good setup for small gigs. I also read HHs link.

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It's an MXL990. I bought mine in a set that included an instrument mic, locally. Mine did not come with a shockmount, but it did come with a mic stand adaptor:

http://pro-audio.musiciansfriend.co...ndenser-Microphone-with-Shockmount?sku=273156



The MXL990S has more features. I have not tried one:

http://pro-audio.musiciansfriend.com/product/MXL-990s-Condenser-Microphone?sku=273103

I bought the 990 on Howlin' Hobbit's recommendation. Here's the dilenma I needed to solve: I've played guitar in Rock, Blues and Country bands. I'm used to microphones like the Shure SM58's (vocal) and Shure SM57's (instrumental). These mikes are super cardioid (very directional and distance sensitive). You have to sing/play close and on center for proper sound. This prevents bleedover from stage amps, drums and feedback from monitors. It works great when you understand and apply this...

BUT!!!...............

When putting musicians on stage that are uncomfortable playing and singing with these restrictions, it is IMPOSSIBLE to balance the mix!!! I had several people that would stand 2 feet away from the microphones and complain that the volume was not loud enough. If I turned the inputs up there would be howl and squeel feedback.

After several posts and inquiries back and forth with Howlin' Hobbit, I bought the MXL 990 and a Behringer Xenyx 802 mixer (the 802 has phantom power for the condensor mic MXL 990):

http://pro-audio.musiciansfriend.com/product/Behringer-Xenyx-802?sku=631263



People singing anywhere with 4 feet of the MXL 990 can be heard clearly. Anywhere on the stage behind and to the sides of the MXL 990 will be heard, not as loud or clear. Any amplification on stage will be heard through the main system, too. The caveat is that you cannot use a monitor with the MXL 990, because it WILL feedback. The MXL 990 picks up anything in front or to the sides of it and even some behind it. It's quite a learning curve to sing on pitch on a stage in front of a large crowd with lots of ambient noise, but singers/players can move around without destroying the sound mix.

In the above photo, Donna's playing bass through a Roland Microcube RX Bass that is placed on stage behind the microphone. Captain Mike (retired Naval Captain) on the left is playing through one of the amps and the rest of the ukuleles on the stage are being picked up by the MXL 990, which is feeding that sound through the Carvin S400D.

I was very sceptical about the usability of a wide pattern microphone like the MXL 990. In my paradigm, it could not possibly work. That paradigm's broken, as the MXL990 works fine for this application. It would be a nightmare if the stage volume was high, as in a rock band. Ric

Thanks for the details on the Carvin and Crate, Ric.

Also, cool stuff on the mic. Though I mainly do solo acoustic git/vox gigs, I've been considering a one-mic approach for the vox and git. I wonder if the MXL is the ticket? I usually plug my guitar into a Baggs PADI and sing through a Shure SM58. I dig the Shure, but I'd like to find a mic solution for the guitar. I use a Schatten, which is really good ... still, I want a better representation of the acoustic sound.

what i recommend you do is connect your mic and amp through a mixer or pre amp so you can adjust EQ and levels. i would set aside a bit out of the 200 to get a mmixer with the amp. this is my personal preferance, i like having all the controls so i can get the perfect sound for the song. you may want to leave the mixer and just get a better amp, it's upto you. this is just what i would do.

peace :cheers: and beer

soz, i didn't look at the posts above. i use the behringer mixer above, it's basic but it's probably all you'll need at this stage, and it's a really good mixer for the price

and it's great for youtube vids and recording things

peace :cheers: and beer