Which PA (public address) system should I buy for my band?

Question

I play in a four piece rock and roll band. I have an acoustic guitar with a built in pick up of medium to good quality. I sing and want myself and the acoustic going through the PA. The lead guitarist uses a Marshall cab and the bassist uses a smallish Trace Elliott bass cab. The drummer is jazzy, so not too loud, although he can rock when need be. So what PA should I buy? I hear that Peavey are good. If so, what ohm, wattage etc? I want to use the PA for practices and to play small venues like pubs etc. My budget is about 400 squid!

Answer 1

I had a similar small budget and had to do some serious research on the net. Having spoke to those in the industry, they all agree to avoid the budget Pa packages in particular Berhringer who have an appalling record of faulty equippment. Budget Peavy cabs (anything less than 250 quid each is classed budget!!) are also know to be a bit 'distorty' at high volume.EVP's are the best but to expensive. Plastic moulded cabs have a tendency to rattle so go for carpet covered. I was advised to get Yahmaha cabs ( I use AX 15s 400 watts max) for their reliabilty (lowest return rate!) and build quality..but unless you can afford 500-600 each on the cabs alone, there is very little to choose between in terms of quality as their not going to be as cyrstal clean as high end equippment. As for powered mixers I kept comming back to Phonic PowerPod range (740/865 ) 2x300watts. (4ohms amp for main L&R) ..24bit digital stereo effects effects, 8 balanced mic inputs also Hi-Z inputs for guitar Di.main Graphic Eq plus 3band eq for channel strip...input for CD etc...it had everything I needed. I use my Pa for live and for running a rock school..so it get cained and its all still working. If you can push your budget a bit you can get something similar. Look for at least 2x 300/400 on the cabs and 2x220/300 (4 ohms)on powermixer.Thats loud enough for small venues/pubs. Make shure the cabs can handle more than the mixer! Don't forget to budget for cables and speaker stands..some retailers may chuck in the cables but stands can go for 25 quid or so a pair.

Answer 2

I played in a 5 piece pub band with a peavey mixer amp [about 200W x 2 channels] and Yamaha cabs. It was ok but not dead clean. I think the yamaha cabs let it down. I would guess you want about 200W, but if you get more you have headroom for transients and it can sound cleaner. For impedance of output - don't worry as long as the speakers match the amp.
Since you are not too grungy, Bose might be good, but a bit pricey. They have a reputation for being great for acoustic sounds. I heard a concert of folk music where they sounded amazing through Bose, with elec piano, acoustic guitars and voices.

Answer 3

See which ones sounds good. I have this fender PA thats very nice, portable and very affordable. I know you can find one at any music store with PA's. Check it out and see if you like it.