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HI,
I am looking for an amp to play through using condenser mics and eventually some pick-ups. I have heard of vibes players using the Roland JC-120 or The Fender twin reverb. Personally I like the sound of tube amps better and there is someone selling a fender reissue 65 super reverb amp on craigslist.Do you think a super reverb would work well with a vibraphone? Do any of you use amps? or do most people just go into a PA?

Comments

tonymiceli Wed, 05/06/2009 - 03:45

i use to jbl 10s and then a small mixer. it works great for me.

with the pick ups i've just a roland amp with chorus and that was great. but i don't think for mics. I think you should use a pa for them. and there are some really good small ones out there now.

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Tony Miceli
s k y p e: tjazzvibe
i c h a t: tonymiceli
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www.myspace.com/tonymicelivibes

John Keene Wed, 05/06/2009 - 18:25

In reply to by tonymiceli

Whether it's vibes or keyboards, I always carry my own monitor. So for vibes, I'd carry my own mixer, then run one line to the mains and another line to my own monitor. This way I can hear myself if the soundman is asleep at the switch. If the house sound is fine, I can always turn my own monitors off. I'd rather have my own and not use it than wish I had brought it with me.

Of course, this is all relative to the size and volume you have to deal with. For acoustic music, I rarely worry about it but for electric music it works better for me to bring my own sound. I use Roland a KC 300 for an instrument monitor, but that's because I already owned one so there may be much better options out there.

Randy_Sutin Thu, 05/07/2009 - 06:31

In reply to by John Keene

I bring my own PA most places too. The spikes created by the sound of vibes through good microphones generally distort the front end of any guitar amp or the like because their preamps just can't handle it.

When I have my full rig, I use a pair of Rode NT1A mics, a Presonus MP20 preamp, a Mackie board, TC Electronic effects (for a little reverb that sounds quite natural if properly adjusted) and a Crown amplifier. But that's too much for many gigs, soooo...

On many gigs, I just bring my mics and a Mackie SRM-150.. You can see one here...
http://www.zzounds.com/item--MACSRM150
It's a nice half-way point, giving me a little boost for small rooms, and when there is a house PA, I just run a line off that and like John, I have my own monitor plus the ability to adjust what gets sent to the mains. And it fits in a shopping bag with all my wires and mics.

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