Headphones vs PA

Bertotti

Bertotti

Inspired
So I have two QSC K10. And My DT880 pro. I need to get away from headphones and now that I expanded with an FC Ollo’s are out of the question for quite awhile. Are the QSC flat enough to do justice to the FX3? Perhaps they may need a bit of eq before the output gets to them? They are the only PA I have ever used.
 
Bertotti said:
So I have two QSC K10. And My DT880 pro. I need to get away from headphones and now that I expanded with an FC Ollo’s are out of the question for quite awhile. Are the QSC flat enough to do justice to the FX3? Perhaps they may need a bit of eq before the output gets to them? They are the only PA I have ever used.
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Any stereo PA setup like that is ideal. PAs are (and always have been, really) designed to be full spectrum and relatively flat, as anything should be able to be run into them in theory and they need to be able to handle the sonic range for doing that (vocals, guitars, drums, etc.) You can always get something like this to ensure you're getting an even flatter response: https://www.ikmultimedia.com/products/arcstudio/?pkey=arc-studio
 
I agree. Your QSC K10s should handle the Axe just fine. Might use the output EQ to tweak the overall output, but just remember that the output EQ affects everything going through that output and isn't tied to any preset. You could also use room correction software, but that's probably overkill in your situation and more applicable to studio playback or audiophile.

Also (and you may already be aware of this), about output EQ, keep in mind that any presets you edit and save will likely be somewhat influenced by the output EQ and may not translate as well to other systems (other PAs, headphones, you said you haven't done any recording, yet, but it would affect that, too. IME, output EQ is a good place to make little tweaks based on the sound of the system you're playing through and the environment you're in. I usually play some well-known-to-me recordings through it, set it that way, and try not to make many/any edits other than just experimenting. You'll find more in the manual about this, too, if you haven't already seen it.
 
Thanks you guys! I’ll keep that arc studio in mind for when I finally get a room dedicated to music!

I have a little mg10 mixer I would sometimes use but in the end found, at least to my ears, it provided more connections to my QSC but never really needed to tweak anything other than leveling things between multiple instruments.
 
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The problem with PA speakers - and the reason you want to use them in tandem with good headphones - is that room acoustics will have a large influence on the sound you hear - dips or peaks of 20 dB or more are very common in smaller rooms. If you compensate for your room acoustics in all your presets, these presets will sound weird in a different room.

The QSC speakers are good, and you should just go ahead and use them. It could be a good idea to listen to your QSCs in many different rooms and always use your headphones as a reference.
 
My set up is IEMs and Helix going direct to the PA. When it comes to creating tones, I do a rough set up with headphones or monitors and tweak everything again at full volume with the PA. That way I don’t add to much bass etc which often seems to happens at lower volumes.
 
I don’t gig but I am curious how many of you use free pa or guitar cabs when you do, or do most people just go foh and use items or a monitor?
 
Bertotti said:
I don’t gig but I am curious how many of you use free pa or guitar cabs when you do, or do most people just go foh and use items or a monitor?
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I go FOH, and 2 cabs in backline, as well as IEM's. Like to have my bases covered. General in my floor monitor I will ask or anything that is lacking in my IEMs and my placement on any given stage
 
I've used QSC K10.2 for a few years now and love them. I use the studio monitor setting to create or check a profile, and then play using the standard setting. I have a small studio room I use monitors in and the Ollo S5 as well. Everything sounds great through all the options, QSC K series are just fine and as stated above, be careful of the output EQ settings.
 
Guitarzan69 said:
I've used QSC K10.2 for a few years now and love them. I use the studio monitor setting to create or check a profile, and then play using the standard setting. I have a small studio room I use monitors in and the Ollo S5 as well. Everything sounds great through all the options, QSC K series are just fine and as stated above, be careful of the output EQ settings.
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I haven’t seen or tried the .2 series. I’m still in my originals. Have to be around 12 years old. Maybe a bit more.
 
Bertotti said:
I don’t gig but I am curious how many of you use free pa or guitar cabs when you do, or do most people just go foh and use items or a monitor?
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For me it’s dependent on the room and the particular project. Sometimes I use IEMs (but typically only where the whole band is set up for it and we control our individual monitor mixes), sometimes I use the house wedges, and sometimes I bring my own powered wedge for monitoring myself (usually where it’s a small venue and I’m not confident they can dial me in a decent mix and/or where we won’t have a soundcheck).
 
Bertotti said:
Are any of you busking with a fractal?
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I’m considering it for this summer - our small PA and other electric/electronic gear can all run off batteries, but I’d need to find a power supply that will provide 120v/40w for several hours. Does anyone have any recommendations, ideally for something quite portable and that doesn’t cost more than the Fractal modeller it’s powering?
 
Rumbletone said:
I’m considering it for this summer - our small PA and other electric/electronic gear can all run off batteries, but I’d need to find a power supply that will provide 120v/40w for several hours. Does anyone have any recommendations, ideally for something quite portable and that doesn’t cost more than the Fractal modeller it’s powering?
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I still have an older Honda gas generator. I wonder how well these new solar generators work. That technology has come quite far but I don’t know if it has come far enough.
 
Bluetti makes a good lithium power station and you can attach portable solar panels that they sell. The Fractal unit would be fine to run with their 600 Watt unit. I think its about $279 CND but the problem is running a PA...you would need a larger power station to handle the Wattage and they can get pricey.
 
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