How should a vocalist be amplified when gigging? Is a standard amplifier good enough?

Question

I am in a band and I was wondering how a vocalist should be amplified for practicing and gigging. Drums are usually loud enough and guitarists have their amps. Do vocalists just have a clean amp or is there something else. I keep hearing about PA systems, but I have no idea what they are. Can someone explain it all for me.

Answer 1

if you are singing in a band that are amplified and loud ish!.you need to go through a pa system which is simply an amplifier with speakers and you can experiment with different sound settings .

Answer 2

PA stands for Public Address - so at least that's cleared that up for you. depends what sort of venues and the size of venue you are playing. When I was gigging (way back in the last century) we played pubs and small/medium clubs (remember the old Working Mens Clubs?) and we found it sufficient to have a simple PA amplifier (4 or 5 channels) with 100 watt output and 12 inch speakers plus horns (inbuilt) on stands at either end of the stage area. This formation gives the fullest sound for the vocalist to the audience. We had small monitors so the vocalist and drummer (who was always at the back and thus behind the PA speakers) could hear what he was singing. In small/medium venues we found it not necessary to "mike up" any of the guitars/bass amps since they were powerful enough for the job in hand. One tip for you - have the guitarists either angle their amps backwards so that they send the sound upwards at an angle, or have the guitar amps on chairs or beer crates etc so that the sound from them is more audible to the players; one of the worst things is having the amps on the floor and the sound quite literally going underneath your body which means the player cannot hear himself properly (sounds more bassy than it actually is) while at the same time the audience is getting the sound full blast (especially when the band is on a raised stage) and hears the sound with a lot more treble tone than you do. The concept of mixer desks is OK for large venues when everything has to be "miked up" and balanced by someone at the back of the room/hall, but if you're just starting out (which it sounds like you are) don't waste your money on such things just yet.

Answer 3

here's the basic deal:

PA = a mixing desk (takes in lots of mics and other signals from wherever) + amp + a pair of speakers; left and right.

Normally, you put all vocals and any wind instruments through the PA. Guitar and bass look after themselves. It is also common to mic up the bass drum and the snare - those go through the PA as well. That can quickly eat up eight channels even in a small band.

What you also get with a PA is a monitor channel. That sends some or all of the inputs to monitor speakers - the little triangular ones that sit on the floor. They face the band; without them you can't possibly sing in tune cos you can't hear yourself. Same for wind instruments.

It would be quite unusual for a vocalist to attempt to make do with a stand-alone amp. You might find it hard to persuade anyone to sell you such a thing.

Warning: poor setting up of gig sound is the main cause of band fights and breakups. Get a sound geek to give the whole band a lesson. If you have any dopeheads in your band, tell them they're in charge of lights - keep them AWAY from the sound.

Answer 4

Jonny,

If you are singing in a band you need to buy a microphone, 2 speakers and either an amplifier or mixing desk. You need to plug your mic. into the amp and the signal is sent down through two speaker cables and the sound comes out of the speakers. It depends on how many instruments you are amplifying as to how many channels you will need on your amplifier.
Be careful when buying for the first time as some people will fill your head with jargon which wont make sense to you just to make them sound intelligent. Try and bring someone with you that you can trust. If you are starting with an established band they should have their own P.A. system. Best of luck! M.

Answer 5

Typically a PA system is used........the simple defininition of a PA is a multiple-channel amplifier/mixing board that is connected to large speakers where all of the music/vocals come out of. The amps or microphones are connected to the PA, so that the sound levels can be balanced and will come out of the main speakers. Many times, guitar amps will be "miked" into a PA system instead of connected directly. Also, drums can be miked into the PA.